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Please join us in advocating to make it easier for the most vulnerable Californians to access vital food assistance. We urge you to sign on to our budget request letter asking the state to create a simplified CalFresh application for older adults and people with disabilities. We are also asking to ensure that people can continue to complete applications and other forms by phone, as is currently being allowed during the pandemic. This is especially important for busy working families.

To read the budget request letter click here.

As you know, COVID-19 is exacerbating already high levels of hunger and hardship, particularly among older adults and people with disabilities. As our largest food and nutrition assistance program, CalFresh has a critical role to play in California’s immediate COVID-19 response and long-term recovery efforts. Yet because of the complicated and burdensome application process, only a fraction of eligible older Californians (age 60 or over) are enrolled in the program. In order to better connect older adults with ongoing federal food assistance, it is critical that we exercise every available option to simplify access to CalFresh.

This budget request is cosponsored by our partners at the CA Association of Food Banks, AARP-CA, and San Francisco-Marin Food Bank. We thank you for supporting improvements to CalFresh that will help more Californians access the food they need.

To sign on, fill out the short form below by February 2, 2021.

Questions? Contact: Jared Call at jared@nourishca.org.