California Undergrads Can Now Apply for Up to $306 a Month in CalFresh Grocery Benefits
Families with a student in a California college should not miss this one: the state has loosened CalFresh (food stamp) eligibility for college students. All undergraduates enrolled in degree programs at California Community Colleges (CCC), California State University (CSU) and the University of California (UC) now meet the initial eligibility requirement, and those who qualify can receive up to $306 a month for groceries.
The state expects the change to bring in more than 200,000 newly eligible student applicants and unlock over $250 million in federal food assistance. The governor's office stresses this is not a new benefit — it simply lets more students actually use existing federal dollars.
A companion outreach campaign, "Full Carts," has also launched: Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen donated $1.5 million, and Instacart and Snap Inc. are supporting efforts to help students through the application process.
CalFresh currently serves about 5.2 million people in 3.1 million households each month, and applications go through BenefitsCal.com. Chinese-American parents with a child at a California college may want to have them check their eligibility soon — if they qualify, there is no reason to leave the money on the table.
(Source: California Governor's Office news release, October 9)
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：一户家庭在福利服务办公室向工作人员咨询申请（资料图）
