May 22, 2024

What an action-packed month May has been – and there are still a few weeks left! With Governor Newsom’s May Revise officially unveiled and an even tighter budget year ahead, the NextGen team now has a much clearer picture of what our advocacy priorities will look like in the coming months. Despite the further deterioration in state revenues identified by the May Revise, we will remain committed to our policy, programmatic, and legislative advocacy work and unwavering in our fight to address the environmental, social, racial, gender, and economic inequities that impact California’s most vulnerable communities.

This issue of What’s Next takes a closer look at several policy issues and projects that the NextGen team wants you to keep top of mind in the weeks ahead, including a closer look at the Governor’s May Revise; the new SUN Bucks program and how California kids can receive free lunches all summer long; information on California’s plan to cap health care costs; and plenty more about the happenings here at NextGen and in the State Legislature!

So, without further ado, here is your new edition of What’s Next:

★ NextGen’s Review of the May Revise: In the recently released May Budget Revision, it is forecasted that California will face an additional $7 billion budget shortfall. Taking into account the $17.3 billion in early budget actions taken by the Governor and State Legislature a few weeks ago, California’s budget deficit now totals roughly $28 billion. To address this deficit, the May Revision outlines a series of actions to balance the budget including significant program cuts, project implementation delays, a statewide hiring freeze, and the substantial use of various fund reserves. The May Budget Revision maintains and also calls for additional reductions to many programs originally proposed in the Governor’s January budget. All Californians, especially low-income Californians of color, will be deeply affected by the cuts made to balance the budget – moreover, many of these program cuts are part of NextGen’s priority list, including:

• Funding for the California Climate Commitment
• Efforts to Reform the Cal Grant Program
• Reductions in the California Nutrition Incentive Program (CNIP) / Market Match Program
• Cuts to the Broadband for All digital equity initiative
• … and unfortunately there are many more significant decreases. Take a look at NextGen’s official response to the May Revise for more information

It is important to note that NextGen legislative priorities with a fiscal impact that are working their way through the legislative process also stand to encounter a higher level of fiscal scrutiny and could also be on the chopping block. Despite this difficult budget year, our team will work diligently to advance our programmatic and legislative work on behalf of California’s most vulnerable populations, and we look forward to working in partnership with the Legislature and the Newsom Administration on these priority efforts.

★ Get All the Details on the SUN Bucks Program: This summer, California will be launching SUN Bucks, a new permanent food program that will provide $120 in food benefits for eligible school-age children during the summer months. Most eligible families who receive CalFresh, CalWorks, and/or Medi-Cal will be automatically enrolled in the SUN Bucks program, but if you’ve moved recently be sure to update your mailing address at your county office or on the BenefitsCal website. Learn more about SUN Bucks including who is eligible, where they can be used, and more helpful resources from our trusted partners at California Food Banks. Additionally, help us spread the word on SUN Bucks by uplifting information we’ve shared about the program on our Twitter/X page!

★ California is Capping Health Care Costs: A few months ago, we asked you to share your healthcare stories in order to help build the case to keep California’s healthcare costs in check – and you delivered! Thanks to your input, the Office of Health Care Affordability’s (OCHA) Board voted last week to cap health care cost increases in California – a nation-leading effort to rein in increasing health care costs and make critical care more affordable. The Board agreed to a 3 percent cap phased in over five years to ensure minimal disruptions and maximum compliance. The 3 percent spending target will apply to health care entities, including health plans, provider organizations (with at least 25 physicians), and hospitals. This cost cap helps put California on a path towards holding the healthcare industry more accountable and slowing the current unsustainable growth of health care costs!

We need your help! ✊🍎 Email your state representative to help protect an important tool in the fight against food insecurity – the California Nutrition Incentive Program (CNIP)! We’ve already drafted the email for you – simply sign your name and hit send:

Send the Email

★ Legislative Deadlines and Insights: With only a couple of weeks remaining in May, and the Suspense hearing now behind us, the Capitol Community heads into a week-long race to get bills passed out of the house they were introduced in by May 24th – meeting a deadline called the House of Origin deadline. Just over 300 bills that had a fiscal impact were held on the Suspense File, which effectively means that those pieces of legislation will not move forward for the remainder of the year. Despite this, both houses have hundreds more bills still to debate during next week’s floor sessions, where the entire body of each house will vote to move or hold back more bills. Simultaneously with the release of the Governor’s May Revise, budget negotiations are in high gear as the Legislature reviews all the proposals in the May Revise to balance the budget. The Budget Subcommittees are meeting now to quickly approve items and get to a two house budget agreement by the end of May, therefore avoiding a budget conference committee and passing an on-time balanced budget by the June 15th constitutional deadline.

★ Our Mission: NextGen Policy fights for progressive policy change to address environmental, social, racial, gender, and economic inequities through justice-centered legislative advocacy, grassroots partnerships, and democratic civic engagement.

Thank you for being a part of our journey toward a more equitable California. As we continue to push for progressive policy change, we invite you to make a difference by donating to support our organization. Your contribution will directly impact our efforts to address environmental, social, and economic inequities throughout the state.