Massachusetts assistance programs 2026: your utility discount tier decides everything

The new income-eligible utility discounts start 1 November and run from 95% down to 15% depending on tier. This guide has the tiers, the 30 April 2027 step-down, RAFT, HEAP and SNAP clocks.

By Vincent Wesley Couey · Compiled and verified 24 October 2026 · How we check programs

Massachusetts utility discounts: Tier 1 pays 3.6 times the discount of Tier 6

The DPU's new discount schedule is steep, and your tier matters more than your utility. The DPU Consumer Division page, last updated 25 September 2026, says that "starting November 1, 2026, the amount of your discount will depend on" your household income, the number of people in your household, your electric or gas company and your rate class. It lists six tiers, from Tier 1 at up to 100% of the federal poverty level to Tier 6 at over 200% and up to 60% of the statewide median income.

On Eversource electric rate R-2 the discount is 89, 63, 55, 47, 38 and 25 percent from Tier 1 to Tier 6. That is a 64-point gap, and an 89% discount is 3.6 times a 25% discount; put the other way, a Tier 6 customer would pay 75% of the discounted charge and a Tier 1 customer 11%, 6.8 times as much. Across all 16 rate classes the page lists, the Tier 1 to Tier 6 gap averages 60.9 percentage points. It is widest at NSTAR Gas R-4 (89% to 15%, 74 percentage points) and narrowest at Unitil gas R-2 (95% to 60%, 35 percentage points).

The first step is the steepest. Moving from Tier 1 to Tier 2 costs between 12 percentage points (Unitil gas R-2, 95 to 83) and 32 percentage points (Berkshire Gas R-4, 87 to 55), an average of 22.4 across the 16 classes. For Eversource R-2 it is 26 percentage points, 89 to 63. For scale, the 2026 HHS poverty guidelines set 100% at $15,960 a year for one person and $33,000 for four in the 48 contiguous states, so a family of four with $33,000 a year and one with $33,001 could sit in different tiers, if the utility applies that year's guideline. The DPU page does not say which year's guideline it uses and does not say how income is counted, so your utility or Community Action Agency (CAA) decides your tier.

Tier 6 has the widest range of outcomes: the Tier 6 discounts run from 15% (three gas classes tie at 15) to 60% (Unitil gas R-2). If your income is close to a tier line, the discount on your bill can move by double digits for a small change in income, so report household size and income exactly and keep proof of both.

What to do while you wait for Massachusetts benefits

Massachusetts SNAP must decide within 30 days under 7 CFR 273.2(g), RAFT "usually takes fewer than 30 days to get a response" plus payment within 14 business days of approval (EOHLC), about 48 days if both clocks run to the limit, and the utility discount changes on 1 November. These steps cover the gap, and none of them is a loan.

• Ask for expedited SNAP if you have very little cash. Under 7 CFR 273.2(i), "households with less than $150 in monthly gross income" whose liquid resources "do not exceed $100" are entitled to benefits on their EBT card by the seventh calendar day; apply through the DTA SNAP page.
• If your heat is a worry, call the EOHLC Heatline at (800) 632-8175 or dial 211. The DPU page also lists one-time Salvation Army Good Neighbor Energy Fund grants: (800) 334-3047 for area codes 508, 617, 781 and 978, and (800) 262-1320 for 413.
• Ask your utility for a payment plan or budget billing before service is cut, and ask about its arrearage management program (a balance of at least $300, at least 60 days past due). If service is shut off or about to be, call the DPU Consumer Division at (617) 737-2836 or (877) 886-5066.
• For RAFT, get your landlord to file today. The RAFT page says "if they don't submit within 21 days, your application will time out, and you'll have to reapply." Free pre-court mediation is available through Massachusetts Community Mediation Centers.
• Call 211 (Massachusetts: (877) 211-6277, 24/7) for local emergency funds and food, or use the Feeding America food bank locator for groceries this week.
• If you are working, ask whether your employer or an app offers earned wage access: it lets you draw part of the pay you have already earned before payday. It is not a loan; check the fee before you use it.

Massachusetts assistance programs compared for 2026-27

The table lists the agency, what each program does, and the clock or status each agency posts. Figures were read on 24 October 2026; blanks in the "not posted" column are things the pages did not say.

Your discount after 1 November: who keeps it until 30 April 2027

Some Massachusetts customers will see a lower discount than they have now, and the DPU page gives them a runway. Customers whose new discount would be lower than their current one "keep your current discount through April 30, 2027. After that, your discount may go down once every 6 months. Each time, your discount will go down by no more than 5 percentage points." April 30 is 188 days after 24 October 2026. The page names thresholds of below 42% for Eversource electric, below 32% for National Grid and below 40% for Unitil, and below 25% for some gas customers.

Taking those thresholds as the current discounts, the arithmetic is short. An Eversource R-2 customer at Tier 6 would move from 42% to 25%, a 17-point cut that takes four drops at 5 percentage points or less (5, 5, 5 and 2); the share of the charge they pay rises from 58% to 75%, which is 29% more. Tier 5 on the same rate (38%) is a 4-point cut, one drop. A National Grid R-2 customer at Tier 6 (29%) loses 3 percentage points, one drop, and a Unitil electric customer at Tier 6 (32%) loses 8 percentage points, two drops. Four drops spaced six months apart cannot finish sooner than 18 months after the first. The page does not say when in a six-month window the first drop falls, so ask your utility.

The DPU page warns that "these discount rates are not final," saying the rates shown are "pending final approval in company-specific tariffs by the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities for effect November 1, 2026." Treat every percentage on this page as the proposal and confirm it on your bill. The page also lists budget billing, payment plans (contact the utility) and community shared solar as other ways to lower a bill.

HEAP fuel assistance and other bill help in Massachusetts

Massachusetts fuel assistance is the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP), run through the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) and local agencies. The EOHLC page lists three programs: HEAP for part of winter heating bills, HEARTWAP for emergency heating system repair and replacement, and the Weatherization Assistance Program, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.

The DPU page says HEAP "helps income-eligible individuals and families with the cost of heating their homes during the winter season. The online application opens annually on October 1 for the upcoming heating season." First-time applicants can apply in person at a local agency or online; in later years you receive an application in the mail and can reapply by mail or online. If you are denied, "you have the right to appeal through your local agency." HEAP approval is also one of the benefits that qualifies you for the utility discount.

The pages read for this guide did not post HEAP's income limits, benefit amounts or closing date, so this guide states none. Call 211 or the EOHLC Heatline, (800) 632-8175, for your local agency and current figures. For a state-by-state view, see how fast LIHEAP crisis help is and utility shut-off protection by state, which compare these rules with other states.

RAFT in Massachusetts: up to $7,000, and a 21-day clock for your landlord

RAFT, Residential Assistance for Families in Transition, "provides up to $7,000 per 12-month period so your family can stay in your current home or move to a new one," and you may use it "for rent, utilities, moving costs, and mortgage payments," according to the EOHLC RAFT page. You qualify if you are at risk of homelessness or losing housing, for example with a Notice to Quit, an eviction notice, mortgage arrears or a utility shut-off notice, and your income is under 50% of your city or town's area median income (AMI), or under 60% of AMI if you are at risk of domestic violence.

Have these ready: ID for the head of household, proof of current housing (lease, tenancy agreement or tenancy at will), proof of the housing crisis, and income verification, which the system checks automatically if it can and otherwise you upload. Apply online through the Housing Help Hub (20 to 30 minutes; ID.me identity verification may be required). If you cannot apply online, contact your local Regional Administering Agency (RAA). The landlord completes a landlord application, and the 21-day deadline is the part people lose: if they do not submit in time, you reapply.

Massachusetts SNAP: 37th in on-time decisions, up from 21st

Massachusetts decided 81.70% of its SNAP applications on time in federal fiscal year 2025, according to the Food and Nutrition Administration's FY 2025 table, which ranks it 37th among the 50 states and DC. In FY2024 the FNA table had it at 85.45%, 21st, so the late share rose from 14.55% to 18.30%, 3.75 percentage points or 26% more, and the state fell 16 places. Rhode Island decided 91.64% on time, Vermont 89.18%, Connecticut 89.02%, New Hampshire 88.31% and New York 84.86%; of those six neighbours only Maine, at 78.07%, did worse.

FNA says its measure is "not a strict measure of regulatory compliance" and excludes applications properly pended for missing verification, so read 81.70% as a state average. The rule is firm: under 7 CFR 273.2(g)(1) the state must give eligible households an opportunity to participate "no later than 30 calendar days following the date the application was filed." The DTA SNAP page lists the screener, online application, a way to submit documents and check your case by phone, online or in person, SNAP Path to Work, the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) and the DTA Connect mobile app, and notes that new Chip/Tap cards have been mailed and must be activated by 29 November. DTA's own processing times and income limits were not on the pages read, so this guide gives none. For the national picture, see how long SNAP approval takes, state by state.

What if you are denied, self-employed or already waiting?

A household that is already waiting should count days from the date of filing. Massachusetts SNAP is owed a decision within 30 days, so on day 31 call DTA, ask for your receipt date and mention expedited service if your cash is low. For RAFT, count from your submission: if 30 days pass without a response, call 211 or your RAA. For HEAP, call your local agency, the number 211 gives you.

A household that is denied has routes. For RAFT, the denial email has steps to ask your RAA to review the decision. For HEAP, "if you are denied assistance, you have the right to appeal through your local agency." Households that do not qualify for HEAP may still qualify for a utility discount through another public benefit or the local CAA, so ask your utility. For eviction paperwork, free pre-court mediation is offered by Massachusetts Community Mediation Centers; compare how other states handle it in our guide to eviction notices and emergency rent help by state.

Self-employed applicants should treat records as the application. RAFT verifies income automatically if it can and otherwise asks you to upload it, so keep recent bank statements, invoices and your last tax return, and know your household total, since tiers and the 50% of AMI test count the whole household. Scams follow benefit seasons: none of the pages read describes a fee to apply, so anyone charging one, or promising approval or a larger discount, is a red flag. Read the notice, then call 211 or the agency's listed number, not a number in a text message.

Who qualifies for Massachusetts assistance programs

Which Massachusetts program to start with

• If you already get autility discountCheck your bill after 1 November, because the rate depends on your tier and may fall in steps from 30 April 2027.
• If you areon SNAP or MassHealth but have no discountAsk your utility to add the discount, because public benefits qualify you and the Tier 1 to Tier 6 gap is 35 to 74 percentage points.
• If you gota Notice to Quit or shut-off noticeApply for RAFT and call the utility today, because RAFT can take up to about 48 days and your landlord has 21.
• If you havevery little cashApply for SNAP and say "expedited", because eligible households are entitled to benefits by day seven.
• If you arecold or low on fuelCall the Heatline, (800) 632-8175, because HEAP's online application opens each 1 October.

Bottom line

In Massachusetts your tier decides your utility discount: on the DPU's 16 rate classes the proposed discount falls 35 to 74 percentage points from Tier 1 to Tier 6, averaging 60.9, and the new rates start 1 November 2026 (eight days after 24 October 2026) with a runway to 30 April 2027 for anyone who would get less. RAFT pays up to $7,000 with a response in under 30 days and payment in 14 business days after approval, so file today and make sure your landlord files within 21 days. Massachusetts SNAP was late on about 18 of every 100 applications in FY2025, so ask for expedited service if cash is short and call on day 31 if you have not heard.

For comparison, see our New York assistance programs guide, Colorado assistance programs, rental and utility assistance at the same time, housing assistance programs and the how to apply for government assistance guide, and use the GrantProbe state assistance finder to find your local office.

Related guides: benefits wait clock for every program, Maryland assistance programs guide, how fast LIHEAP crisis assistance pays and emergency rent help after an eviction notice.

How we built this page: compiled and verified on first-party sources, read 24 October 2026: the mass.gov pages for RAFT, SNAP, the Home Energy Assistance Programs and the DPU Consumer Division's "Help paying your utility bill" (mass.gov blocks automated downloads, so these were read in a normal browser session and transcribed), the Food and Nutrition Administration's FY2025 and FY2024 timeliness tables, 7 CFR 273.2 on eCFR, the 2026 HHS poverty guidelines, 211.org and Feeding America. We did not apply to any program; eligibility is decided by the agency. We did not state DTA processing times, SNAP or HEAP income limits, HEAP benefit amounts or its closing date, shut-off moratorium dates, TAFDC or EAEDC amounts or the RAFT agency list, because those pages were not read. The discount percentages are proposed, not final. This is not legal or benefits advice. See our methodology.