The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996
revised Title IV-A of the Social Security Act and replaced Aid to Families with Dependent
Children (AFDC) with cash block grants to States and Indian tribes for Temporary Assistance
for Needy Families (TANF). This legislation ended the Federal entitlement of the individuals
cash assistance under Title IV-A, and gave States and tribes the flexibility to design
their own cash assistance programs for providing aid to needy families.
The Michigan Family Independence Agency (MFIA) has agreed to share data regarding
the Family Independence Program (FIP) and workers compensation (WC) with the Social
Security Administration. This process is referred to as Social Security Access to
State Records Online (SASRO). Online access to obtain FIP and WC benefit information
through the Michigan Unified Query (MUQ) under SASRO is considered primary evidence of income. To access the MUQ database, open Internet Explorer and type the following in the address
field: https://www.mfia.state.mi.us/ssa
Because States determine their own eligibility criteria and set benefit amounts, the
TANF program and requirements vary from State-to-State.