The Taipei City Government will budget NT$100 million (US$2.9 million) for subsidies to single fathers and grandparents following the amendment of the Act on Assisting Women and Families in Dire Conditions (特殊境遇婦女家庭扶助條例).
Lawmakers changed the title of the bill to the Act on Assisting Families in Dire Conditions (特殊境遇家庭扶助條例) last month to expand the welfare service that was previously only available to women.
The amended law allows any single parent under the age of 65, single grandparents, victims of domestic violence, unmarried pregnant women or anyone else raising a minor alone to apply for educational and medical stipends for their children or grandchildren.
Taipei City Social Welfare Department Commissioner Shih Yu-ling (師豫玲) said the city was the first in the nation to make a budget allocation in accordance with the amended legislation.
City welfare officials began accepting applications from families in need yesterday.
About 2,100 families will be able to receive subsidies, Shih added.
She said the department would send personnel to inspect the living conditions of the families that apply for the subsidies and would offer a three-month subsidy to those who qualify.
The department will extend subsidies for three more months to families whose living standards have not not improved over the first three months, she said.
Successful applicants would receive a monthly subsidy of NT$14,558, while the amended act stipulates that families receiving assistance need to pay only 40 percent of a child’s high school or college tuition.
The city government has set up 30 service windows at local women’s centers, domestic violence prevention centers and social welfare centers to provide counseling and application services.
For more information, call the citizen’s hotline at 1999 extension 1944, or visit the department’s Web site at www.dosw.taipei.gov.tw.
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