The state supreme court has cleared the way for hundreds of low-income families to receive more financial assistance from the state.
The ruling centers on a 2011 law aimed at reducing state spending by cutting funding to low-income families. That law basically said families who receive social security income - specifically families with disabled kids - were eligible for less state aid. The federal assistance was essentially counted against a family's eligibility level for help from New Hampshire.
Tuesday's ruling came in a case brought by a mother who lost state assistance because her two disabled sons also got money from the federal government.
"It really was balancing the budget on some of the poorest citizens of New Hampshire," said Ruth Henitz with New Hampshire legal assistance, who represented the plaintiffs.
The Health Department says it will apply the change ordered by the Supreme Court moving forward.
