State Lawmakers Reject Proposed Cuts
On Thursday, California lawmakers passed the 2024-25 budget, turning down a proposal from Governor Gavin Newsom. Newsom suggested deducting in-home support services for elderly, blind and disabled immigrants who lack legal status. The lawmakers, on the side of these vulnerable citizens, declined to cut these beneficial services, using their power to back California’s low-income group.
The Budget Plan
Under the Democratic majority, the legislature approved a $211 billion general fund spending plan for the financial year beginning July 1. How did they manage to do this? They decided to tap into the state’s rainy-day fund and cut corporate tax deductions. This move was made to avoid reductions to health and social services, crucial pillars in maintaining a balanced society.
Assembly member Jesse Gabriel, chair of the Assembly’s Budget Committee, said their legislative budget plan strikes a balance with carefully targeted investments in safety-net programs. These will protect the state’s most vulnerable citizens. Even though many hurdles were overcome, discussions between Newsom and lawmakers will continue.
Gaps Yet to Be Bridged
H.D. Palmer, a spokesperson for the state Department of Finance, highlighted that the approved plan represents an agreement between the Senate and the Assembly, not between them and the Governor. Thus, while good progress has been made, there is still more work to do.
Newsom’s scrapped proposal included eliminating the new in-home benefit for qualified immigrants, a move expected to save nearly $95 million in the next fiscal year, with no plans for reinstatement.
The Value of In-Home Supportive Services
The In-Home Supportive Services program provides an important lifeline for low-income older, blind, and disabled individuals. It allows them to receive care in their homes, preventing them from being moved to costlier nursing and residential facilities. Caregivers are paid between $16 to $21 per hour, often families of the beneficiaries.
Furthermore, lawmakers refuted Newsom’s other proposal to reduce local public health agencies’ funding by $300 million annually. They did, however, in turn, agree to delay food assistance to older immigrants without legal residency.
The Prudence of the Decision
Advocates heartily endorse the legislature’s decision to discard the proposed cut; they believe the move is economically sound for the state in the long run. If access to the In-Home Supportive Services program was eliminated, Medi-Cal recipients may park themselves at nursing services. The per-person cost of nursing homes is estimated at $124,189 annually, starkly contrasted with the roughly $28,000 for people in the In-Home Services program.
Moreover, according to Ronald Coleman Baeza, managing policy director at the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network, forcing these individuals into expensive nursing care doesn’t make fiscal sense. He also emphasized the harshness of the move towards undocumented immigrants.
Moving Forward
While Newsom insists he is focusing on maintaining fiscal discipline while safeguarding Medi-Cal benefits for immigrants, dissenters disagree. Previously, California led the charge in expanding Medicaid eligibility to all competent immigrants, irrespective of their legal status, spreading its integration over multiple years.
As an aftermath of the Medi-Cal expansion, the state green-lit nearly 3,000 older, blind, and disabled immigrants without legal residency to access paramedical services and daily care. These covered meal preparation, bathing, feeding, and medical appointment transportation.
However, lawmakers did accede to Newsom’s plan to postpone about $165 monthly food assistance to low-income immigrants without adequate legal residency aged 55 and above until the 2027 fiscal year.