California’s State Stimulus &
Low-Income Seniors
FACT SHEET
SEPTEMBER 2021
Low income seniors who have faced unanticipated pandemic-related costs are receiving a much needed nancial
boost from the recently enacted state stimulus. e two state stimulus programs (the Golden State Stimulus and
Golden State Grant) provide direct aid to low-income Californians experiencing nancial hardship during the
pandemic and include a signicant number of older adults, most signicantly the over 1 million low-income seniors
and people with disabilities who receive SSI/SSP.
e state stimulus was approved by the Legislature and signed into law by the Governor in February 2021 as an early
budget action, with the nal state budget expanding eligibility for the Golden State Stimulus to moderate income
workers. e Golden State Stimulus operates through the state tax system, including the CalEITC, the state’s
Earned Income Tax Credit, and provides a refundable credit of up to $2,200 to households earning up to $75,000.
e Golden State Grant operates outside the state tax system and provides a one-time $600 grant to beneciaries of
three programs that serve very low-income households: SSI/SSP, CAPI and CalWORKs.
Below is a summary of the two stimulus programs and who is eligible for them.
GOLDEN STATE GRANT
e Golden State Grant provides $600 in one-time relief to low-income individuals receiving certain public benets,
with the largest group being the seniors and people with disabilities who receive Supplemental Security Income/State
Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP). e Golden State Grant also includes individuals who receive Cash Assistance
Program for Immigrants (CAPI) and California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs). All
three programs are means-tested and provide income benets to very low-income seniors, people with disabilities,
and families with children. For example, CalWORKs provides cash aid and services to low-income families with
children in the home, including intergenerational households of grandparents raising grandchildren. ese payments
went out to eligible individuals automatically between April and June 2021.
e largest group of seniors receiving the Golden State Grant are the over 1 million SSI beneciaries in California.
All SSI beneciaries are seniors or people with disabilities, with the majority of recipients in California being age
60 or older. Because SSI is means-tested, the program demographics end up reecting broader social and economic
inequalities, with women and people of color being disproportionately represented in the program.
1
Nearly two-
thirds of SSI seniors in California are women.
2
SSI recipients of all ages are disproportionately people of color,
3
and
SSI seniors in particular are disproportionately immigrants.
4
Given the program demographics, a stimulus for SSI
recipients is an eective way to target assistance in order to reduce income inequality.
CAPI is a state-funded SSI look-alike program that provides benets to a certain subset of immigrant seniors
and people with disabilities. California established CAPI in 1998 to provide benets for certain immigrants who
previously would have been able to receive SSI, but who are no longer eligible for SSI because of restrictions placed
on non-citizen eligibility in 1996 federal welfare legislation.
Policy guidance issued by the Social Security Administration in July 2021
5
claried that the Golden State Grant
and Golden State Stimulus are disaster assistance payments. e disaster assistance designation means that the state
stimulus payments do not count as income or as a resource for SSI. ese income and resource exclusions ensure
that seniors and people with disabilities will not lose SSI eligibility due to receiving the state stimulus, including
individuals who save their stimulus payment long-term.
GOLDEN STATE STIMULUS
e Golden State Stimulus that was included as an early budget action provides a credit of $600 or $1,200 to
workers with earned income up to $30,000 who qualify for the CalEITC, and workers who le with an Individual
Tax Identication Number (ITIN) and have earned income up to $75,000. ese individuals have already received
their stimulus payments automatically. e nal state budget expanded eligibility for the Golden State Stimulus
to all tax lers with earned income up to $75,000 and provided an additional payment for lers with dependents.
ese payments should be going out in the next few weeks.
Working seniors and undocumented workers are eligible for the CalEITC, due to California breaking from federal
eligibility standards to expand eligibility to workers age 65 or older in 2018 and to ITIN lers in 2020. ese recent
expansions mean that low-wage older workers of all ages and regardless of immigration status can be eligible for the
CalEITC, which in turns qualies them for the Golden State Stimulus.
Both parts of the state stimulus are providing much-needed relief to low-income individuals and families hit hardest
by the pandemic, including many low-income seniors. Going forward, continuing a targeted focus on individuals
and families who receive public benets will strengthen the resilience of the safety net during disasters. Future
stimulus eorts could be improved by working to automate payment to all beneciaries, including beneciaries
of other benet programs serving low-income Californians, and providing a larger credit to undocumented
Californians who have been excluded from federal relief. Centering equity will help California to address the
impacts of historic discrimination on women, people of color, and immigrants, and to reduce economic insecurity
where it is most severe.
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COMMUNITY VOICES
“With shelter in place there are additional costs including using online services for all food and essential
items, not traveling on public transportation due to risk, in-person grooming services for my guide dog
since I’m unable to get to groomers & more. TY for including the needs of those who are blind during
this challenging time.” —Alice, Sunnyvale, Californians for SSI, @CA4SSI, June 21, 2021
“Miguel from Panorama City near LA says he will use his #GoldenStateGrant on much needed car
repair.” Californians for SSI, @CA4SSI, June 20, 2021.
“Wilma on the #GoldenStateGrant: I’m very glad that I got the $600 dollars. It helped out a lot with food
and I traveled to help out my mom because her husband passed away of Covid. Thanks so very much.”
Californians for SSI, @CA4SSI, June 19, 2021.
“When I get the $600 Golden State Grant money, I will spend it on paying off my overdue bills says
Kristy.” CALIF-ILC, @SystemsChange4C, June 9, 2021.
“From Keith at St. Mary’s Center: “When I get the $600 Golden State Grant money, I will be able to
live, not simply survive, by catching up on delayed bills, and spending time with my grandkids.” Ruby
Rodriguez (She/They), @rcr_liberation, June 9, 2021.
“When I get the $600 #GoldenStateGrant money, I will spend it on my front lower tooth plate - Randy,
#SSI Recipient, Sacramento” Californians for SSI, @CA4SSI, June 8, 2021.
ENDNOTES
1 Giefer, Katherine, “A Prole of SSI Recipients: 2017,” Current Population Reports, U.S. Census Bureau (2021), available at https://
www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2021/demo/p70br-171.pdf
2 Esi Hutchful, “e SSI/SSP Grant: A Critical Support for Older Women and People of Color in California,” California Budget &
Policy Center (2020), available at https://calbudgetcenter.org/resources/the-ssi-ssp-grant-a-critical-support-for-older-women-and-
people-of-color-in-california/
3 “Annual Statistical Supplement, 2020,” Social Welfare and the Economy: Interprogram Data, Social Security Administration (2021),
available at https://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2020/3c.html#table3.c7a
4 “SSI Annual Statistical Report, 2019,” Noncitizens, Social Security Administration (2020), available at https://www.ssa.gov/policy/
docs/statcomps/ssi_asr/2019/sect05.html
5 See EM-20014 REV 4 and EM-21050.
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