This thesis employs the input-output (IO) model to quantify the economic significance of the social assistance sector in 2017 New York state’s economy. Results demonstrate that investments in this sector have moderate indirect impacts due to limited inter-sectoral purchases. However, when households are endogenized as an economic sector, the social assistance sector yields notably high induced impacts. These high induced impacts are attributable to the sector's high labor compensation and workers’ predominantly local spending. By comparing the social assistance sector with other industries, this thesis contests the economic base theory and challenges the embedded biases in IO multiplier calculations. It ultimately posits that the social assistance sector holds significant value for regional economy, labor mobilization, and human development. Though the latter two concerns cannot be measured in the IO model, the sector continues to demonstrate substantial contributions to the regional economy, underscoring its importance in the broader economic framework.