Beginning June 1, 2026, at least 1 in 5 CalFresh recipients are at risk of losing life-saving food assistance due to onerous new work requirements imposed by H.R. 1, which requires proof of 20 hours per week of work, job training, education, or community service. Work requirements are proven as a failed strategy to improve employment, while denying eligible people from accessing assistance, increasing costs to taxpayers, and pushing vulnerable populations deeper into poverty. When combined with the ABAWD time limit policy, these rules will restrict at least 954,800 CalFresh recipients to only three months of food assistance within a 36-month period unless they are able to comply or qualify for an exemption.

If adequately funded, staffed, and trained, the county eligibility workforce offers a clear, cost-effective, and proven pathway for the State to reduce the harms of H.R. 1 by keeping as many people as possible connected to food assistance and mitigating an emerging hunger crisis.

Click on our fact sheet to learn more.