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Data Hit

USDA Refusal to Fund November CalFresh Benefits Threatens Food Security for 5.5 Million Californians

October 2025 | By Monica Saucedo

Mexican thirtysomething woman cooking in her modest kitchen, with her daughter

Over 5.5 million Californians depend on CalFresh — California’s name for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — to put food on the table every month. CalFresh provides modest monthly food assistance and, as one of the few means-tested programs that reaches almost all low-income people, is the state’s most important anti-hunger tool.

In 2023, CalFresh was the most effective safety net program in boosting family resources, according to recent data. Over 850,000 more Californians would have been in poverty without CalFresh providing food assistance, which corresponds to a 2.3 percentage point increase in the poverty rate. Children across the state experienced an even larger reduction in poverty of nearly 4 percentage points as a result of CalFresh.

The latest data continue to show that poverty — and hunger — are policy choices. Recent federal inaction by the US Department of Agriculture to fund November 2025 SNAP benefits defies long-standing practice and threatens to increase hunger for millions of families. Policymakers have the tools to ensure that no one goes hungry in the world’s fourth largest economy. Even brief periods of hunger can have devastating effects on people, particularly children, which is why policymakers should boost investments to strengthen CalFresh and help all Californians meet their most basic needs.

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Health & Safety Net

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Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, is a lifeline for more than one-third of Californians, providing essential health care coverage to children, pregnant individuals, seniors, and people with disabilities.

The recently enacted harmful Republican mega bill, H.R. 1, enacts the largest health care cuts in US history, with about $1 trillion cut from Medicaid. For California, the harm will be severe. Up to 3.4 million people could lose Medi-Cal coverage and the state could lose $30 billion in federal funding each year.

The law undermines Medi-Cal in two main ways. It imposes financing restrictions that strip billions in federal support, and it creates eligibility and access barriers that make it harder for people to stay covered. The table below highlights the key provisions of H.R. 1 and how they could reshape coverage in the years ahead.

Federal Policy

The federal government plays a major role in shaping California’s budget, economy, and the well-being of its people.

Learn how federal policies shape California’s budget, economy, and vital programs — and how state leaders can respond to protect and support Californians.

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Medi-Cal

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The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or CalFresh in California, helps fight hunger by providing modest food assistance to over 5 million Californians with low incomes. Research shows that SNAP assistance helps improve the health and well-being of participants while also powering local economies.

However, the recently enacted harmful Republican megabill (H.R. 1) includes historic cuts to the program — about 20% of the entire program’s budget. These cuts are estimated to affect over 97% of CalFresh households, reducing or eliminating their monthly benefits through new eligibility restrictions and state financing constraints. The table below outlines the various changes to SNAP in H.R. 1 and their impact on Californians.

Federal Policy

The federal government plays a major role in shaping California’s budget, economy, and the well-being of its people.

Learn how federal policies shape California’s budget, economy, and vital programs — and how state leaders can respond to protect and support Californians.

Explore Federal Resources

CalFresh
Federal Policy
Health & Safety Net

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Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, saves lives. It’s a lifeline that provides free or low-cost health coverage to over one-third of the state’s population — including children, pregnant individuals, seniors, and people with disabilities. 

Cutting Medi-Cal funding would mean taking critical care away from residents who need it the most in every congressional district. Without access to health coverage, Californians will face impossible choices that put their health and economic security at risk while also driving up long-term costs for the state. 

This table shows how many people in each congressional district rely on Medi-Cal, how many adults could lose coverage due to work requirements, and the level of Medi-Cal spending per district that fuels jobs and local economies.

For more on how federal cuts could affect nutrition assistance and other essential supports, see our report How Republican-Led Budget Cuts Could Impact Californians in Every Congressional District.

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Health & Safety Net

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Californians and their communities are facing many ongoing challenges, including skyrocketing housing costs, families’ urgent need for affordable child care, and workers’ wages that aren’t keeping up with rising living costs. Fortunately, when state leaders addressed a $55 billion shortfall in the 2024-25 budget, they avoided many deep and harmful cuts that would have jeopardized Californians’ well being. However, their failure to permanently raise significant additional state revenue will limit their ability to protect progress from the emerging federal threats and meet the ongoing needs of Californians.

California spends tens of billions of dollars each year on tax breaks, some of the largest of which benefit the wealthy and profitable corporations. These tax breaks take billions of dollars away from communities, while perpetuating racial income and wealth gaps. Yet the ongoing revenue increases in the 2024-25 budget from reducing tax breaks amounted to just 0.2% of all budget “solutions” to close the shortfall. This year, the governor proposes tax policies that, when taken together, would raise a modest amount of revenue on net in 2025-26 but in future years would likely result in a net revenue loss or a roughly offsetting revenue impact.

With looming threats of deep federal funding cuts from the Trump administration and Congress, and the human, economic, and fiscal impacts of the Southern California wildfires adding to the list of challenges facing Californians, state leaders should act boldly by raising revenues — including eliminating tax breaks for the wealthy and profitable corporations — and investing in programs that help all Californians thrive. The budget should reflect the promise of the California dream — ensuring every California family has access to food, a safe and affordable place to live, quality child care, and economic security.

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Everyone wants to live in safe communities, and data show California continues to experience crime rates well below historical peaks. The property crime rate — the number of property crimes per 100,000 residents — was 2,273 in 2023, far below the peak of 6,881 in 1980. The violent crime rate was 511 per 100,000 in 2023, less than half the 1992 peak of 1,104.

Crime rates have ticked up in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Any rise in crime is concerning, but state leaders should avoid overreacting as crime rates remain at historic lows in California. Moreover, voters should be skeptical of efforts to use the ballot box to roll back justice system reforms by reinstating the costly and ineffective mass incarceration policies of the past.

Instead of resurrecting failed, incarceration-focused approaches, state leaders must advance strategies to reduce youth violence, strengthen families and communities, and target the longstanding structural barriers to opportunity — such as poverty and housing instability — that disproportionately impact Black, Latinx, and other Californians of color.

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Despite recent increases, shoplifting remains below pre-pandemic levels in the state. Learn how California's current shoplifting rate compares to previous years.

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Governor Newsom’s revised budget includes deeper cuts to vital programs and services that will negatively impact the lives of families with low incomes, foster youth, immigrant communities, people with disabilities, and many more Californians. Nearly 90% of the governor’s proposals to close the budget shortfall come from spending-related actions, including cuts and delays. In contrast, raising additional revenue makes up less than 4% and withdrawing from the rainy day fund makes up less than 6% of his proposals.

State leaders could prevent the most disastrous cuts by further tapping into the state’s rainy day fund and permanently reducing tax breaks for profitable corporations. California is slated to spend billions of dollars on tax breaks this year — despite the budget shortfall — with some of the most costly breaks primarily benefiting highly profitable corporations at a time when corporate profits have reached record highs. These tax breaks take billions of dollars out of the state budget that would be better spent supporting the health and well-being of Californians.

As policymakers navigate a challenging budget year and work toward a California for all, it’s crucial that fair taxation and increasing revenues be part of the solution. By tapping into California’s great wealth and reallocating resources to benefit all Californians, policymakers can chart a path forward where economic opportunity, affordable housing, accessible health care, quality education, child care, and other basic needs are within reach for every Californian.

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Policy-making should be based on facts and evidence, not false perceptions or political motivations. Proposals to increase penalties for shoplifting fail this test.

In California, shoplifting is a misdemeanor that applies when the value of goods taken is $950 or less. Retail theft that exceeds $950 may be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony. This standard was created by Proposition 47, a reform measure passed by voters in November 2014, and is one of the toughest in the country. For example, in Texas, a felony charge isn’t triggered until the value of stolen goods reaches $2,500 — much higher than in California.

Shoplifting remains well below pre-pandemic levels despite a recent rise. The shoplifting rate — the number of shoplifting crimes per 100,000 Californians — was 210 in 2022, the most recent statewide data available. This is down by 17% from 2014, the year that Prop. 47 took effect.

Policymakers should avoid resurrecting the failed, incarceration-focused policies of the past. Instead, California needs thoughtful solutions to real, high-priority problems. This includes addressing the root causes of crime by investing in housing, jobs, education, food assistance, and other strategies to ensure that all Californians can be healthy and thrive.

related content

California's crime rates are down significantly compared to past highs, despite a recent national increase. Learn how California's current crime rate compares to previous decades.

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