CalFresh has been temporarily expanded for fire victims who are undocumented

Undocumented immigrants who were affected by last month's devastating fires can temporarily access CalFresh benefits, despite usually being excluded from the food aid program.

Applications for the disaster assistance are being accepted through Wednesday, Feb. 19, and those who meet income limits and are approved will receive 30 days of financial aid to buy food.

The temporary extension shines a spotlight on an issue advocates have long struggled to change: California currently does not offer food benefits to its undocumented residents.

What are current benefit restrictions?

CalFresh is the state's federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which excludes all undocumented people and some other immigrants. Undocumented parents with children who are citizens or have legal status can apply for CalFresh benefits on their child's behalf, but not for themselves, limiting the amount of food aid their household can access.

Nearly one in 10 children in California have an undocumented parent, according to advocacy organization the Children's Partnership.

The state offers food aid to some non-citizens who can't access CalFresh through its California Food Assistance Program.

What efforts have been made to expand benefits?

In a state budget agreement in 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom included a plan to extend those benefits to undocumented Californians 55 years old and up. But the governor has delayed implementation of that expansion to 2027.

Efforts to expand food aid for all low-income undocumented people stalled in the state legislature last year.

"Because this program is more inclusive, families, regardless of their status that are being impacted by the fires, are able to get some temporary relief," said Benyamin Chao with the California Immigrant Policy Center.

"It's unfortunate that it's temporary. Once the disaster period ends ... those families who are excluded [from] federal programs will no longer have that extra support, and that's concerning."

Undocumented families face higher levels of hunger

Undocumented people and their families face higher levels of poverty in California, according to the California Budget & Policy Center.

The impact is particularly acute for kids. Research from UCLA found that before the COVID-19 pandemic, a majority of undocumented children lived in food insecure households, meaning their access to food was limited, irregular or uncertain.

Even though undocumented Californians can't access most safety net programs, they pay into them. A separate Budget Center report estimated that undocumented people in California paid almost $8.5 billion dollars in state and local taxes in 2022.

"Food is fundamental to people contributing to their communities,"  said Monica Saucedo, a senior fellow with the Budget Center. "In an emergency there is this recognition [that] food access is absolutely necessary. That should translate into everyday life. That need doesn't go away just because people are not experiencing an emergency."