The Healthy Marriage Initiative

The Healthy Marriage Initiative began at the federal level to provide funding and support to states and community-based organizations to engage in activities that encourage and strengthen marriage.

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, in which the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families was reauthorized, provided funding of $150 million each year for healthy marriage promotion and responsible fatherhood activities.
Key requirements of the law are:

  • applicants for funds must commit to consult with experts in domestic violence;
  • applications must describe how programs will address issues of domestic violence; and
  • projects must ensure that participation is voluntary.

Groups throughout Texas have received funding directly from the federal government or through the Health and Human Services Commission to provide marriage services to individuals and couples.
The mission of the Healthy Marriage Initiative is to help couples, who have chosen marriage, gain greater access to marriage education services enabling them to acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to form and sustain a healthy marriage.

The Texas Council On Family Violence (TCFV) Work In The Healthy Marriage Initiative

TCFV has monitored the development of the federal Healthy Marriage Initiative since 2002, when it became a part of the TANF Reauthorization discussion in Congress, and advocated for the prioritization of safety for family violence victims within the Initiative.

For the last several years, TCFV has provided training and technical assistance to a diverse array of professionals throughout Texas on family violence issues in the context of healthy marriage programs.
TCFV recently entered into a contract with the Health and Human Services Commission to provide comprehensive support to healthy marriage grantees on addressing family violence within their programs. Another key component of this work is to inform family violence programs about the Healthy Marriage Initiative, facilitate collaboration at the local level, and solicit input from family violence programs regarding this new intersection.

Potential Roles For Local Family Violence Programs

All HHSC healthy marriage grantees are required to consult with local family violence programs.
If a family violence program has not had contact with a healthy marriage group, programs are encouraged to review the program guide to see if one is located nearby.

Local healthy marriage (HM) programs may request assistance from a family violence program to:

  • develop a domestic violence protocol;
  • train staff;
  • gather screening tools;
  • make domestic violence materials and referral information available;
  • review curricula; and
  • join a local coalition of service providers.

Family violence programs are encouraged to discuss compensation for consultation, materials, and training provided to HM staff and/or participants. Any collaborative work provides opportunities to expand the spectrum of services that support choices and promote options for all families without exacerbating risks faced by domestic violence victims and survivors.

US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Healthy Marriage Initiative website.

Healthy Marriage 101

For Family Violence Service Providers

THE TEXAS COUNCIL ON FAMILY VIOLENCE IS AVAILABLE AS A RESOURCE AND SUPPORT.
TCFV staff is available to provide:

  • Technical assistance, updates, and consultation on healthy marriage initiatives.
  • Meeting facilitation with local healthy marriage project staff.
  • Recommendations and feedback throughout the development process for protocols, trainings, curricula, and screening tools.

For more information please contact: policy@tcfv.org