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Cash Assistance in Minnesota Minnesota House Research Department Page 5 General Assistance The GA program provides aid to individuals or couples who are not eligible for federally funded assistance programs, but who are unable to provide for themselves.4 An applicant qualifies for GA if he or she meets the eligibility standards set by state law and has income and assets below the limits established by the state legislature and DHS. Maximum net earned and unearned income must be less than the need standard ($203 per month for an individual and $260 per month for a married couple). The equity value of an assistance unit’s personal property must not exceed $10,000. Personal property is limited to: (1) cash; (2) bank accounts; (3) liquid stocks and bonds that can be readily accessed without a financial penalty; (4) vehicles that are not excluded (one vehicle per assistance unit member age 16 or older is excluded from the personal property limitation); and (5) the full value of business accounts used to pay expenses not related to the business. In addition to having financial need, a GA applicant must also:  be a resident of Minnesota;  be ineligible for aid from any cash assistance program that uses federal funds (i.e., MFIP or SSI);  be a citizen of the United States; and  be unable to work because the applicant meets certain standards of “unemployability” including, but not limited to: (1) having a professionally certified illness, injury, or incapacity expected to continue for more than 45 days and that prevents the person from getting or keeping a job; (2) having a diagnosed developmental disability or mental illness that prevents the person from getting or keeping a job; (3) residing in a shelter facility for battered women that has a contract with the Department of Corrections; (4) being needed in the home to care for a person whose age or medical condition requires continuous care; or (5) being a person whose alcohol and drug addiction is a material factor that contributes to the person’s disability and who has been assessed by the county agency to determine if he or she is amenable to treatment.

4 See Minn. Stat. § 256D.01.