In July 2021, Massachusetts made further progress towards Lifting Kids Out of Deep Poverty with a 9.1 percent increase in cash assistance grants for families with children, elders, and people with disabilities. Thanks to the incredible advocacy and leadership of Senator Sal DiDomenico and Representative Marjorie Decker, together with 121 legislative co-sponsors of the Act to Lift Kids Out of Deep Poverty, the FY 2022 budget in July 2021 included this significant step forward.

MLRI is proud to lead, along with Greater Boston Legal Services, the Lift Our Kids Coalition, a group comprised of 147 organizations throughout Massachusetts committed to Lifting Kids Out of Deep Poverty in Massachusetts.

People living below half the poverty level – currently $915 a month for a family of three – are considered to be in Deep Poverty. In January 2021, the Legislature took a historic first step with a 10 percent increase in cash assistance grants, raising the maximum benefit for three from $593 a month to $652 a month. This was the first increase in two decades.

With the July 2021 increase, the maximum grant for three is now $712 a month, still well below the Deep Poverty level but finally moving in the right direction. The increases, though still not enough, are helping 26,000 Massachusetts families with 45,000 children and 20,000 elders and people with disabilities meet more of their basic needs.

Breaking through years of frozen grants was a great victory for Massachusetts’ children, elders, and persons with disabilities, but we still have a long way to go before we eradicate Deep Poverty here in the Commonwealth. We are incredibly grateful for the ongoing support of our Coalition members and the Legislature, especially our legislative leaders Senator DiDomenico and Representative Decker. Our work is not done yet; we will continue working until every child in Massachusetts is lifted out of Deep Poverty.