New CBP Report: Congress Should Maintain States’ Flexibility To Expand SNAP Food Assistance

August 13, 2012

A new CBP analysis examines deep cuts that Congress is considering making to the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps). Known as CalFresh in California, this program provides food assistance to nearly 4 million low-income individuals across the state, over three-fifths of them children. The need for food assistance has increased due to the Great Recession and its aftermath. Since mid-2007, when the economic downturn started in California, CalFresh enrollment has risen steadily and nearly doubled.

As part of the reauthorization of the federal Farm Bill, the US House of Representatives is considering slashing SNAP funding by more than $16 billion over the next 10 years, largely by eliminating the flexibility that states have to broaden SNAP eligibility to more low-income working families. This change would end SNAP food assistance for roughly 2 million to 3 million low-income individuals in 40 states, including California.

The cuts under consideration in the House would jeopardize improvements that California has made – or is considering making – to CalFresh. For instance: as we’ve blogged before, a bill now in the Legislature – AB 1560 – would bring more low-income individuals into CalFresh by both simplifying eligibility rules and creating a direct link between CalFresh and the Medi-Cal Program. The proposed House cuts to SNAP would prohibit this effort to expand access to CalFresh and would reduce nutrition assistance at the worst possible time: with many families still struggling in the wake of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

– Steven Bliss

Comments Off | Federal Budget & Taxes, Human Services & Child Care | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by cbporg

Bill To Boost CalFresh Participation Set for Hearing in State Senate

June 25, 2012

It’s no secret that California ranks dead last among states in enrolling eligible individuals in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which was formerly known as food stamps. The state has been chipping away at the problem for several years now, and the most recent effort – AB 1560 (Fuentes) – is working its way through the Legislature, with a hearing scheduled for tomorrow, June 26, in the Senate Human Services Committee at 1:30 p.m.

AB 1560 could help bring more low-income individuals into SNAP – known as CalFresh in California – by simplifying the eligibility rules for certain households and creating a direct link between CalFresh and Medi-Cal, which provides basic health coverage to more than 7 million low-income Californians. Specifically, the bill would raise the gross income limit applicable to CalFresh for families who have at least one person enrolled in Medi-Cal. For these families, the “gross income test” – which looks at a family’s total income – would be increased from 130 percent of the federal poverty line (currently $2,008 per month for a family of three) to 200 percent of the poverty line ($3,090 per month for a family of three), thereby removing a key obstacle to CalFresh participation for many low-income families. These families, however, would continue to be subject to a secondary income limit, known as the “net income test.” Families’ net income – that is, gross income minus certain allowable expenses, such as child care – would have to be at or below the poverty line ($1,545 per month for a family of three) in order to qualify for CalFresh food assistance.

Low-income working families who have a connection to Medi-Cal and who spend much of their incomes on child care and housing – leaving relatively little in their budgets for food – would benefit the most from this change. These families are currently excluded from CalFresh if their total incomes exceed 130 percent of the poverty line. For example, two parents who each work full-time at a minimum-wage job earn about $2,800 per month, putting their household income above the CalFresh income limit, but leaving their income well below 200 percent of the poverty line. Under AB 1560, this family would no longer be automatically excluded from CalFresh on the first pass – so long as at least one family member is enrolled in Medi-Cal. Instead, they would move right to the second test and, if their net income falls at or below the poverty line, would be eligible to receive CalFresh food assistance.

By establishing a direct link between CalFresh and Medi-Cal, AB 1560 also could help to boost CalFresh participation among the estimated 1.2 million Medi-Cal enrollees who are currently eligible for CalFresh, but either have not applied or have “fallen off” CalFresh due to excessive reporting requirements. Linking CalFresh and Medi-Cal also would eliminate duplicative steps for county eligibility workers, who assess eligibility for both CalFresh and Medi-Cal.

Boosting the number of low-income families who receive vital food assistance. Increasing efficiencies. Sounds like a win-win.

– Scott Graves

Comments Off | Human Services & Child Care | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by cbporg

Governor Acts on Key Bills

October 10, 2011

Governor Brown completed action this weekend on the roughly 600 bills that the Legislature sent him before adjourning last month. The Governor signed a significant budget-related bill, SB 202 (Hancock), which moves a state spending cap measure from the June 2012 primary election ballot to the November 2014 general election ballot. The spending cap measure – ACA 4 – was placed on the ballot as part of the October 2010 budget agreement. SB 202 also requires future initiatives and referenda to be placed on November general election ballots.

The Governor also signed AB 6 (Fuentes), which eliminates the fingerprinting requirement for CalFresh – formerly food stamp – applicants, although not for CalWORKs welfare-to-work applicants. AB 6 also cuts red tape by shifting from a quarterly to a six-month reporting system for CalFresh and CalWORKs recipients. These changes, which the CBP recommended back in 2009, are expected to increase program efficiencies and boost the CalFresh participation rate, which ranks near the bottom among the 50 states’ food assistance programs. Unfortunately, the Governor vetoed AB 1182 (Hernández), which would have further simplified CalWORKs by eliminating California’s restrictive “vehicle asset test.” Families who apply for CalWORKs generally cannot have a car worth more than $4,650, a limit that has not been adjusted since the mid-1990s. California has one of the strictest limits in the nation despite the fact that Californians rely heavily on their cars to get to work, and in today’s market a car worth less than $4,650 is not likely to be very reliable, to say the least. Let’s hope the Legislature gives the Governor an opportunity to reconsider his veto next year.

– Scott Graves

Comments Off | Human Services & Child Care, State Budget | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by cbporg

Video: The CBP’s Jean Ross Discusses California’s Safety Net

October 5, 2011

With increased unemployment and poverty brought on by the continuing economic downturn, more individuals and families are relying on public programs for food assistance, health coverage, income support, and other services. This rising demand comes at a time when budgets at all levels of government are stretched thin.

Last week in Sacramento, CBP Executive Director Jean Ross participated in a panel discussion hosted by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) that looked at the condition of – and challenges facing – California’s safety net in the wake of the Great Recession. Moderated by David Lesher, PPIC director of government affairs, the panel featured Jean along with Caroline Danielson, PPIC policy fellow (pictured here) and Bruce Wagstaff, countywide services agency administrator for Sacramento County. The full video is below.

– Steven Bliss

Comments Off | Human Services & Child Care | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by cbporg

CalFresh Food Assistance: Another ARRA Success Story

July 26, 2011

Here’s another piece of good news about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA): The ARRA reduced the number of low-income US households who reported hunger or the threat of hunger in 2009, even as the nation’s unemployment rate surged during the most severe economic downturn in the post-World War II era. This finding comes from a rigorous analysis by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). The study assessed the impact of the ARRA’s nutritional assistance provisions, including a 13.6 percent boost to food benefits provided by the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps and called CalFresh in California.

The study concluded that the ARRA not only helped to boost both SNAP enrollment and families’ food spending, but also “improved food security among low-income households during a period of tough economic conditions.” Specifically, 530,000 fewer low-income households experienced hunger or the threat of hunger in 2009 than would have been the case without the ARRA, according to the report. Further underscoring the ARRA’s positive impact on food security, the researchers found that households who were ineligible for SNAP benefits because their incomes were slightly too high did not fare as well: “Food spending increased by a smaller amount and food security did not improve” for these families, the researchers concluded.

Millions of Californians facing prolonged joblessness and reduced incomes during the painfully slow economic recovery have benefited from the ARRA’s improvements to food assistance. As CBP Executive Director Jean Ross noted yesterday on KPCC, the number of CalFresh recipients – most of whom are children – has increased steadily since California employment peaked in 2007, rising by 82 percent from just over 2 million in July 2007 to 3.7 million in May 2011. In the aggregate, CalFresh families receive more than $500 million per month in 100 percent federally funded food benefits, all of which is spent at grocery stores throughout the state, thereby boosting local economies. Certainly, CalFresh has room for improvement, as we’ve pointed out before. But for now, as the state struggles to recover from the Great Recession, it’s hard to argue with success.

– Scott Graves

Comments Off | Federal Budget & Taxes, Human Services & Child Care | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by cbporg

« Previous Entries
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 33 other followers