Huge Week for Anti-Poverty Bills in Sacramento

The week of April 7 is going to be an exciting one at the Capitol.  A bunch of anti-poverty bills will be heard in committees in both the Senate and the Assembly, and advocates from across the state will be there to tell our elected officials why ending poverty in our communities is so important.

St. Anthony’s is bringing a group of our guests –  people who are struggling with hunger, poverty, homelessness, and low incomes – to Sacramento to talk about issues that are important to them.  Here are some of the bills and issues that we’ll be focusing on:

SB 1029 (Hancock): Successful Re-entry / Lift the Ban

• This bill would end California’s practice of banning people with prior drug felony convictions from receiving aid through CalFresh (food stamps) and CalWORKs (California’s welfare-to-work program).
• Join us in supporting this bill.  Click here to sign on to our petition in support of SB 1029.
• Tweet your support for SB 1029 using the hashtag #LiftTheBan.

SB 935 (Leno): Raise the Minimum Wage

• This bill will raise California’s minimum wage to $13 per hour by 2017 and will index the minimum wage to inflation.
• St. Anthony’s supports raising the minimum wage because we know that a source of income that is adequate to provide for basic needs is a critical component of our guests’ ability to transition from poverty to stability.
• Click here to sign on as a supporter of SB 935, through our friends at the California Partnership.

SB 1002 (De Leon): Connect Essential Benefit Programs

• This bill will improve coordination between health and food assistance programs serving low-income Californians.
• Find out more about SB 1002 from our friends at California Food Policy Advocates.

SB 899 (Mitchell): Repeal the Maximum Family Grant Rule

• This bill will repeal the Maximum Family Grant (MFG) rule, which denies CalWORKs assistance to children born to families who are already receiving aid.
• You can submit a letter of support for SB 899 using the sample letter, here.

AB 2345 (Gonzalez): Support for all Legally Present Immigrants

• This bill will extend equal access to food assistance (CalFresh) and public benefit eligibility (CalWORKs) for legally present immigrants.
• Under current law, several categories of lawfully present immigrants who work and pay taxes, such as Deferred Action, and longtime residents who are in the process of securing lawful permanent residence, do not qualify for these CalWORKs and CalFresh.
• Click here to submit your own letter of support for AB 2345.

Stay tuned to our twitter feed and our Facebook page for updates and pictures from this exciting week.