Cash Assistance

Unemployment Insurance

DUA administers Unemployment Insurance in order to provide temporary income assistance to MA workers who are unemployed through no fault of their own and who are able to work, available for work, and looking for a job.

The DUA also offers their Training Opportunities Program, Assistance Programs and Job Search Services.

​Initial eligibility for benefits is based on the individual's earnings and the reason for separation from employment. Individual must have earned at least $3,900 during a period of time specified by law and at least 30 times the amount you would be eligible to collect weekly in UI benefits.

Apply online here​

Temporary Aid to families with Dependent Children (TAFDC)

TAFDC - ​Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children

​A state and federally funded program which provides cash assistance to families with children and pregnant women in the last 120 days of pregnancy, with little or no assets or income. It is operated under the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant. Participants receive child care and transportation support associated with job assistance and can access a number of supportive referrals to substance abuse and mental health services, and domestic violence specialists.

​Eligible​? A recipient must 1) Have at least one dependent child under 18 or 19 (including teen parents) OR pregnant women with no children (the child expected to be born within 120 days of application) 2) Meet income and asset limits 3) Be a US Citizen or legal immigrant 4) Live in Massachusetts.

Application Process​: Contact DTA's Application Information Unit or your local Transitional Assistance Office.

Modestneeds.org

1. https://www.modestneeds.org/
2. Modest Needs exists:
3. To responsibly provide short-term financial assistance to individuals and families in temporary crisis who, because they are working and live just above the poverty level, are ineligible for most types of conventional social assistance but who (like many of us) are living one or two lost paychecks away from the kind of financial catastrophe that eventually leads to homelessness;
4. To lessen the burden of state and federal agencies charged with the care of the truly indigent by doing everything in our power to stop these at-risk households from slipping into the cycle of poverty, despite the burden posed by an unanticipated, emergency expense; and
5. To promote compassion and generosity on the part of individual persons living in the United States and Canada, the areas that we serve, by standing as a living testament to the power of human kindness to change lives, no matter how much (or how little) a person has to share.

this page last updated: 4/21/17