State Budget Priorities

Overview

State Budget Priorities

Each year, CWDA works with its Board of Directors and its committee members to set budget priorities that will improve the well-being of children, families and individuals served by the human services system and to align public policy with the needs of populations and communities across the state.

Click on the sections below to find an overview of our budget priorities, periodic budget updates and more specific information on budget priorities contained in budget memos and fact sheets.

Press release Carlos Marquez III

State Assembly Champions Immediate Food & Healthcare Access While Bolstering Safety Net Against Downstream Impacts

Sacramento, CA- The following statement can be attributed to Carlos Marquez III, Executive Director of the County Welfare Director’s Association of California, on the Assembly Democratic Budget Plan. 

Press release Carlos Marquez III

State Senate Offers Bold Vision for California’s Future

Sacramento, CA- The following statement can be attributed to Carlos Marquez III, Executive Director of the County Welfare Director’s Association of California, on the Senate’s budget actions taken in Subcommittee #3 today. 

Budget Priority Carlos Marquez III

MAY REVISE CHILD WELFARE/FOSTER CARE ISSUES

The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) respectfully submits this budget memorandum in response tothe May Revision to request one-time General Fund (GF) investment in Emergency Response (ER) Enhancement services anda two-year extension of Flexible Family Supports funding authority, which remain excluded from the Administration’s proposed State Budget.

Budget Priority Carlos Marquez III

ADULT SERVICES MAY REVISION PROPOSALS

The County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA) respectfully urges the Legislature to reject the proposed permanent $70 million reduction to the Adult Protective Services (APS) program in Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-27 and ongoing, as proposed in the May Revision. CWDA also reiterates its opposition to the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program hours cost shift and other reductions proposed in the FY 2026-27 Governor’s Budget.

Budget Priority Carlos Marquez III

PROTECTING MEDI-CAL COVERAGE IN THE FACE OF H.R. 1 & COMMENTS ON MAY REVISION PROPOSALS

 

The County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA) is providing our response to proposals included in the May Revision. We note that the May Revision provides county eligibility workers inadequate resources for the significant, ongoing needs of Medi-Cal clients in the face of H.R. 1, while simultaneously increasing penalties and expectations for performance measures, effectively setting up counties to fail during the most disruptive erosion of the social safety net in which they are at the frontlines.

Please read our attached budget memo.

Budget Priority Carlos Marquez III

PREVENT HUNGER & PROTECT CALFRESH FROM H.R. 1 CUTS & EMERGING RISKS

The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) respectfully submits our response to several CalFresh-related proposals in the May Revision and analysis of other critical emerging CalFresh risks for counties and the 5 million Californians who rely on the program.

Please read our attached budget memo.

Press release Carlos Marquez III

Gov. Newsom’s May Revision Begins Critical Investments to Fight Back Against H.R. 1, But Bolder Action is Needed to Avert a Looming Hunger & Healthcare Crisis
Proposed Investment in County Eligibility Workers is a Good First Step, but the Final Budget Must Fully Resource County CalFresh & Medi-Cal Workers, and Reject County Cost Shifts, to Prevent Devastating Harm from Federal Cuts

Sacramento, CA – The County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA) of California issued the following statement from Executive Director Carlos Marquez III today on Governor Gavin Newsom’s 2026 – 2027 May Budget Revision:

Press release Carlos Marquez III

State Assembly Steps Up to Protect Vulnerable Californians

Sacramento, CA- The following statement can be attributed to Carlos Marquez III, Executive Director of the County Welfare Directors Association of California, on the State Assembly Democrat’s 2026-27 Budget Proposal:

Budget Priority Carlos Marquez III

IN-HOME SUPPORTIVE SERVICES (IHSS) BUDGET PROPOSALS

The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) respectfully urges the Legislature to reject proposed reductions to the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program included in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-27 Governor’s Budget that would have grave consequences for consumers, and to adopt statutory changes that preserve the current 50/50 cost-sharing arrangement between the State and counties for Community First Choice Option (CFCO) penalties. These actions are essential to ensure older adults and people with disabilities retain safe, reliabl

Budget Priority

FY 2026-27 Governor’s Budget Misses Opportunity to Protect Low-income Californians’ Access to Food and Health Care Against Regressive Federal Policy

On behalf of the County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) California, we urge the Legislature to protect maximum levels of CalFresh benefits and Medi-Cal coverage in the face of federal H.R. 1 implementation by 1) adequately funding the county eligibility workforce and 2) rejecting State-imposed county cost shifts proposed by the Administration that threaten to further strain county capacity for mitigating H.R. 1-related program losses. 

Please see our attached budget letter.

 

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CHILD WELFARE SERVICES (CWS): EMERGENCY RESPONSE STABILIZATION, FLEX FAMILY SUPPORT EXTENSIONS, AND ADOPTION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM TRAILER BILL LANGUAGE

The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) respectfully submits this budget memorandum to request additional General Fund investment in Emergency Response (ER) Enhancement services and a two-year extension of Flexible Family Supports funding authority. These targeted investments strengthen the front end of the child welfare system, support prevention and placement stability, and help counties sustain timely and effective responses to reports of child abuse and neglect.

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BUDGET FACT SHEET: First Responders to Poverty First Responders PREVENT HUNGER & to Poverty PROTECT CALFRESH FROM H.R. 1 CUTS
Investing in County Eligibility Workers Will Keep Californians Connected to Food Benefits

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.

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BUDGET FACT SHEET: PRESERVE HEALTH CARE & PROTECT MEDI-CAL FROM H.R. 1 CUTS
Investing in County Eligibility Workers is Critical to Keep Californians Connected to Health Care Benefits

County eligibility workers are responsible for processing, verifying, and redetermining eligibility for applicants and Medi-Cal enrollees in California.
The county eligibility workforce helped enroll millions of low-income
adults who became newly eligible for Medi-Cal under the Affordable
Care Act (ACA) beginning in 2014, contributing to near universal
health care coverage in 2022 and 2023 when the statewide uninsured
rate dropped to a historic low of 6.2%.

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PREVENT HUNGER & PROTECT CALFRESH FROM H.R. 1 CUTS & RISKS

The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) respectfully submits this memorandum to highlight three significant programmatic changes and emerging risks affecting CalFresh administration that will require targeted relief and strategic investments to ensure Californians can continue to access critical food assistance without disruption. 

Budget Priority

PROTECTING MEDI-CAL COVERAGE IN THE FACE OF H.R. 1

The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) respectfully urges the Legislature to protect Medi-Cal coverage for 4.6 million impacted low-income Californians by investing in the county eligibility workforce as the State prepares to implement new federal Medicaid requirements under H.R. 1. If adequately funded, well-trained, and fully staffed, the county eligibility workforce is an upstream approach to mitigate downstream, system-wide impacts of H.R. 1, impacts that would increase uncompensated care costs.

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State Budget Update #1 – Governor’s Proposed 2026-2027 Budget
Budget Update #1 for FY 2026-27 Governor’s Budget

Overall Budget Picture

California’s overall economic picture has performed better than projected compared to the Budget Act of 2025. The Governor’s Budget proposes a $348.9 billion balanced budget with
General Fund expenditures of $248.3 billion. The stronger-than-anticipated performance of the economy, stock market, and cash receipts have contributed to an upgraded revenue
forecast, with General Fund (GF) revenues coming in higher by approximately $42.3 billion, or 6.7 percent, across the budget window (FYs 2024-25, 2025-26, and 2026-27). The revenue

Press release Carlos Marquez III

California Leaders Must Step into the Breach and Protect Vulnerable Children, Adults and Families in the State Budget
County Eligibility Workers Make the Difference Between an Unmitigated Healthcare and Hunger Crisis and Families’ Preserving Ongoing Access to Life Saving Food Assistance and Healthcare Coverage

Sacramento, CA – The County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA) of California issued the following statement from Executive Director Carlos Marquez III today on Governor Gavin Newsom’s 2026 – 2027 Budget Proposal. 

Budget Priority

State Budget Update #4
Final 2025-2026 Budget Agreement- Amended

On June 24, 2025, the Budget Bill Junior (AB/SB 102) and various trailer bill (TBL) omnibuses reflecting the vast majority of the Administration and Legislature’s agreement for the three­ party budget deal went into print. We note, as of distributing this update, an official announcement on a final budget deal has yet to be released by Legislative leadership or the Governor’s Office. 

Budget Priority

State Budget Update #3
Legislature's Budget Plan

The California Assembly and Senate have released their two-party budget agreement. It is expected that the Budget plan will be reflected in the 2025-26 Budget Bill (likely SB 101) and heard in Budget subcommittee hearings this week, with Assembly and Senate votes taken by Sunday, June 15. In the coming days, the Legislature and Governor will ramp up discussions to finalize athree-party agreement.

Presentation

Medi-Cal: Comments On May Revise Proposals

The attached memo provides the County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA) response to proposals included in the May Revision regarding the proposed changes to the Medi-Cal program and our assessment of the feasibility of the timelines for those changes.