The 2024-25 Budget: Food Assistance Programs

Feb 16, 2024 - CalSAWS was introduced in 2019 and, as of October 2023, all 58 counties use the system. The federal government helps manage an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) system which deposits monthly benefits for CalFresh and other human services pr ograms onto cards to be used at grocery and convenience store checkout counters.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4845

The 2026-27 Budget: Food Assistance Programs

Feb 18, 2026 - California ’s most recent payment error rate, for federal fiscal year 2023-24, is about 11  percent. (The comparable national error rate is similarly about 11  percent.) Payment error rates in California and nationally have risen in recent years, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5126

The 2025-26 Budget: Food Assistance Programs

Feb 19, 2025 - CalSAWS was introduced in 2019 and, as of October 2023, all 58 counties use the system. The federal government helps manage an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) system which deposits monthly benefits for CalFresh and other human services pr ograms onto cards to be used at grocery and convenience store checkout counters.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4971

Trends in CalWORKs: Participant Characteristics

Jun 16, 2025 - Since, 2010 ‑11, maximum cash grants for a family of three in a high ‑cost county increased over 70  percent (about $500). These increases were provided by both formula ‑driven and one ‑time increases to grant levels.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5057

The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Other Provisions

Oct 16, 2025 - The budget assumes reductions to CDFA ’s budget of $11  million ($9.8  million General Fund) authorized by Control Sections 4.05 and 4.12 of the budget act. This includes $8.2  million ($7  million General Fund) in efficiency reductions and $2.8  million General Fund in vacant position reductions.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5081/

The 2026-27 Budget: CalWORKs

Feb 18, 2026 - As shown in Figure  5, the CalWORKs caseload has steadily grown from early in 2021-22, coinciding with the expiration of enhanced federal Unemployment Insurance benefits following the COVID-19 pandemic.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5122

The 2026-27 Budget: Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP) Program

Mar 3, 2026 - As shown in Figure  5, from 2013-14 through 2020-21, the maximum combined SSI/SSP monthly grant amount for individuals (the bulk of the SSI/SSP caseload) and couples had increased on average by 1.2  percent annually —predominantly due to the provision of federal SSI COLAs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5148

The 2026-27 Budget: In-Home Supportive Services

Mar 18, 2026 - However, as seen in Figure  5 , when we consider IHSS hourly wages separately, we see that the average growth rate of hourly wages has been 5.6  percent annually since  2014. This growth in IHSS hourly wages is in part due to increases to the state minimum wage —from $8  per hour on January 1, 2014 to $16.90 per hour on January  1,  2026.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5166

The 2024-25 Budget: Child Support

Feb 27, 2024 - Given we estimated the Governor ’s budget solved a $58  billion budget problem —and revenues continue to deteriorate —the administration likely will not implement the full passthrough to current CalWORKs families as part of the May Revision.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4861

Implementing California’s Child Welfare Prevention Services Program

Jan 28, 2026 - Figure   5 illustrates a theoretical community pathway, compared to a traditional child welfare agency pathway. DSS will provide additional guidance for counties around the specific requirements of implementing a community pathway.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5106