333 E. Washington Street, Stockton, CA 95202 (209) 468-1000
CalWORKs, the most common Cash Aid Program, is a Human Services program that gives cash aid and services to eligible needy California families. The program serves all 58 counties in the state and is operated locally by county welfare departments.
If a family has little or no cash and needs housing, food, utilities, clothing or medical care, they may be eligible to receive immediate short-term help. Families that apply and qualify for ongoing assistance receive money each month to help pay for housing, food and other necessary expenses.
The amount of a family’s monthly assistance payment depends on a number of factors, including the number of people who are eligible and the special needs of any of those family members. The income of the family is considered in calculating the amount of cash aid the family receives.
There are other programs and benefits, such as Homeless Assistance, for which a family may qualify by being on CalWORKs.
Please see the "What if I do not qualify for CalWORKs" section below for information on additional Cash Aid Programs such as Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA), Trafficking and Crime Victims Assistance Program (TCVAP) and Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI).
Specific eligibility requirements take into account an applicant’s citizenship, age, income, resources, and other factors. Generally, services are available to:
Needy families may apply for assistance online, via telephone, or by coming in to our office. A face-to-face interview with an Eligibility Worker will then be required.
The easiest and quickest way to apply for CalWORKs, CalFresh and/or Medi-Cal is online at www.benefitscal.com
Or in our office at : 333 E. Washington Street Stockton, CA 95202 Telephone: (209) 468-1000
Once a customer starts to receive CalWORKs, the customer must keep the Eligibility Worker (EW) informed about changes in order to:
All CalWORKs recipients, with the exception of Annual Reporting Child Only (AR/CO) recipients, are required to submit a Semi-Annual Eligibility Status Report (SAR 7) once per year (due in the sixth month of the first semi-annual period) followed by the re-certification of eligibility in the sixth month of the second semi-annual period.
Your Eligibility Worker will inform you if you are an AR/CO recipient and what the reporting requirements are for that program.
See other programs below that you may qualify for instead of CalWORKs:
RCA (Refugee Cash Assistance)
RCA is cash aid program for single adults and families in immigrant groups that aren't eligible for other cash aid programs. This includes refugees. This also includes people who are seeking or have been granted asylum. RCA also helps with employment and other social services to help recipients in becoming self-sufficient.
Click the following link to apply and learn more https://benefitscal.com/
TCVAP (Trafficking and Crime Victims Assistance Program)
TCVAP is for victims of human trafficking who haven't been certified by the Office of Trafficking in Persons (OTIP) yet. It's also for victims of domestic violence and other serious crimes.
CAPI (Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants)
CAPI is a 100 percent state-funded program designed to provide monthly cash benefits to aged, blind, or disabled non-citizens who are ineligible for SSI/SSP solely due to their immigration status. The Welfare Reform Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-193) eliminated Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP) eligibility for most non-citizens. As a result, most immigrants who were not receiving SSI/SSP in August 1996 are no longer eligible for SSI/SSP.
Click here to learn more and apply https://www.cdss.ca.gov/capi
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