Some departments of France provide more aid or allocate larger amounts than others…
Not all social assistance recipients receive the same amounts. The amounts received depend both on the type of aid received – whether it is active solidarity income (RSA), aid for the elderly, social assistance for disabled people or even social assistance for children (ASE) – but also criteria which give entitlement to more or less aid depending on the situation of the beneficiaries. But can the amount allocated also depend on the department in which we live?
It is a fact that certain French departments spend significantly more than others on social assistance, as shown in 2022 report from the Directorate of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics (DREES), due to the more or less high income of those administered or their precarious situation. Of the more than 90 French departments, around thirty exceed the average amount of social assistance allocated per inhabitant per year, which was estimated at 600 euros in 2020. If by location the sum of social assistance measures distributed is lower, elsewhere it can be largely exceeded:
- Between 660 and 780 euros in Aisne, Allier, Ariège, Aube, Bouches-du-Rhône, Cher, Gard, Dordogne, Gers, Hautes-Pyrénées, Hérault, Lot, Lot-et-Garonne, Meuse, Nièvre, Orne, Pas-de-Calais, Pyrénées-Orientales, Somme and Tarn.
- Between 780 and 900 euros in the Ardennes, in Aude, in Creuse, in the North and in Seine-Saint-Denis
- Between 1200 and 1240 euros in Guadeloupe and Martinique.
If certain departments spend more on a social assistance measure allocated to a resident, others deliver more aid in quantity. A point which also affects territorial investment. There are still around thirty departments providing more social assistance than the national average. In 2020, more than half of French territories activated more than 66 social assistance measures per 1,000 inhabitants and while some barely exceed this rate, others widen the gap.
- Between 74 and 88 aid measures delivered per 1,000 inhabitants in 18 departments: Aisne, Allier, Aveyron, Bouches-du-Rhône, Charente, Cher, Gard, Dordogne, Gers, Hérault, Lot, Lot-et-Garonne, Lozère, Nord, Orne, Pas-de-Calais, Seine-Maritime, and Yonne.
- Between 88 and 101 aid measures delivered per 1,000 inhabitants in 9 departments: Ardennes, Ariège, Aude, Creuse, Hautes-Pyrénées, Nièvre, Pyrénées-Orientales, Seine-Saint-Denis and Guyana.
- Between 150 and 166 aid measures delivered per 1000 inhabitants in 3 departments: Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion.
In summary, the departments of the Ile de France (excluding Seine-Saint-Denis), the north-west and the east of France spend the least on social assistance, unlike the southern territories, the west, north and center of the country. These gaps are not really linked to the generosity of the departments, but above all to the needs of their population. These variations actually reflect income inequalities between territories and redistribution flows.
Among all the aid measures and the amounts delivered to beneficiaries, many are in the name of the RSA which represents 46% of the social assistance provided. However, the amount of RSA set at the national level does not differ that much between the most and least assisted residents: 530 and 580 euros. On the other hand, the number of beneficiaries can be multiplied by two or even three from one department to another. Same observation for beneficiaries of assistance for the elderly: they receive between 380 and 500 euros but their number varies enormously depending on the territory.