LAist: “Thousands of Immigrants lawfully in California set to lose CalFresh benefits”
On April 1, 2026, LAist wrote:
“Thousands of immigrants who are lawfully in California are set to lose their food assistance benefits, known as CalFresh, starting this month.
The new restrictions stem from H.R. 1—also known as the “Big Beautiful Bill”—which Congress passed last year.
The changes remove eligibility for certain noncitizens, including people with refugee status and victims of trafficking. It also applies to immigrants from Iraq and Afghanistan who have special immigrant visas for helping the U.S. government overseas.
‘These are folks…many of whom have large families that we have a commitment to as a country because we welcomed them and invited them here to find a place of refuge,’ said Cambria Tortorelli, president of the International Institute of Los Angeles, a refugee resettlement agency. “They’re authorized to work and they’ve been brought here by the U.S. government.'”
