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Committee advances bill allowing CDSS to check county capacity to deliver Disaster CalFresh after federal disasters
Summary
SB 739 would authorize the California Department of Social Services to inquire whether counties in federally declared disaster areas can provide timely Disaster CalFresh services so the state can coordinate support; the committee forwarded the bill to Appropriations unanimously.
The Assembly Committee on Human Services voted to pass SB 739 to the Assembly Appropriations Committee after the author described the bill as a measure to ensure disaster victims can access Disaster CalFresh when county systems are damaged or overwhelmed.
Senator Aragon, the author, said Disaster CalFresh provides disaster victims with a month’s worth of benefits on an EBT card for households that do not qualify for regular CalFresh and that county infrastructure can be damaged or county staff displaced after a federal disaster. “SB 739 would ensure that CDSS is authorized to inquire whether a county in a federally declared disaster area is able to provide timely and adequate services to CalFresh recipients,” the author said, so the state can work with impacted counties and assist delivery.
Yesenia Jimenez of End Child Poverty California said the bill addresses communication and coordination gaps that leave families without access to benefits immediately after disasters. She said the legislation would allow the state to identify breakdowns early and support local workers so families do not “fall through the cracks.”
The bill’s author said the measure was inspired by recent issues in Los Angeles County. Committee members praised the bill’s focus on disaster response; the motion to pass SB 739 to the Assembly Appropriations Committee was moved by Assemblymember Jackson and seconded by Assemblymember Calderon. The vote was recorded as 7 ayes, 0 noes.
