For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Christine Dunn, Seven Letter
christine@sevenletter.com
617.646.1044

BOSTON, MA (January 18, 2023) – The Lift Our Kids Coalition today announced that Representative Marjorie Decker (D-Cambridge) and Senator Sal DiDomenico (D-Everett) have accelerated the timetable for lifting kids out of Deep Poverty with the filing of House and Senate bills (HD 507, SD 501) at the start of the 2023-2024 legislative session. A launch event will be held Thursday, January 26, 2023 at 2:00 PM in the State House, Room 428.

The Act to Lift Kids Out of Deep Poverty would raise the maximum cash assistance grant by 25% a year until it reaches half of the federal poverty level. Families living below half the poverty level are considered to be in Deep Poverty. Under the bill, grants would reach Deep Poverty in July 2024 and then would keep pace with inflation as the poverty level goes up.

After decades of frozen cash assistance levels, the Legislature raised grants three times by 10% or less beginning in January 2021. These increases were a huge step forward but were significantly eroded by skyrocketing inflation.

“It is simply unacceptable that we have nearly 70,000 children in the Commonwealth living so far below the federal poverty level,” said Senator DiDomenico, the lead sponsor of the Senate bill. “While the recent increases in cash assistance were an important step towards helping our families, I am committed to continuing our work and pushing for further bold action to ensure that no child lives in Deep Poverty, suffering without diapers, nutritious food, or winter boots. Now more than ever, Lifting Kids Out of Deep Poverty must be one of the highest priorities for the legislative session.”

“Poverty is not an identity, it is the result of policy choices,” said Representative Decker, lead sponsor of the House bill. “The pandemic has revealed stark inequities and the inadequacy of our safety net system. It also showed us for a brief moment how additional resources can improve the overall health and safety of our families. This legislation would be a continuation of investing in our most vulnerable families. We know that this has a significant impact on their health and well-being and is also a more efficient investment of our financial resources in both the near and long term. I am grateful that my colleagues in the House and the rest of the Legislature recognize the importance of these investments.”

The maximum Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children (TAFDC) benefit for a family of three is currently only $783 a month. Thirty-nine thousand Massachusetts families with children and 28,000 elders and people with disabilities are struggling to survive on cash assistance benefits that are far below the level of Deep Poverty – $1,036 a month for a family of three.

“We thank Representative Decker and Senator DiDomenico for moving up the timetable to lift children and families out of deep poverty,” said Deborah Harris of the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, one of the Coalition’s lead organizations. “The Legislature’s three recent grant increases demonstrate our legislative leaders’ moral commitment to our most vulnerable children, older adults, and people with disabilities. But families still can’t afford basics necessities like diapers, cleaning supplies, and internet access.”

“Our lowest-income children and families need additional support to help make ends meet,” said Naomi Meyer of Greater Boston Legal Services, another of the Coalition’s lead organizations. “We know that living in Deep Poverty can cause harm to children and it often forces parents to make impossible decisions like whether to put food on the table or pay the rent. Our goal is to lift all children and families out of Deep Poverty, now.”

The Lift Our Kids Coalition (liftourkidsma.org), comprised of 155 organizations, formed in late 2016 to advocate for repeal of the welfare family cap, the law that barred benefits for children conceived while the family received assistance. The Legislature repealed the family cap in 2019, overriding the Governor’s veto of repeal by an almost unanimous vote. The Coalition then successfully advocated for the three recent increases in cash assistance grants, including the 10% increase that went into effect in October 2022.

Rep. Decker, Sen. DiDomenico, and the Lift Our Kids Coalition are launching the 2023-24 campaign on January 26 at 2:00 PM in the State House, Room 428. Members are encouraged to attend and show support for raising cash assistance grants. For more information about the launch event and to let us know you plan to come, go to bit.ly/liftourkidslaunch.