California AB 1618

Existing law establishes various food assistance programs, including, among others, the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Existing law declares that it is the established policy of the state that every human being has the right to access sufficient affordable and healthy food. Existing law defines "food insecurity" to mean the occasional or constant lack of access to the food one needs to live a healthy life and the uncertainty of being able to acquire enough food to meet the needs of an individual or household due to insufficient money or other resources. This bill would require the State Department of Social Services to annually conduct a statewide survey to assess food insecurity in the state, modeled after a specified federal survey. The bill would require the first statewide food insecurity survey to be completed on or before July 1, 2028. The bill would require the department, on or before October 1, 2028, and annually thereafter, to make the results of the statewide food insecurity survey publicly available on its internet website. The bill would authorize the department to collaborate or contract with a public research institution or other external vendor to implement these provisions. The bill would prohibit the department from conducting a statewide food insecurity survey during a year in which a federal food security survey is conducted, as specified.