Wyoming POWER (Cash Assistance / TANF)

POWER stands for Personal Opportunities With Employment Responsibilities, and it is Wyoming's version of TANF. It gives monthly cash assistance to low-income families with a child in the home, paired with a work program. There is also a Caretaker Relative track for a relative raising a child whose parents are absent. To start, download the Application for Assistance, which comes in English and Spanish, and contact your local Department of Family Services office to set up an appointment.

The cash amount depends on your family size and your housing. A family of three that pays part of its own shelter can get up to $646 a month. If all of the family's shelter is provided free, the payment level is higher, up to $939 a month for a family of three. Your caseworker sets the exact amount based on your household's income and situation, so treat these as the top of the range.

POWER is time-limited, so plan around the clock from the start. It is a Pay-After-Performance program with a five-year lifetime limit, which is 60 months of benefits over your whole life. Once those months are used, they are gone, so many families use POWER as a bridge while they build steady work rather than a long-term plan.

Because it is Pay-After-Performance, the work comes first. Adults who must take part in the POWER Work program have to start meeting the requirements right away. You also have to show 30 calendar days of compliance before your first monthly payment is authorized. Knowing this up front helps you avoid the surprise of waiting a month before any cash arrives.

Wyoming also looks at what your household owns. The combined countable assets of the POWER family are limited to $5,000. Countable resources include money in checking and savings accounts, income-producing property, and stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. Income limits apply too, and your local office runs the exact numbers for your family.

To apply, complete the Application for Assistance and contact your local DFS office for an appointment. For general questions about the program, call 307-473-3948. For questions about a payment once you are enrolled, call 1-307-777-2550. POWER can open the door to other help, so ask about SNAP and Medicaid while you are there.