AB 2153 (Arambula) Held in Assembly Appropriations, Won’t Move On this Year
Published on May 20, 2022 in CalFresh, State Legislation
Yesterday AB 2153 (Arambula) the CalFresh Fruit & Vegetable Supplemental Benefits Expansion, failed to pass out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee. Nourish California and SPUR, the bill’s cosponsors, are disappointed the bill will not be moving forward. However, we remain committed to pursuing policies that will reduce hunger and poverty in our state by boosting CalFresh benefits.
We would like to thank Assemblymember Arambula for his strong leadership on AB 2153, and for his ongoing commitment to improving food access for Californians with low income. We also thank the many individuals and organizations that supported the bill and budget request throughout the legislative session.
We appreciate your time, efforts and advocacy. Together, we can dramatically increase the number and geographic diversity of CalFresh households who can access supplemental benefits, and move the program one step closer to becoming a permanent supplement to CalFresh. Thank you.
What’s next?
We will take the next few months to assess the policy landscape, listen to CalFresh participants about their experiences, and continue to build our strong and diverse coalition. Stay tuned for updates about the campaign to boost benefits and eliminate barriers in CalFresh.
Background
Fruit and vegetable supplemental benefit programs, which provide CalFresh participants with matching dollars when they buy California-grown fruits and vegetables, make food more affordable while also supporting California farmers. Numerous organizations have piloted these initiatives, also commonly known as healthy food incentive programs, at grocery stores and farmers’ markets in California. Evaluations from those programs in California, and others nationally, show that they reduce hunger, improve health, and boost the agricultural economy.
Learn more and take action to eliminate barriers and boost benefits in CalFresh at our Action Center.
Questions? Contact: Jared Call at jared@nourishca.org.
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