In 2022, Dade County ranked as the 62nd least government transfer-dependent county in Georgia, with 27.5% of total income coming from programs such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and income maintenance, according to information from the Economic Innovation Group.
In total, residents in Dade County received $185.65 million, equivalent to $11,545 per capita.
For comparison, the average across Georgia was $683.9 million, or $11,542 per capita.
Government transfer payments are non-repayable funds provided by federal, state, or local governments to support individuals in need. These payments aim to stabilize economic conditions and provide financial support during hardships. Key programs include Social Security transfers (retirement benefits), Medicare transfers (healthcare for seniors), Medicaid transfers (healthcare for low-income individuals), and income maintenance transfers (financial assistance for basic needs).
Breaking down the contributions in Dade County at the time, Social Security transfers made up $74.83 million, a 40.3% share of the total. Medicare transfers accounted for $48.64 million (26.2%), while Medicaid contributed $21.32 million (11.5%). Income maintenance programs, including assistance such as SNAP or TANF, added another $18.65 million, or 10% of the total.
With 21.2% of the population aged 65 and older, Dade County has a significant demand for programs like Social Security and Medicare. Despite this aid, the total per capita income in Dade County, excluding government transfers was $30,376, which is far below the county’s total income of $41,920, emphasizing the role of government transfers in overall income.
When comparing 2022 to the previous year, Dade County saw a decrease in its government transfer dependency by 4.1%.
Government transfers have long been a modest financial safety net, historically comprising only a small fraction of Americans’ income. However, since the 1970s—sometimes dubbed the “Great Transfer-mation”—dependency has surged from 8.2% (or $2,022 per capita in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars) in 1970 to 17.6% (or $11,542 per capita) in 2022 nationwide. In Dade County, reliance on government transfers has similarly increased from virtually none in 1970 to 27.5% (or $11,545 per capita) in 2022, reflecting broader national trends.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | State Rank | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quitman County | 1 | 46.7% | 32.8% | 16.7% | 13% | 5% | 6.6% | $17,098 |
| Calhoun County | 2 | 43.6% | 17.2% | 10.9% | 13.3% | 8.6% | 6.5% | $14,772 |
| Clay County | 3 | 43.1% | 29.3% | 12.8% | 7.1% | 12% | 7.9% | $15,863 |
| Johnson County | 4 | 43% | 20.3% | 11.7% | 12.5% | 9.3% | 5.9% | $13,642 |
| Telfair County | 5 | 42.8% | 18.5% | 12% | 8.5% | 11.2% | 7.5% | $12,155 |
| Hancock County | 6 | 42.6% | 25.8% | 14.5% | 10.6% | 7.9% | 5.8% | $15,132 |
| Stewart County | 7 | 40.1% | 17% | 10.6% | 9.2% | 9.8% | 6% | $14,317 |
| Randolph County | 8 | 39.2% | 26.5% | 10.7% | 8.6% | 9.5% | 6.7% | $16,475 |
| Warren County | 9 | 39.2% | 23.7% | 12.4% | 9.1% | 7.6% | 6.2% | $15,740 |
| Ware County | 10 | 39.1% | 17.7% | 9.6% | 10.2% | 7.3% | 6% | $15,017 |
| Wheeler County | 11 | 39% | 16.3% | 11.5% | 9.5% | 7.6% | 6.7% | $9,191 |
| Talbot County | 12 | 38.9% | 27.3% | 11.1% | 12% | 5.3% | 4.8% | $18,010 |
| Turner County | 13 | 38.8% | 19.6% | 10.1% | 10.2% | 8.5% | 6.8% | $14,314 |
| Towns County | 14 | 38.7% | 37% | 17.3% | 12.1% | 3% | 1.9% | $18,412 |
| Wilcox County | 15 | 37.8% | 20.3% | 9.3% | 11.1% | 8.6% | 5.2% | $12,583 |
| Twiggs County | 16 | 37.5% | 24.7% | 13.1% | 9.5% | 6.7% | 4.8% | $16,681 |
| Taylor County | 17 | 37.1% | 21.9% | 10.9% | 9% | 7.9% | 5.9% | $14,136 |
| Jefferson County | 18 | 37% | 19% | 10.8% | 8.9% | 8% | 5.7% | $15,369 |
| Chattooga County | 19 | 37% | 19% | 12.2% | 10.5% | 5.7% | 5.2% | $13,707 |
| Dodge County | 20 | 36.4% | 19.6% | 10.3% | 10.5% | 6.5% | 5.5% | $13,189 |
| Jenkins County | 21 | 36.3% | 17.6% | 9.4% | 9.8% | 8.6% | 5.7% | $13,358 |
| Union County | 22 | 36.3% | 34.1% | 16.5% | 10.2% | 2.9% | 2.2% | $16,165 |
| Treutlen County | 23 | 36.1% | 18.1% | 10.1% | 8.8% | 7.9% | 6% | $13,140 |
| Ben Hill County | 24 | 36% | 18.4% | 9.8% | 8.3% | 7.9% | 6% | $13,895 |
| Screven County | 25 | 35.6% | 21.1% | 11.1% | 9.3% | 6.8% | 5.2% | $14,203 |
| Emanuel County | 26 | 35% | 16.4% | 9.7% | 7.5% | 8.1% | 5.9% | $13,658 |
| Early County | 27 | 34.9% | 20.1% | 9.5% | 9.1% | 7.2% | 6.2% | $14,699 |
| Wilkinson County | 28 | 34.8% | 21% | 12.8% | 8.7% | 5% | 5% | $15,016 |
| Marion County | 29 | 34.6% | 22% | 10.3% | 7.7% | 6.8% | 5.2% | $13,175 |
| Clinch County | 30 | 34.5% | 17.3% | 9.2% | 9.9% | 7.9% | 5.2% | $14,388 |
| Candler County | 31 | 34.3% | 18.3% | 9.4% | 8.5% | 8.2% | 5.3% | $13,918 |
| Terrell County | 32 | 34.1% | 21.5% | 9.8% | 8.2% | 7.1% | 6.1% | $15,455 |
| Washington County | 33 | 34% | 18.1% | 10.7% | 8.2% | 6.3% | 5.2% | $13,690 |
| Elbert County | 34 | 34% | 21.4% | 11.5% | 9.1% | 5.8% | 4.7% | $14,440 |
| Dougherty County | 35 | 33.9% | 17.5% | 8.5% | 7.5% | 6.6% | 6.5% | $15,135 |
| Berrien County | 36 | 33.4% | 17.6% | 9.3% | 8.9% | 5.7% | 4.8% | $13,313 |
| Brooks County | 37 | 33.2% | 21.8% | 9.9% | 9% | 6.1% | 5.2% | $13,124 |
| Sumter County | 38 | 33.2% | 18.1% | 9.1% | 6.9% | 7% | 5.8% | $14,200 |
| Charlton County | 39 | 33% | 15.3% | 10% | 9.3% | 5.2% | 4.5% | $10,364 |
| Brantley County | 40 | 33% | 18% | 10.2% | 8.2% | 5.3% | 5.4% | $11,523 |
| Crisp County | 41 | 33% | 19.9% | 9.1% | 7.8% | 7.4% | 5.8% | $14,709 |
| Baldwin County | 42 | 32.8% | 17.5% | 9.7% | 7.4% | 8% | 4.1% | $13,879 |
| Lanier County | 43 | 32.8% | 15.3% | 8.5% | 7.1% | 6.8% | 5.7% | $11,097 |
| McDuffie County | 44 | 32.5% | 19.1% | 9.7% | 8.1% | 5.6% | 5.2% | $13,816 |
| Glascock County | 45 | 32.4% | 17.6% | 10.1% | 8.7% | 7.2% | 4% | $12,732 |
| Toombs County | 46 | 32.4% | 16.8% | 9.3% | 7.9% | 6.9% | 5.4% | $13,482 |
| Cook County | 47 | 32.3% | 16.7% | 9.1% | 7.8% | 6% | 5.5% | $12,586 |
| Seminole County | 47 | 32.3% | 25.2% | 10.3% | 8.3% | 5.7% | 4.6% | $14,914 |
| Dooly County | 49 | 32.2% | 22.9% | 8.7% | 9.9% | 6.6% | 4.6% | $14,414 |
| Taliaferro County | 50 | 32.2% | 28.2% | 11.9% | 7.1% | 5.6% | 4.9% | $14,032 |
| Meriwether County | 51 | 32.1% | 21.1% | 10.7% | 8.2% | 5.6% | 4.5% | $14,114 |
| Fannin County | 52 | 32.1% | 31.6% | 13.6% | 9.3% | 3.1% | 2.5% | $15,903 |
| Polk County | 53 | 32% | 15.7% | 9.7% | 9.1% | 5.4% | 4.8% | $12,700 |
| Stephens County | 54 | 32% | 21.2% | 10.9% | 9.6% | 4.5% | 4.2% | $14,358 |
| Jeff Davis County | 55 | 32% | 16% | 9.6% | 7.2% | 6.4% | 5.8% | $11,727 |
| Wayne County | 56 | 31.9% | 16.1% | 10.1% | 8.1% | 5.1% | 4.8% | $12,063 |
| Upson County | 57 | 31.7% | 18.7% | 10.6% | 7.7% | 5.5% | 5% | $13,001 |
| McIntosh County | 58 | 31.6% | 29.5% | 12.1% | 8.3% | 3.5% | 3.7% | $15,059 |
| Colquitt County | 59 | 31.3% | 16.2% | 8.2% | 9.1% | 5.6% | 5.2% | $12,898 |
| Pulaski County | 60 | 31.2% | 22.4% | 9.2% | 8.5% | 5.3% | 4.2% | $12,795 |
| Peach County | 61 | 31.2% | 17.1% | 8% | 8.9% | 3.7% | 4.2% | $13,690 |
| Pierce County | 62 | 31% | 17.3% | 8.7% | 8.5% | 5% | 4.1% | $12,932 |
| Miller County | 63 | 30.9% | 22.6% | 8.1% | 10.5% | 6.3% | 3.9% | $15,804 |
| Mitchell County | 64 | 30.9% | 18.4% | 8.5% | 8.3% | 6.3% | 5.3% | $13,634 |
| Spalding County | 65 | 30.9% | 18.9% | 10.4% | 7.9% | 4.5% | 5% | $12,955 |
| Laurens County | 66 | 30.8% | 18.3% | 9.4% | 7.3% | 5.1% | 5.1% | $13,166 |
| Lincoln County | 67 | 30.7% | 25.6% | 11.5% | 8.5% | 3.4% | 3.3% | $14,264 |
| Irwin County | 68 | 30.5% | 19.1% | 9.2% | 7.2% | 7% | 4.5% | $12,925 |
| Gilmer County | 69 | 30.3% | 27% | 12.7% | 8.3% | 3.3% | 2.8% | $13,738 |
| Burke County | 70 | 30.3% | 17.7% | 9.3% | 6.5% | 6.2% | 5.4% | $12,298 |
| Evans County | 71 | 30.2% | 16.8% | 8.9% | 7.9% | 5.2% | 5.4% | $12,255 |
| Webster County | 72 | 30.2% | 25.8% | 11% | 6.4% | 4.8% | 5.2% | $11,925 |
| Atkinson County | 73 | 30.2% | 14.8% | 7.7% | 7.6% | 6.1% | 5.9% | $11,058 |
| Bacon County | 74 | 30.2% | 17.2% | 8.6% | 7.8% | 6% | 5% | $12,052 |
| Richmond County | 75 | 30.1% | 15.2% | 8% | 5.7% | 5.8% | 4.9% | $12,729 |
| Bibb County | 76 | 30% | 16.6% | 7.9% | 7.7% | 5.6% | 5% | $13,879 |
| Decatur County | 77 | 30% | 17.4% | 8.7% | 7.1% | 5.9% | 5.6% | $12,345 |
| Walker County | 78 | 29.5% | 19.5% | 10.1% | 8.8% | 4.2% | 3.5% | $12,497 |
| Wilkes County | 79 | 29.5% | 23.8% | 9.8% | 8.6% | 4.4% | 3.8% | $15,591 |
| Baker County | 80 | 29.4% | 26.7% | 9.1% | 7.7% | 5.5% | 4.4% | $14,612 |
| Tattnall County | 81 | 29.3% | 15.7% | 8% | 6.9% | 6.1% | 4.7% | $10,755 |
| Bleckley County | 82 | 29.2% | 18.4% | 8.8% | 7.9% | 4.6% | 4.2% | $11,986 |
| Worth County | 82 | 29.2% | 20.3% | 9.2% | 7.9% | 4.6% | 4.6% | $11,965 |
| Coffee County | 84 | 28.9% | 14.4% | 7.8% | 7.3% | 5.6% | 5.3% | $11,256 |
| Macon County | 85 | 28.7% | 19.5% | 8.1% | 5.2% | 8.1% | 4.7% | $12,375 |
| Grady County | 86 | 28.6% | 19.2% | 9.5% | 7.2% | 4.5% | 4.7% | $11,011 |
| Floyd County | 87 | 28.6% | 16.9% | 9.4% | 7.7% | 4.7% | 3.7% | $12,615 |
| Murray County | 88 | 28.5% | 15.9% | 9.6% | 7.4% | 4.6% | 4.5% | $10,679 |
| Appling County | 89 | 28.5% | 18.8% | 8.9% | 7.4% | 5.3% | 4.4% | $12,415 |
| Heard County | 90 | 28.5% | 17.7% | 9% | 8.4% | 4.4% | 4.1% | $11,939 |
| Rabun County | 91 | 28.4% | 28.9% | 12% | 8.4% | 2.9% | 2.3% | $14,896 |
| Hart County | 92 | 28% | 22.8% | 10.8% | 7.6% | 4% | 3.2% | $12,819 |
| Clayton County | 93 | 27.8% | 10.7% | 7.1% | 4.7% | 4.6% | 7.1% | $9,121 |
| Montgomery County | 94 | 27.8% | 18.2% | 9.7% | 5.1% | 4.9% | 4.5% | $10,318 |
| Butts County | 95 | 27.7% | 15.4% | 9.1% | 8.1% | 4% | 3.7% | $11,548 |
| Franklin County | 96 | 27.7% | 19.3% | 10% | 7.1% | 4.2% | 3.7% | $12,225 |
| Crawford County | 97 | 27.6% | 20.2% | 10.4% | 5.2% | 5.2% | 3.9% | $11,093 |
| Dade County | 98 | 27.5% | 21.2% | 11.1% | 7.2% | 3.2% | 2.8% | $11,545 |
| Lamar County | 99 | 27.4% | 17.3% | 9.3% | 7.1% | 3.6% | 3.8% | $11,969 |
| White County | 100 | 27.2% | 23.3% | 10.6% | 8.4% | 2.5% | 2.4% | $13,427 |
| Habersham County | 101 | 27.2% | 18.9% | 10.4% | 7.6% | 2.9% | 3.1% | $10,924 |
| Tift County | 102 | 27.1% | 16.3% | 7.7% | 6.1% | 4.9% | 4.7% | $12,061 |
| Haralson County | 103 | 27% | 15.7% | 8.6% | 6.6% | 4% | 3.6% | $12,173 |
| Liberty County | 104 | 26.7% | 10.2% | 5.7% | 3.6% | 2.8% | 4.6% | $10,546 |
| Muscogee County | 105 | 26.6% | 14.8% | 7% | 5.3% | 3.9% | 4.2% | $12,794 |
| Troup County | 106 | 26.4% | 16% | 8.5% | 6.6% | 4.2% | 4.3% | $11,801 |
| Thomas County | 107 | 25.6% | 19.3% | 7.9% | 6.1% | 4.8% | 3.7% | $13,712 |
| Long County | 108 | 25.4% | 10.1% | 4.8% | 3.9% | 3.3% | 4.2% | $10,123 |
| Rockdale County | 109 | 25.3% | 15.8% | 8.3% | 5.9% | 3% | 4.1% | $10,414 |
| Lowndes County | 110 | 25.1% | 13.2% | 6.7% | 5.4% | 4% | 4.2% | $11,034 |
| Schley County | 111 | 24.4% | 18.5% | 7.9% | 6.3% | 3.4% | 4.2% | $10,606 |
| Newton County | 112 | 24.3% | 13.4% | 7.9% | 5.9% | 2.8% | 4.4% | $10,124 |
| Putnam County | 113 | 24.3% | 25.1% | 10.1% | 6.6% | 2.5% | 2.8% | $13,236 |
| Echols County | 114 | 24.2% | 13.8% | 8.2% | 2.3% | 6% | 5.5% | $7,900 |
| Camden County | 115 | 24.1% | 15.2% | 7.8% | 5.9% | 1.9% | 2.8% | $10,527 |
| Madison County | 116 | 24.1% | 17.8% | 8.7% | 6.2% | 3.5% | 3.2% | $11,179 |
| Jones County | 117 | 23.5% | 18.2% | 9.8% | 4.9% | 3.5% | 2.9% | $10,133 |
| Lumpkin County | 118 | 23.4% | 18.4% | 8.6% | 6.4% | 2.4% | 2% | $10,986 |
| Gordon County | 119 | 23.3% | 15.9% | 8.2% | 6.6% | 3.3% | 3.2% | $10,452 |
| Jasper County | 120 | 23.3% | 17.4% | 8.4% | 6.7% | 3.1% | 3% | $11,056 |
| Catoosa County | 121 | 23.1% | 18.6% | 9.7% | 5.5% | 2.6% | 2.6% | $9,790 |
| Bulloch County | 122 | 22.8% | 12.4% | 6.6% | 5% | 3.1% | 3.7% | $8,759 |
| Pickens County | 123 | 22.5% | 22.8% | 9.8% | 6.9% | 2.1% | 1.7% | $13,642 |
| Oglethorpe County | 124 | 22.5% | 19.4% | 8.8% | 5.6% | 3.2% | 2.8% | $10,584 |
| Carroll County | 125 | 21.9% | 14.1% | 7.1% | 6% | 2.6% | 3.1% | $11,050 |
| Whitfield County | 125 | 21.9% | 14.9% | 7.5% | 5.5% | 3.5% | 3.4% | $9,918 |
| Douglas County | 127 | 21.8% | 12.3% | 6.8% | 5.3% | 2.6% | 3.7% | $9,531 |
| Houston County | 127 | 21.8% | 13.6% | 6% | 4.7% | 2.2% | 3% | $10,498 |
| Glynn County | 129 | 20.9% | 22.7% | 8.1% | 5.6% | 2.2% | 2.5% | $12,563 |
| Walton County | 130 | 20.8% | 16.3% | 7.1% | 6.6% | 1.9% | 2.5% | $10,729 |
| Banks County | 131 | 20.5% | 18.2% | 8.5% | 3% | 3.7% | 2.7% | $9,232 |
| Bartow County | 132 | 20.4% | 14.9% | 7.2% | 5.5% | 2.7% | 2.7% | $9,915 |
| Greene County | 133 | 20.1% | 30.8% | 9% | 5.7% | 2.1% | 1.7% | $15,265 |
| Clarke County | 134 | 19.9% | 12.5% | 6.5% | 4.7% | 3% | 3.1% | $8,151 |
| Henry County | 135 | 19.6% | 12.5% | 6.4% | 4.5% | 1.5% | 3% | $9,213 |
| Morgan County | 136 | 19.5% | 20.7% | 7.7% | 5.7% | 2% | 2.1% | $11,759 |
| Pike County | 137 | 19.4% | 16.1% | 7.4% | 5.6% | 2.1% | 2.2% | $9,841 |
| Monroe County | 138 | 19.1% | 19.3% | 8% | 4.4% | 2.6% | 2.1% | $10,334 |
| Chatham County | 139 | 19% | 16.8% | 6.2% | 4.5% | 2.4% | 2.5% | $10,781 |
| Barrow County | 140 | 18.9% | 12.9% | 6.6% | 5.3% | 2% | 2.7% | $8,868 |
| Jackson County | 141 | 18.7% | 14.6% | 6.2% | 6.7% | 1.8% | 1.9% | $10,270 |
| Harris County | 142 | 18.4% | 19.4% | 7.1% | 4.4% | 1.3% | 1.5% | $10,793 |
| Effingham County | 143 | 18% | 12.5% | 6.4% | 4.1% | 1.7% | 2.2% | $8,697 |
| Lee County | 144 | 17.9% | 14.2% | 6.2% | 4% | 2% | 2.6% | $9,330 |
| Columbia County | 145 | 17.2% | 15.1% | 5.8% | 3.5% | 0.9% | 1.4% | $10,146 |
| Dawson County | 146 | 17% | 20.1% | 6.6% | 5.7% | 1.2% | 1.4% | $10,381 |
| Hall County | 147 | 16.6% | 16.3% | 6.4% | 4.2% | 2% | 2.1% | $9,503 |
| Bryan County | 148 | 16% | 11.1% | 4.8% | 3.4% | 1.2% | 1.7% | $9,203 |
| Chattahoochee County | 149 | 15.6% | 5.6% | 3.6% | 3% | 1.9% | 3.9% | $5,667 |
| Coweta County | 150 | 15.2% | 15.2% | 5.9% | 4.1% | 1.3% | 1.7% | $9,128 |
| Paulding County | 151 | 15% | 11.7% | 5.8% | 3.2% | 1.4% | 2.2% | $7,197 |
| DeKalb County | 152 | 14.4% | 13.8% | 4.3% | 3.6% | 2.2% | 2.5% | $9,044 |
| Gwinnett County | 153 | 14.2% | 11.3% | 4.4% | 3.3% | 1.4% | 2.3% | $7,234 |
| Fayette County | 154 | 13.7% | 20.1% | 5.8% | 3.9% | 0.7% | 1% | $10,318 |
| Cherokee County | 155 | 12.9% | 15.9% | 5.4% | 4% | 0.8% | 1% | $8,539 |
| Cobb County | 156 | 11.5% | 13.7% | 4.3% | 2.9% | 1.1% | 1.3% | $8,013 |
| Oconee County | 157 | 10% | 17.2% | 4.6% | 2.8% | 0.6% | 0.7% | $7,954 |
| Fulton County | 158 | 8.3% | 12.7% | 2.5% | 2.1% | 1.2% | 1.4% | $8,299 |
| Forsyth County | 159 | 7.3% | 12.7% | 3.3% | 2% | 0.4% | 0.6% | $5,784 |
