Georgia assistance programs

Georgia spreads the programs covered on this site across seven state bodies, and two of them each run two categories: the Department of Human Services' Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) decides TANF cash assistance and funds LIHEAP energy help, and the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) runs both the Georgia Dream down payment loans and the state's SSBCI small business money. Child care has its own agency, the Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL), which also runs the free, lottery-funded Georgia's Pre-K Program.

Where you apply depends on the program. TANF and the CAPS child care subsidy both take applications online through Georgia Gateway. LIHEAP has no statewide online application: DFCS contracts with 18 Community Action Agencies with intake sites in all 159 counties, which open heating help in December and cooling help in April, with people 65 and older and the medically homebound served first. Weatherization is a separate program run by the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA), and its county provider can differ from your LIHEAP agency. The Georgia energy assistance guide lists both.

Much of Georgia's help is a loan, not a grant. Georgia Dream is a 0% second mortgage that is never forgiven and comes due when you sell, refinance or move out, and DCA states that its $199,616,860 SSBCI program has no grant component. The real grants are narrower: the Georgia Export Grant reimburses 75% of approved export costs (90% for designated small business communities), and Georgia Quick Start trains new hires at no cost for companies opening or expanding in the state. Forgivable homebuyer money is local, such as Invest Atlanta's ATL HomeNOW (up to $20,000, forgiven after 10 years); the Georgia homebuyer guide and small business guide sort out which is which.

Georgia's lottery pays for two programs with no income test: free Pre-K for every child who turns four by September 1, and the HOPE Grant, which pays $107 per credit hour toward technical college certificates and diplomas in 2026-27. The new DREAMS Scholarship adds the state's first broad need-based award, up to $3,000 a year for Pell-eligible students (student grants guide). Other programs are tighter than most states: CAPS requires income at or below 50% of state median income and a place in one of 13 priority groups (child care guide), and TANF stops after 48 months in a lifetime, a year short of the federal limit (cash assistance guide).