BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1770| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- THIRD READING Bill No: AB 1770 Author: Alejo (D), et al. Amended: 8/16/16 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE: 3-0, 6/28/16 AYES: McGuire, Hancock, Liu NO VOTE RECORDED: Berryhill, Nguyen SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 5-2, 8/11/16 AYES: Lara, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza NOES: Bates, Nielsen ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 53-25, 6/2/16 - See last page for vote SUBJECT: Food assistance program: eligibility SOURCE: Western Center on Law and Poverty DIGEST: This bill extends eligibility for nutrition assistance under the California Food Assistance Program (CFAP) to a noncitizen who is lawfully present in the United States, provided he or she meets all remaining eligibility requirements. ANALYSIS: Existing federal law: 1)Establishes the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program and ties receipt of benefits to work. It also reduced or eliminated federal eligibility for legal immigrants during their first five years of U.S. residence.(H.R. 32734) AB 1770 Page 2 2)Establishes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) within the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to promote the general welfare and to safeguard the health and wellbeing of the nation's population by raising nutrition levels among low-income households. (7 CFR 271.1) 3)Establishes income eligibility standards for SNAP benefits, including income that is at or below 130 percent of the federal poverty level and is determined to be a substantial limiting factor in permitting a recipient to obtain a more nutritious diet, as specified. (7 CFR 273.9) Existing state law: 1)Establishes in California statute the CalFresh program to administer the provisions of federal SNAP benefits to families and individuals meeting specified criteria. (WIC 18900 et seq.) 2)Authorizes the provision of aid to noncitizens who have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence, or are otherwise permanently residing in the United States under color of law, to the extent permitted by federal law. (WIC 11104) 3)Establishes the CFAP which provides state-funded nutrition assistance to certain legal immigrants who meet all other CalFresh benefit requirements, as specified. (WIC 18930 et seq.) This bill extends eligibility for the CFAP to include noncitizens lawfully present in the United States, to the extent use of the existing electronic benefits transfer system to deliver the benefit is allowed by federal law. Background CalFresh California provides nutritional benefits to approximately 4.4 million people through the CalFresh program. CalFresh benefits AB 1770 Page 3 are funded entirely by the federal government through the USDA's SNAP program, which provides food benefits to eligible households nationwide. USDA sets specific eligibility requirements for SNAP programs across the United States, including gross- and net-income asset tests for most recipients, work requirements and specific documentation requirements. The maximum gross income allowed to be eligible is 130 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. According to the USDA, the average monthly benefit for a CalFresh recipient in 2014 was $141.99 per month, or $4.73 per day. CalFresh benefits are made available on a monthly basis through a debit-like EBT card. CalFresh benefits can be used to purchase food items for human consumption, as well as seeds and plants to be grown at home that produce food. Currently, the federal government does not permit the use of EBT cards to deliver benefits to the population that would be made eligible for aid by this bill. California Food Assistance Program Following the passing of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) in 1996, federal eligibility for aid to immigrant populations entering the U.S. was restricted. The following year, California established CFAP to provide state-funded nutritional aid to legally present immigrant populations who had lost SNAP benefits due to PRWORA. Under CFAP, state dollars are used to provide aid to families not eligible for federal SNAP benefits solely due to residency requirements. Income and other eligibility requirements for CFAP are aligned with CalFresh requirements; similarly, benefit amounts are aligned with CalFresh. According to the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), CFAP provided food assistance to approximately 20,700 households in Fiscal Year 2015-16, a 6.7 percent increase from the previous year. California law identifies specific categories of lawfully present immigrants, such as Haitian or Cuban refugees, who are eligible for CFAP benefits. However, because immigration categories have expanded in recent years, certain immigrant populations are ineligible CFAP benefits. This group includes immigrants present under immigration categories that did not AB 1770 Page 4 exist in 1997, when the CFAP program was created. For example, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Temporary Protected Status, Deferred Enforced Departure, and other long-time residents who are in the process of adjusting to legal permanent residency status are not eligible for state-funded food assistance. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.:YesLocal: Yes According to the Senate Appropriations Committee: One-time costs to CDSS of approximately $13.8 million for fiscal year 2016-17 and ongoing costs of $46 million per year for providing benefits to recipients. (GF) Unknown, but likely significant costs to CDSS for automation changes to the current benefits delivery system and for administering the program. (GF) SUPPORT: (Verified8/15/16) Western Center on Law and Poverty (source) Anti-Defamation League Asian Americans Advancing Justice California Association of Food Banks California Food Policy Advocates California Pan-Ethnic Health Network Children's Defense Fund Coalition for Human Immigrant Right of Los Angeles County Welfare Directors Association of California Courage Campaign Hunger Action Los Angeles MALDEF AB 1770 Page 5 San Diego Hunger Coalition Services, Immigrant Rights & Education Network Southeast Asia Resource Action Center The California Catholic Conference The California Immigrant Policy Center The Service Employees International Union OPPOSITION: (Verified8/15/16) Department of Finance ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author, under existing law the CalFresh program provides nutritional assistance to certain, but not all, legally eligible California immigrants who are ineligible for federal SNAP benefits. AB 1770 would expand CalFresh eligibility to all California immigrants who are lawfully present in the United States. The author further states, California has the largest immigrant population in the country with approximately 10.5 million residents, which comprise 27 percent of the state's population. Meanwhile, 1 in 4 children in California experiences hunger and nearly five million Californians suffer from food insecurity, per the author. The author states that ending hunger among lawfully present immigrants is not only a moral imperative; it would help stimulate state and local economies. The author cites data that indicates every $5 in financial assistance generates $9 in economic activity. Additionally, the author reports that every $1 billion in SNAP benefits allows approximately 14,000 Americans to keep their jobs, according to the Economic Research Service. ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: The California Department of Finance writes that it opposes this bill because it expands eligibility for state-funded food stamp benefits, and that these significant costs are not included in the Administration's current fiscal plan. Finance also notes that "although the AB 1770 Page 6 author's office specifies this bill would make Temporary Protected Status, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Other Longtime Residents newly eligible, this bill would actually establish eligibility for all individuals considered 'lawfully present,' which would include temporary status visitors such as workers, students and other visa-holders who are currently ineligible for CFAP benefits." ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 53-25, 6/2/16 AYES: Alejo, Arambula, Atkins, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, McCarty, Medina, Mullin, Nazarian, O'Donnell, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Weber, Williams, Wood, Rendon NOES: Achadjian, Travis Allen, Baker, Brough, Chang, Chávez, Dahle, Gallagher, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Jones, Kim, Lackey, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, Melendez, Obernolte, Olsen, Patterson, Steinorth, Wagner, Waldron, Wilk NO VOTE RECORDED: Bigelow, Beth Gaines Prepared by:Taryn Smith / HUMAN S. / (916) 651-1524 8/16/16 17:33:29 **** END ****