Senator Wiener Legislation to Expand Access to CalFresh Food Benefits Passes Senate Human Services Committee

SACRAMENTO - Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco)’s Senate Bill 107, which would expand access to CalFresh food benefits for seniors and for all Californians, passed the Senate Human Services Committee today by a bipartisan vote of 4-0. It will now head to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

COVID-19 has exposed the depth of food insecurity in California and the need to shore up our food security safety net. SB 107 will make it much easier for people to apply for CalFresh, by allowing people to complete the application by phone (currently, people must complete it in person) and by creating a simplified application process for seniors and people with disabilities.

California currently makes it incredibly difficult for people to receive CalFresh benefits, resulting in a low percentage of eligible people actually receiving these benefits. This is unacceptable under any circumstances and particularly during a pandemic and economic collapse.

SB 107 will improve and expedite access to CalFresh by:

• Requiring counties to allow people to complete a CalFresh application or recertification process by phone
• Simplifying and shortening the CalFresh application for seniors and those with disabilities

SB 107 comes at a time of unprecedented food insecurity due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the economy. According to the Brookings Institute, “34.5% of households with children under 18 reported that since the pandemic started ‘the food we bought just didn’t last and we didn’t have enough money to get more,’” indicating a serious increase in food insecurity nationwide.

Currently, only 19% of eligible older adults are actually served by CalFresh. Additionally, California ranks last in the country in terms of eligible seniors who are actually signed up to access food assistance benefits.

Senator Bill Dodd (D-Napa), Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-San Ramon), Assemblymember Devon Mathis (R-Visalia), and Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) are co-authors of the bill, demonstrating the bipartisan support for the legislation.

SB 107 is sponsored by Nourish California, AARP California, the San Francisco Marin Food Bank, and the California Association of Food Banks.

“It’s completely unacceptable that California currently ranks last in the country when it comes to eligible seniors who have actually signed up for food benefits,” said Senator Wiener. “The application process is lengthy and burdensome, and serves as a deterrent for our most vulnerable. We need to remove these unnecessary barriers so we can expand CalFresh access to everyone who is eligible.”

"COVID-19 is exacerbating hunger and hardship across the state,” said Jared Call, Senior Advocate at Nourish California. “SB 107 removes long-standing barriers to CalFresh, the most powerful anti-hunger tool at our disposal. By cutting bureaucratic red tape, we can help struggling families enroll and keep connected to vital nutrition benefits."