[ORGANIZATION’S LETTERHEAD]
[Date]
The Honorable Corey Jackson
Chair of Assembly Human Services Committee
Legislative Office Building
1020 N Street, Room 124
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: AB 311 (Santiago): Food for All - SUPPORT
Dear Assembly Member Jackson:
On the behalf of [I am/Name of your organization is], I am writing in strong support of AB 311 (Santiago) “Food for All”, which would expand the California Food Assistance Program (CFAP) to provide vital food assistance to income-eligible Californians who are currently ineligible due to their immigration status.
California immigrants experience high levels of food insecurity as a result of racial and economic disparities that exist within our state’s safety net programs. The COVID-19 pandemic and rising cost of food due to inflation have worsened hardships across the state, particularly among lowincome undocumented immigrants.
Children in families with undocumented immigrant members are three to four times more likely to struggle to meet their basic needs than children in non-immigrant households1. In fact, recent studies indicate that 45 percent of undocumented Californians and 64 percent of undocumented children are currently affected by food insecurity2. While CalFresh and CFAP provide a critical lifeline for millions of Californians with low income, these programs exclude between 690,000 to 840,000 Californians on the basis of their immigration status. [If you would like to, insert your own reason(s) for supporting AB 311 here.] In order to effectively address increasing food insecurity, reduce poverty and homelessness, and support an equitable recovery from the impact of COVID-19, it is critical that California eliminate anti-immigrant exclusions within CFAP and bring equity to our state’s food safety net. California has a longstanding history of enacting inclusive policies and has the power to end the exclusion of immigrants from our food assistance programs. Until all California residents can access food benefits, our institutions will not fully reflect the state’s values of equity and inclusion. 1 https://childrenspartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/AChildIsaChild_Children-in-Immigrant-Families2022-FINAL.pdf 2 https://nourishca.org/food4all-briefs/
Ensuring immigrant Californians are treated fairly and have sufficient food are important steps toward an equitable California where prosperity is shared by all. Now is the time for California to champion bold policies and put forth a different vision for our nation, one where all Californians — regardless of immigration status — have the food they need.
For these reasons, we strongly support AB 311 and respectfully request your support.
Sincerely,