LINCOLN- With just under two weeks left in the Nebraska Legislature's 108th session, there's a sense of disappointment among a group of state senators who have watched their bills to help the poor go nowhere. Past studies have shown that state-sponsored assistance programs, like the federally-funded Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, are one of the strongest tools in fighting to end poverty.

Each year, Nebraska receives roughly $56.6 million through TANF, and allocates the funding through the Department of Health and Human Services. However, Nebraska's TANF "rainy day" fund is currently hovering around $131 million, meaning assistance is not being given to Nebraska's poorest families. According to the Department, it's because there are far fewer families in need of the funding. Among Nebraska's more impoverished families, though, it's a different story.

According to Kjersten Hyberger, a Lincoln resident who has applied for TANF in the past, the application process is exceedingly cumbersome, and is often not worth the trouble to only be awarded around $300 a month. Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh called on DHHS to begin actively disbursing funds, but has been told that plans are "currently under review." Other senators were angered by their colleagues' intentions to take money out of the TANF surplus and allocate the money elsewhere.

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