Massachusetts Senate Votes to Strike Down Decades-Old ‘Learnfare’ Welfare Rule

Massachusetts lawmakers have taken a step to repeal a law that ties some welfare benefits to school attendance. The policy, often referred to as "Learnfare," was enacted by the Massachusetts Legislature in 1995 as part of welfare reform legislation.

State House News Service reported, "The Senate on Wednesday (May 20, 2026) moved to repeal a decades-old welfare reform rule that allows the state to reduce and end public benefits for families whose children have excessive unexcused school absences."

The Massachusetts Department of Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children (TAFDC) can take away aid tied to a child if that child is under 16 and "misses too much school without an approved excuse."

The Senate Vote and Bipartisan Divide

The Senate voted 36-4 to adopt an amendment filed by Winchester Democrat Sen. Jason Lewis to end the more than 30-year-old policy. Republicans Sens. Kelly Dooner, Peter Durant, Bruce Tarr, and Ryan Fattman voted against the amendment and in favor of retaining the Learnfare policy.

"Learnfare is an outdated state policy from 1995 that strips low-income families of their TAFDC financial assistance if a student has too many unexcused absences from school," Lewis was quoted as saying by the Greenfield Recorder. "Learnfare has proven to be ineffective, inequitable, unnecessarily punitive, and pushes away students and families who need support the most."

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The TAFDC website includes the rules for complying with Learnfare as prepared by the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute.

Next Steps for the TAFDC Repeal in the FY27 Budget

The amendment to repeal Learnfare is part of the recently passed Senate budget, which must be reconciled with the House budget by a legislative conference committee.

A budget for FY27 must be in place by the start of the new fiscal year on July 1, 2026.