public assistance

Also known as social assistance, a government's provision of minimum financial aid to people who have no other means of supporting themselves. Funds come from the general revenues of the federal and state governments and not from any social insurance funds such as Old Age, Survivors, Disability, and Health Insurance (0 ASDHI). Some public assistance programs are administered at the federal level, including Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments, which cover the Old Age Assistance (OAA), Aid to the Blind (AB), and Aid to the Permanently and Totally Disabled (APTD) programs. Other public assistance programs are administered by states and localities, sometimes with the help of federal funding. These include Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) for those ineligible for any other categorical assistance programs.