Lessons & Opportunities to Maximize Access to CalFresh

The California Association of Food Banks had the pleasure of partnering with students from the Goldman School of Public Policy at U.C. Berkeley on two research projects this past semester, which have now been released. Using the recommendations developed through their research, we plan to further enhance our advocacy to lessen the barriers to accessing CalFresh, our country’s most effective anti-hunger program.

1) A Best Practices Analysis: Increasing CalFresh Enrollment and Improving Equity among SSI Recipients

by Bryson Christy, Carlos Flores, Cinthia Magaña, Joyce Talavera, and Max Wolf-Johnson in partnership with CAFB

Since 2019, California has made progress toward enrolling Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients in CalFresh. Yet, enrollment rates vary between counties and key populations. This report seeks to identify and analyze best practices that can increase CalFresh enrollment among SSI recipients.

Key Findings

This report uses existing literature and qualitative research in the form of interviews to try to demystify the current access, process, and administrative barriers preventing California from increasing its CalFresh uptake among SSI recipients. Key recommendations to enhance individual access to CalFresh benefits include simplifying access, improving customer service, and employing targeted community outreach. Best practices found to support this include:

1. Administrative Solutions: Incorporating data matching to target enrollment “In-reach” efforts in counties and establishing standardized Community-Based Organization access lines for trusted partners to communicate efficiently with eligibility workers can support CalFresh outreach workers and can streamline the CalFresh application process.
2. Customer Service Solutions: Establishing transparent and accessible feedback mechanisms that allow community members to provide input on government programs and CBO services can improve the experience of applying for and receiving CalFresh.
3. Outreach Solutions: Partnering with local businesses and trusted establishments when conducting CalFresh outreach, including collaborating with local health departments, can build trust within communities and help ensure that more individuals are informed about CalFresh.
4. Legislative Solutions: Increasing the CalFresh Minimum Benefit, extending interviews and the Elderly Simplified Application Waiver, and implementing a Combined Application Project could increase the SSI enrollment rate in CalFresh.

2) County Public Benefits Phone Systems in California- Creating a More Dignified CalFresh Experience  

By J. Anderson in partnership with CAFB

CalFresh plays a crucial role in supporting the food security of millions of Californians. However, the current phone systems used by county public benefits offices can often present significant challenges and frustrations for applicants and beneficiaries. This report investigates these systems and provides insights into how they can be improved to create a more dignified and user-friendly experience.

Key Findings

This report uses existing literature and qualitative research through interviews, to explore the systemic challenges within phone systems that hinder equitable access to public benefits. The report offers a detailed analysis and highlights several key findings:

• Inconsistent System Deployments: There is considerable variability in how counties implement the Amazon Connect technology, leading to disparities in service quality and impacting overall system effectiveness and user experience. 
• Barriers to Access: Critical issues such as long wait times and dropped calls have various causes and disproportionately affect low-income individuals who can least afford delays in accessing public benefits. 
• Performance and Customer Experience Measurement: Data collection can provide insights to guide strategic improvements, foster accountability, and ensure optimal resource utilization. Both performance and customer experience metrics should be used.

State-level, County-Level, and CalSAWS recommendations to address these key findings can be found here. If you would like to be involved in CalSAWS advocacy, please fill out this form.

Thank you to J. Anderson, Bryson Christy, Carlos Flores, Cinthia Magaña, Joyce Talavera, Max Wolf-Johnson, and the staff at the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley, as well as Diana Jensen and Jenn Tracy who led these projects at CAFB. Special thanks to all the interviewees, including CBOs, advocates, county, state, and national partners, and benefit recipients for sharing your expertise.