(1) Under existing law, if the federal government provides funds for the care of a needy relative with whom a needy child is living, aid to the child for any month includes aid to meet the needs of that relative, except as prescribed. Existing law establishes the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families using federal, state, and county funds. Existing law provides that the parent or parents are to be considered living with the needy child for a period of up to 6 months, or for a time period as determined by the State Department of Social Services, of the needy child's absence from the family assistance unit, and that the parents are eligible for CalWORKs aid and childcare services if specified conditions are met, including, among others, that the child has been removed from the parent or parents and that the family was receiving aid under when the child was removed. Existing law requires all applicants for or recipients of CalWORKs to ensure and provide documentation that each child in the assistance unit who is not required to be enrolled in school has received all age-appropriate immunizations, as specified.
This bill would make technical changes to the provisions regarding a parent's eligibility to receive aid as if the child or children were living with them. The bill would also specify that those provisions do not require all children to be removed from the parent or parents or that some, but not all, of the children have reunified. The bill would exempt a family cooperating in the development of, or participating in, a reunification case plan from specified immunization requirements. For a family receiving state-funded CalWORKs reunification cash aid whose grant was lowered as a sanction for not cooperating with child support enforcement, as specified, the bill would require the sanction to end upon the removal of the child from the assistance unit and their placement into out-of-home care. The bill would make these provisions operative on July 1, 2027, or when the department notifies the Legislature that the Statewide Automated Welfare System can perform any automation the department deems necessary to implement these provisions or that no automation is necessary, whichever is later, and would prohibit the implementation of these provisions from resulting in a retroactive payment or underpayment.
If an applicant applies for assistance for a child who is currently aided in another assistance unit and the county determines that the applicant has care and control of the child and is otherwise eligible, existing law requires the county to discontinue aid to the child in the existing assistance unit and aid the child in the applicant's assistance unit, as specified. If the county is notified that a child for whom CalWORKs assistance is currently being paid has been placed in a foster care home, existing law requires the county to discontinue aid to the child at the end of the month of placement.
Notwithstanding the above-described requirements to discontinue aid, if a foster care placement is with the formerly noncustodial parent of the removed child, this bill would prohibit the county from discontinuing aid to the original assistance unit if it is otherwise eligible for CalWORKs reunification cash aid, as specified.
To the extent that this bill would expand county responsibilities under the CalWORKs program, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(2) Existing law generally requires a recipient of CalWORKs to participate in welfare-to-work activities as a condition of eligibility. Existing law requires the recipient and the county welfare department to enter into a written welfare-to-work plan that includes the activities and services that will move the individual into employment. Existing departmental guidance strongly encourages, for individuals receiving benefits as described in paragraph (1) , counties to use a CalWORKs family reunification plan, which is the case plan developed by the county child welfare services agency for the provision of services to those individuals, in lieu of the welfare-to-work plan.
This bill would instead authorize, for those individuals, either (A) a case plan, as specified, to serve as a CalWORKs family reunification plan or (B) a jointly developed child welfare services and CalWORKs welfare-to-work plan to serve as the CalWORKs family reunification plan, both of which would satisfy the requirement to have a welfare-to-work plan. The bill would also exempt an individual receiving aid as described above, when that individual is cooperating in the development of, or participating in, a reunification case plan, from the requirement to participate in welfare-to-work activities as a condition of eligibility. To the extent that this bill would expand county responsibilities under the CalWORKs program, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(3) Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program.
This bill would provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for the purposes of implementing the bill.
(4) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Statutes affected:
AB2510: 11203 WIC, 11320.3 WIC
02/20/26 - Introduced: 11203 WIC, 11320.3 WIC
05/18/26 - Amended Assembly: 11203 WIC, 11203 WIC, 11203 WIC, 11320.3 WIC
06/15/26 - Amended Senate: 11203 WIC, 11320.3 WIC
AB 2510: 11203 WIC, 11320.3 WIC