California Immigrant Policy Center
1225 8th Street, Suite 590 ? Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone (916) 448-6762 ? Fax (916) 448-6774

CIPC Budget Update
June 3, 2008

Senate/Assembly Budget Committees Reject Proposals to Cut Medi-Cal and to Eliminate Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI)

Since January, CIPC has been following a series of state budget proposals that would harm low-income immigrants in California, including children, the elderly and disabled. Our last budget update reported on the Governor's recent proposals to severely restrict Medi-Cal services for immigrants and eliminate the Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI), which provides cash aid for immigrant seniors and immigrants with disabilities to pay for the most basic necessities, such as rent, clothing, medicines and food.

Last week, budget committees in the California Senate and Assembly voted on the Governor's May Revise proposals and roundly rejected most of the harmful proposals affecting immigrants that were also unlikely to achieve the projected cost-savings. Specifically, the legislative budget committees:

? Rejected the governor's proposal to eliminate the Cash Assistance
Program for Immigrants, CAPI.

? Rejected the governor's proposal to deny full-scope Medi-Cal for
lawfully residing immigrants and to provide them only emergency Medi-Cal. As a result, lawfully residing immigrants, who are otherwise eligible for Medi-Cal, remain eligible for full-scope or regular Medi-Cal. Undocumented immigrants remain eligible for emergency Medi-Cal if otherwise eligible for the program.

? Rejected the governor's proposal to require emergency Medi-Cal
recipients to apply for coverage each month when an emergency occurs.

? Rejected eliminating dental and other medical services (known as
optional benefits) that are currently provided under Medi-Cal. The current maximum limit of $1,800 for adult dental services per beneficiary will likely remain in place.

? Rejected the governor's proposal to limit eligibility for the
1931(b) Medi-Cal program, which would have caused many low-income working parents to lose coverage.

? Rejected the governor's proposals to impose full family sanctions in
the CalWORKs program as well as a 60-month time limit on child-only cases, which would have resulted in close to 200,000 children losing eligibility for CalWORKs.

The legislature previously rejected the Governor's proposed 10% cut in grant levels for recipients of the California Food Assistance Program (CFAP).

The Senate and Assembly budget committees voted to approve or modify some of the other cuts proposed by the governor as follows:

? Approved a 10% cut to the Naturalization Services Program (NSP)
(both the Senate and Assembly budget committee).

? Approved suspension of the CalWORKs cost of living adjustment (COLA)
for 2008-09.

? Rejected the withholding of the 2009 federal COLA for Supplemental
Security Income (SSI) recipients, but approved suspension of the state portion of the October 2008 COLA. The Assembly also approved the suspension of the June 2009 state-funded COLA ? this item will be resolved in conference.

? Rejected the governor's proposal to require quarterly status
reporting for adults and children enrolled in Medi-Cal; however the Senate budget committee approved requiring semi-annual reporting for children enrolled in Medi-Cal. Currently, children in Medi-Cal are subject to annual reporting. More frequent reporting requirements would place them at risk of losing coverage and access to medical services.

? Rejected the governor's proposal to impose new co-payments and a
$1,000 dental cap in the Healthy Families Program. However, the budget committees approved increases in Healthy Families premiums for families with incomes above 150% federal poverty level and may impose a $1,500 maximum for dental services.

In the coming weeks, a conference committee made up of three members from each house will consider any differences between the Assembly and Senate budget committees' actions before sending bills to both houses for a floor vote. Legislators may raise some budget issues that are not on the conference agenda (known as NIC, or "not in conference").
These issues may be resolved through negotiations between the legislative leadership and Governor Schwarzenegger. CIPC will be monitoring the budget process as it unfolds and will provide future budget updates.

For more information s contact Cary Sanders at: (510) 663-8282 ext.
303 or go to: http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/pdf/Revised/BudgetSummary/FullBudgetSummary.pdf


CIPC is a partnership of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC), the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), Services Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN) and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA).