Existing federal law establishes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), known in California as CalFresh, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Existing law sets forth certain requirements and exemptions for students in postsecondary education for purposes of CalFresh eligibility.
Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, no later than January 1, 2024, to publish certain data specific to students’ receipt of CalFresh benefits on the department’s existing CalFresh Data Dashboard, in order to assist in monitoring information about access to CalFresh by students enrolled in an institution of higher education, as defined. Existing law requires the department to update the dashboard over time
as additional data become available about this population.
This bill would instead require the department to update the dashboard on an annual basis and as additional data become available about that population.