Financial Security
Households Receiving Temporary Assistance

Maintaining


Households Receiving Temporary Assistance

What does this measure?

The number of households that received any public assistance or welfare payments in the past 12 months, expressed as a percentage of total households.

Why is this important?

This measure represents the number of households which rely upon government support to meet their basic needs.

How is our region doing?

In 2018-22, 2.8% of MetroWest households received public assistance income. This was higher than the rate in 2008-12, below the state (3.3%) and higher than the national rate (2.7%). Marlborough (5.7%) had the highest rate in MetroWest in 2018-22.

Notes about the data

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) is a federally funded program administered at the state level, meaning that eligibility requirements vary from state to state. ACS does not ask specifically which program provides the income, although TANF is the primary source of public assistance funds. Families are eligible for TANF benefits for up to 60 months, although most receive assistance for shorter periods of time.

Studies have found that national survey estimates (including the ACS) of enrollment in public benefit programs tend to underestimate the true rate due to underreporting by participants, when compared with state-level administrative data. Underreporting can occur for a variety of reasons, including the social stigma of program participation and participants' confusion about the source of the services they receive. For these reasons, the estimates reported above should be considered a lower bound of the true estimate.

Households Receiving Temporary Assistance
2008-122013-172018-22
United States2.7%2.6%2.7%
Massachusetts2.9%2.8%3.3%
Region2.3%2.1%2.8%
Middlesex County2.0%1.8%2.7%
Norfolk County1.8%1.9%2.4%
Worcester County3.2%2.9%3.5%
Acton town, Middlesex County1.9%***1.8%**2.0%***
Ashland town, Middlesex County1.3%***1.0%***2.2%***
Bedford town, Middlesex County1.3%***1.2%***1.5%***
Bellingham town, Norfolk County0.8%***2.7%***1.1%***
Boxborough town, Middlesex County1.8%***0.5%***1.9%***
Carlisle town, Middlesex County0.6%***0.7%***0.4%***
Concord town, Middlesex County0.9%***0.7%***1.1%***
Dedham town, Norfolk County1.7%**1.3%**3.5%***
Dover town, Norfolk County1.0%***0.6%***1.8%***
Framingham city, Middlesex County3.3%*3.3%*2.0%*
Franklin town, Norfolk County1.6%***1.5%***1.2%**
Groton town, Middlesex County0.0%***2.2%***1.6%***
Harvard town, Worcester County2.4%***0.7%***0.7%***
Holliston town, Middlesex County1.2%***1.1%***2.1%***
Hopkinton town, Middlesex County1.0%***1.4%***2.0%***
Hudson town, Middlesex County1.7%**1.4%***1.6%***
Lexington town, Middlesex County1.3%***1.8%**2.1%**
Lincoln town, Middlesex County1.0%***1.4%***1.8%***
Littleton town, Middlesex County2.5%***0.7%***2.0%***
Marlborough city, Middlesex County1.1%***1.9%**5.7%*
Maynard town, Middlesex County1.3%***1.5%***2.0%***
Medfield town, Norfolk County0.6%***1.2%***1.8%***
Medway town, Norfolk County1.0%***0.8%***1.4%***
Milford town, Worcester County2.1%**2.3%**1.4%***
Millis town, Norfolk County2.2%***0.5%***1.8%***
Natick town, Middlesex County1.0%**1.1%*2.8%**
Needham town, Norfolk County1.6%**1.0%***2.6%***
Sherborn town, Middlesex County0.6%***0.0%***0.0%***
Southborough town, Worcester County0.8%***1.4%***2.3%***
Stow town, Middlesex County0.4%***0.5%***0.4%***
Sudbury town, Middlesex County1.1%***1.1%***0.9%***
Walpole town, Norfolk County1.6%***2.3%***1.2%***
Waltham city, Middlesex County2.8%*1.3%**1.7%**
Wayland town, Middlesex County1.4%***0.8%***2.7%***
Wellesley town, Norfolk County0.7%***1.5%**1.0%***
Westborough town, Worcester County1.1%***0.6%***1.3%**
Westford town, Middlesex County1.5%***1.5%***2.7%***
Weston town, Middlesex County0.2%***1.1%***1.2%***
Westwood town, Norfolk County0.5%***1.1%***1.5%***

Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Notes: Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.




Number of Households Receiving Temporary Assistance
2008-122013-172018-22
United States3,132,9213,041,6263,339,152
Massachusetts74,36572,49890,906
Region25,88724,71935,048
Middlesex County11,78810,92916,804
Norfolk County4,6074,9476,589
Worcester County9,4928,84311,655
Acton town, Middlesex County159***156**176***
Ashland town, Middlesex County83***65***165***
Bedford town, Middlesex County62***63***82***
Bellingham town, Norfolk County47***172***70***
Boxborough town, Middlesex County36***11***41***
Carlisle town, Middlesex County11***13***8***
Concord town, Middlesex County61***47***74***
Dedham town, Norfolk County168**128**365***
Dover town, Norfolk County19***12***34***
Framingham city, Middlesex County871*912*558*
Franklin town, Norfolk County180***164***144**
Groton town, Middlesex County0***90***61***
Harvard town, Worcester County45***14***14***
Holliston town, Middlesex County60***56***119***
Hopkinton town, Middlesex County50***76***136***
Hudson town, Middlesex County131**110***131***
Lexington town, Middlesex County148***213**265**
Lincoln town, Middlesex County22***36***46***
Littleton town, Middlesex County82***23***72***
Marlborough city, Middlesex County179***294**935*
Maynard town, Middlesex County54***63***89***
Medfield town, Norfolk County26***50***79***
Medway town, Norfolk County45***36***63***
Milford town, Worcester County218**258**164***
Millis town, Norfolk County67***16***57***
Natick town, Middlesex County130**163*442**
Needham town, Norfolk County161**111***293***
Sherborn town, Middlesex County9***0***0***
Southborough town, Worcester County26***46***81***
Stow town, Middlesex County10***13***11***
Sudbury town, Middlesex County63***67***57***
Walpole town, Norfolk County135***207***115***
Waltham city, Middlesex County657*314**439**
Wayland town, Middlesex County68***42***133***
Wellesley town, Norfolk County58***133**87***
Westborough town, Worcester County79***37***102**
Westford town, Middlesex County108***125***230***
Weston town, Middlesex County9***43***44***
Westwood town, Norfolk County28***58***83***

Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Notes: Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.




INDICATORS REGIONAL TREND
Early Prenatal Care by Mother's Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Children Living in Poverty Maintaining
Children Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Single-Parent Families Increasing
Single-Parent Families by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Disengaged Youth Decreasing
Reports of Domestic Violence Increasing
Arts, Entertainment and Recreation Establishments Increasing
Households Without Vehicles Maintaining
Means of Transportation to Work Not Applicable
Households With Internet Access Increasing
Voter Participation Rate Decreasing
Average Charitable Contribution Maintaining
People Without Health Insurance Decreasing
Opioid Overdose Mortality Rate Increasing
Crimes Against People Decreasing
Incarceration Rates, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Change in Total Population Increasing
Change in Population by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Foreign-Born Population Increasing
Language Diversity Increasing
Population by Age Not Applicable
Change in Population by Age/Gender Not Applicable
Seniors Living Alone Decreasing
People with Disabilities Maintaining
Change in Total Jobs by Sector Not Applicable
Business Ownership by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Unemployment Rate Maintaining
Share of Workers who are Professionals, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Unemployment Rate by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Average Salary by Sector Not Applicable
High-Tech Jobs Decreasing
Female to Male Earnings Ratio Maintaining
Prekindergarten Participation Not Applicable
Student Performance on Grade 3 English, by Student Group Not Applicable
School Spending Per Student Maintaining
Student Performance on Grade 8 Math by Student Group Not Applicable
Chronically Absent Students Increasing
High School Cohort Graduation Rate by Student Group Not Applicable
Education Levels of Adults Not Applicable
College Admission Rate, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Education Levels of Adults, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
People Living in Poverty Maintaining
People Living in Poverty, by Education Level Not Applicable
People Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Households Receiving Temporary Assistance Maintaining
Participation in Food Assistance by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Median Household Income Maintaining
Median Household Income, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Living Wage Not Applicable
80/20 Income Ratio Maintaining
Access to Financial Services, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Homeownership Rates Maintaining
Homeownership Rates, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Cost of Homeownership Increasing
Cost of Homeownership, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Cost of Rent Not Applicable
Cost of Rent, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Homelessness Increasing
Early Prenatal Care by Mother's Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Children Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Single-Parent Families by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Incarceration Rates, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Change in Population by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Business Ownership by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Share of Workers who are Professionals, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Unemployment Rate by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Student Performance on Grade 3 English, by Student Group Not Applicable
Student Performance on Grade 8 Math by Student Group Not Applicable
High School Cohort Graduation Rate by Student Group Not Applicable
College Admission Rate, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Education Levels of Adults, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
People Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Participation in Food Assistance by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Median Household Income, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Access to Financial Services, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Homeownership Rates, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Cost of Homeownership, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Cost of Rent, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable


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