SACRAMENTO, CA — The California Budget & Policy Center (Budget Center) and Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders for Civic Empowerment Education Fund (AAPI FORCE-EF), released a new report — Federal and State Budget Decisions Threaten AANHPI Women in California — finding that recent federal and state budget decisions threaten to undermine the health, economic mobility, and housing stability of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) women across California, who are already struggling with high uninsurance rates, low wages, and high rents.
Building on the 2024 Women’s Well-Being Index, the new report highlights gender disparities in California and signals deeper harm for AANHPI women amid federal threats and state inaction. Using disaggregated data, this report exposes disparities across AANHPI communities, challenges the model minority myth, and calls for urgent policy action.
“AANHPI women are not a monolith, and aggregated data too often hides the real economic and health challenges facing many communities,” said Laura Pryor, research director at the California Budget & Policy Center. “As federal cuts take effect and the state fails to protect vulnerable communities by backfilling crucial programs, AANHPI women risk losing health coverage, falling deeper into low-wage work, and facing even greater housing instability.”
The report finds that sweeping federal cuts under H.R. 1, combined with state-level actions such as Medi-Cal enrollment freezes, new premiums for certain immigrants, and reductions to benefits, are poised to worsen existing disparities in health coverage, wages, and housing affordability. About a third of California’s budget comes from federal funding. Instead of pursuing revenue solutions, the Newsom administration is proposing to balance the budget on the backs of immigrants, many of whom are AANHPI.
Topline findings include:
- Nearly 300,000 employed Asian American adults and 16,000 employed Pacific Islander adults in California will be at risk of losing Medi-Cal due to new premiums and reporting requirements.
- Central Asian and Pacific Islander women earn among the lowest wages across AANHPI groups and are significantly more likely to work in low-wage service jobs.
- For every $1 white men earn, Central Asian women are only paid $0.53 and Pacific Islander women are paid only $0.56, an earnings gap that persists even when AANHPI women can access higher-paying jobs.
- Most AANHPI ethnicities in California are rent burdened, spending more than 30% of their income on housing.
“This report sheds light on what we already know: AANHPI women are struggling to make ends meet,” said Nina Long, policy manager at AAPI FORCE-EF. “Federal safety net cuts and immigration enforcement further imperil the economic security and safety of our community, all in service of enriching corporations and billionaires. In order to fund the programs that keep us healthy, fed, and housed, the state must ensure that corporations and wealthy individuals pay their fair share.”
To mitigate harm and support AANHPI women, the report calls on state leaders to pursue equitable revenue solutions that protect access to health care and food assistance, strengthen worker protections, invest in affordable housing, and improve language access and culturally competent outreach.
The California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative and the Central Valley Pacific Islander Alliance also contributed to this report.
To view the full publication, visit www.calbudgetcenter.org/resources/.
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The California Budget & Policy Center (Budget Center) is a nonpartisan research and analysis nonprofit advancing public policies that expand opportunities and promote well-being for all Californians. Learn more at calbudgetcenter.org.
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders for Civic Empowerment Education Fund (AAPI FORCE-EF) is a statewide network that builds progressive Asian American and Pacific Islander governing power in California through integrated voter engagement, policy advocacy, and narrative change. Learn more at aapiforce-ef.org.
