Californians can’t eat broken promises. State leaders must keep families fed | Opinion

In 2022, our state made a promise to deliver food assistance to every Californian aged 55 and older, regardless of immigration status. For too long, we have delayed that promise.

Now, with federal food assistance cuts taking effect, our state’s commitment is more important than ever.

The federal government must be held accountable for letting so many people fall through the federal safety net. While our state safety net exists to catch these people, we have more work to do to close these gaps.

California leaders have been bold in vocalizing their dissent as the Trump administration takes aim at the resources and programs designed to keep our communities secure and resilient. But Californians are still being squeezed from every direction due to brash, disjointed federal policies, and more action is needed to ensure everyone can receive the support they need.

For years, the Food4All campaign has fought for a more resilient food assistance safety net that works for all Californians — regardless of immigration status. In 2022, our state committed to filling some of these gaps: Specifically, to expand the California Food Assistance Program to provide state-funded food benefits to Californians 55 and older who are locked out of federal food assistance solely because of their immigration status.

That commitment was set to take effect in October 2025. Then, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2024–2025 budget delayed it by two years, to October 2027.

This delay did more than prolong food insecurity for older adults in immigrant communities. It also left California more vulnerable to the Trump administration’s exclusionary agenda. Had this commitment to bolstering our safety net been completed as planned, our state would have had a system in place to have been prepared to weather the government shutdown last fall that delayed the delivery of critical food benefits to many Californians.

We would be better equipped today to quickly address the oncoming hunger crisis that President Donald Trump’s so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill,” also known as House Resolution 1, is ushering in.

HR 1 has forced upwards of 34,000 refugees and other humanitarian immigrants in California off of food assistance programs as of April 1. Thousands more have dropped out of programs voluntarily, afraid that participation could put themselves or their families at risk.

These are people who fled violence, persecution and, in some cases, torture. These are people who served alongside U.S. forces as translators in Afghanistan. And they are now facing hunger in the state they call home.

While many of us take pride in California’s resistance against federal attacks, our state’s food assistance system has not lived up to these values. California has the ability to build a safety net that feeds everyone, regardless of where they were born. Until the federal government reverses its discriminatory cuts to food assistance eligibility, we must keep moving toward being able to deliver food to families in need when the administration chooses exclusion over food for all.

Immigrants in California pay billions in taxes each year. Like so many Californians, they farm our fields, build our homes and care for our families. They are not a drain on our state — they are our state. Support for immigrant Californians does not come at the expense of anyone else. And beyond economics, it’s something simpler: Every person who lives here deserves to eat.

When millions of people go hungry, every community suffers — economically, socially and morally. A state where people can’t afford food is not a state that’s winning.

I am proud to champion the Food4All proposal in the Legislature, calling on our state’s leaders to step up and take bold action in protecting our immigrant communities from the long-term harm that hunger causes.

Assemblymember Celeste Rodriguez represents California’s 43rd Assembly District, which includes a portion of Los Angeles County.