New federal laws affecting SNAP benefit recipients ages 18–64 are now in effect. Starting June 1st, recertifying will mean proving you work or volunteer no less than 20 hours a week. Over five million people currently rely on CalFresh, our state’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Several hundred thousand Californians once ruled exempt from these requirements will be looking for work, straining an already-hamstrung job market. While the politicians behind this looming labor crisis insulate themselves in DC, honest Broke-Asses like myself could lose big.
Your CalFresh benefits and you
Trump’s government invented an unflattering name for people subject to these new stipulations: Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents, or A-BAWDs. If you’re a CalFresh recipient who doesn’t receive federal disability insurance/have dependents under 14 years old, you are an A-BAWD. It’s a quiet purge, targeting people whose existence falls in a bureaucratic grey area, and that’s a lot of us. It’s your mom who retired at 60 with a bad knee. Your friend whose PTSD is so severe, she hardly leaves home. Your sibling, a full-time student whose stipend only barely covers rent. That homeless man you passed on your after-work commute who didn’t ask for cash because he has CalFresh. This regulation could put much of a disadvantaged community at risk of going hungry.
While it is already required of unemployment insurance recipients to look for work while drawing benefits, CalFresh cardholders were excepted. It’s as if the agency implicitly understood that not everyone who needs food stamps has a stable living situation. I think that’s why they made sure to inquire about my housing status and whether I felt safe at home. More than just rigamarole, it spoke to the ethics of the people giving me my EBT card. Because at one time, I was not safe at home, and nobody asked. Your coworker secretly trying to leave their abusive partner will find it harder to get out if their CalFresh benefits expire. These are the people Trump’s aggressive laws will punish.
Farmers market at Civic Center Plaza. San Francisco, California. CalFresh is accepted at most farmers’ markets. Creative commons.
What’s next
When a resource fails, others struggle to absorb the collateral. The Food Bank of Contra Costa & Solano is already getting questions from panicked residents. “Those that have CalFresh already, they’re concerned…that they will lose benefits immediately starting June 1st when that is not the case,” said the bank’s CalFresh manager Jeneatte Orta. Losing your benefits can only happen if, at your next recertification, you do not meet the requirements. Translation: Get steady income or volunteer work before your next CalFresh renewal. Not every food bank and donation center can support those whose safety nets dissolved underneath them.
The San Francisco-Marin Food Bank fears over 18,000 clients might lose their CalFresh benefits (NBC Bay Area). A Silicon Valley food bank already serves one in six residents of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. Down south, the San Diego Food Bank keeps over 400,000 residents from going hungry. Up to 665,000 Californians could see their EBT allowance dramatically reduced or eliminated entirely.
Food scarcity will emerge as a major concern as disasters both natural and man-made continue increasing in frequency and severity. In the meantime, CalFresh applicants will have yet another flaming hoop to jump through to secure potentially meager financial assistance. For a thorough compendium on food assistance, turn to Nisa Khan of KQED. Stock up now and plan ahead. I’m stuffing my cabinets with Beef-a-roni.
