San Diego County offers tips following CalFresh Benefits change

Changes to CalFresh eligibility affecting certain non-citizens will take effect on Wednesday, potentially impacting thousands of recipients in San Diego County.

The county Health and Human Services Agency said the changes stem from federal policy updates outlined in H.R. 1 and will make some non-citizens ineligible for food assistance benefits.

Those affected include certain asylees, refugees, parolees, individuals with deportation or removal withheld, conditional entrants and victims of trafficking, according to the agency.

“Noncitizens already enrolled, including asylees and refugees, will have their eligibility reviewed at their next renewal,” the agency said on its website.

County officials urged recipients to submit renewal paperwork on time, keep their contact information updated and respond promptly to any requests for documentation to ensure their eligibility can be reviewed.

Officials also suggest that CalFresh recipients keep their contact information updated via:

• their BenefitsCal portal (benefitscal.com)
• calling the Access Line (1-866-262-9881)
• visiting a Family Resource Center

Beneficiaries should immediately respond if the county contacts them and submit all required paperwork, officials said.

The agency said additional assistance is available through the County Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs.

Additional changes tied to the federal law are expected to take effect June 1, including expanded work requirements for certain adults without dependents and reduced exemptions for some groups.

Nonprofits that offer free food or resources, regardless of a person’s immigration status, are:

• 211sandiego.org, which offers a countywide list of food resources;
• The San Diego Food Bank, which also has an online map of emergency distribution sites, open times, and eligibility.
• Feeding San Diego, which hosts pop-up distributions at locations around the county, along with an online food distribution and pantry map; and
• Jewish Family Service, which holds drive-through distribution on a weekly basis.

CalFresh is the California version of the federal food assistance program, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly referred to as EBT or food stamps. The program is entirely federally funded, but is managed by states and administered by counties.

More information is available through the county’s website.