CalWORKs Summary Program Services & Utilization Service and Benefit Levels

Service and Benefit Levels



The California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) Home Visiting Program (HVP) is a voluntary program supervised by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) and administered by participating California counties.

CalWORKs HVP aims to support positive health development and well-being outcomes for pregnant and parenting people, families, and infants born into poverty, expand their future educational, economic, and financial capability opportunities, and improve the likelihood that they will exit poverty.

This chart displays the Statewide number of new enrollments into the CalWORKs Home Visiting Program (HVP), by quarter and year as reported on the HVP-19.

The CalWORKs HVP launched on January 1, 2019, and counties implementing the program had to adapt to challenges and policy changes that impacted the programs. The data shows that programs have continued to enroll new participants despite challenges that have been encountered.

COVID-19 caused significant challenges for delivery of HVP programming. With services becoming primarily remote, the nature of the home visiting model was fundamentally changed. The major areas of challenge were pertaining to the implications of remote services and the additional stress posed on participants and home visitors. The local and statewide stay-at-home orders and disruption of health and social services in response to the COVID-19 pandemic occurred just as many counties were reaching full implementation. Staff re-assignments limited the ability to serve as well as recruit participants to the program.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic brought many challenges, it has also opened windows of opportunity for local teams to develop creative new ways to provide services and maintain the central home visitor-participant relationship. Technology played a large role, through adaptation of in-person to remote engagement.

Please note: Data for 2023 Q2 is incomplete due to county reports still being submitted. Once all counties have submitted data reports, this number is expected to increase.

Building on the CalWORKs HVP evaluation, CDSS hosted five Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) workgroup meetings (in December 2020, and March, May, July, and September 2022). The workgroup’s activities drew on evaluation findings on CalWORKs HVP outcomes, strengths, and areas for improvement. Workgroup participants engaged in brainstorming meetings to discuss key challenges, potential strategies to address those challenges, and necessary steps to implement those strategies, resulting in the following grouping of recommendations. More information on these recommendations is available in the CalWORKs HVP CQI Report.

  1. Communication and outreach. The CalWORKs HVP CQI workgroup proposed strategies to improve families’ engagement in CalWORKs HVP. This includes developing a comprehensive and clear communications approach for engaging families in ways that are culturally responsive, empathetic, and trauma informed.
  2. Tools to facilitate coordination. Workgroup participants reported the need to improve coordination between CalWORKs HVP staff, counties, and partners. Stronger and centralized infrastructure, tools, and resources to support coordination would enable families to seamlessly access and navigate services.
  3. Professional development and communities of practice. The workgroup highlighted a need to implement streamlined trainings for CalWORKs HVP staff, partners, and providers. Other suggestions included establishing learning collaboratives, communities of practice, or coalitions to share best practices, successes, and challenges among staff and partners.
  4. Building trust and enhancing equity. The workgroup stressed the importance of enacting practices that enhance equity within the CalWORKs HVP and building trust between families participating in the CalWORKs HVP and the program. Practices to build trust and equity include meaningfully engaging families and community members in designing and implementing program improvements. Workgroup participants also suggested conducting equity trainings and monitoring equity in the CalWORKs HVP.


Family Stabilization (FS) provides intensive case management and services to families participating in Welfare-to-Work (WTW) to address immediate needs (Annual Summary, 2023). This bar chart illustrates a variety of FS services, first broken out, via horizontal bar chart, by services provided to adults or children, and then by a count of services received by case, overall. Note that one case may receive one or more services and services may be provided to the household rather than an individual. The line graph illustrates the number of FS cases, trended over time.

CalWORKs Family Stabilization was implemented beginning January 1, 2014, to provide intensive case management and services to CalWORKs participants who are experiencing a crisis or identified situation that is destabilizing their family and would interfere with an adult participant’s ability to participate in WTW activities, such as domestic violence, substance abuse, mental health issues, and risk of homelessness. 

Services can include more intensive case management, transitional housing, emergency shelter, rehabilitative services, counseling, and other services. The most utilized category in FS is "other", which encompasses family stabilization items and services, such as car seats and clothing for children and expungement services for adults.

While participating in FS, families are not subject to sanctions or hourly work requirements. The FS stabilization services attempt to resolve various crises that may result in interference with CalWORKs WTW activities, services, and status. Such crises include domestic abuse, substance abuse, homelessness, and mental health needs. By assisting CalWORKs families in crisis, the program is able to keep thousands of families enrolled and engaged, continuing to receive their full family grant while receiving services that help to stabilize and improve well-being of their family.

The trends in the graph above show FS increasing significantly from 2017 to 2018, with utilization sharply decreasing during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE).  Utilization has rebounded since the PHE drop, but not to the levels seen prior to the PHE.


The above bar chart displays the status type of Welfare-to-Work (WTW) cases. Each status is represented by a different color. The statuses consist of WTW Active, Good cause, Exempt, Non-compliance, and WTW Sanction. 

WTW Active:  Aided individuals who are required to participate in WTW activities.

Good Cause:  An individual in good cause status is excused from WTW participation when it has been determined that there is a condition or circumstance that temporarily prevents, or significantly impairs, the individual’s ability to be regularly employed, or to participate in WTW activities.

Exempt:  Individuals who are not required to participate in WTW due to an exemption.

Non-Compliance:  Includes individuals who have been sent a notice of non-compliance with WTW participation requirements but have not yet returned to participation or been sanctioned.

Sanction:  Cases in which the aided family has a reduction in the adult individual’s CalWORKs cash assistance due to failure to comply with WTW program requirements without good cause and for whom compliance efforts have failed.

The COVID-19 Universal Good Cause policies that resulted in significant portions of the WTW caseload being assigned a Good Cause status for non-participation in the program helped families keep their benefits during a time of unprecedented social disruption. There has been a slight increase in sanctions and non-compliance since the COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted. This data can help create discussions on how to better support and engage families and give insight into how current policy can have an effect on the different program statuses.

This data shows that there was an increase of good cause from 2019 through 2020 Quarter 3 due to the Covid-19 pandemic which simultaneously caused a decline in non-compliance and sanctions.

Multiple recent policy changes will have varying degrees of impact on CalWORKs WTW exemption, good cause, non-compliance, and sanction rates. The following policy changes represent important factors in any effort to analyze and understand recent trends related to those data sets.

Senate Bill 65 passed on October 4, 2021, and was implemented on January 1, 2022, via ACL 22-55. It granted exemptions to all pregnant participants, removing the requirement to either provide proof that the pregnancy impaired them from participating in WTW activities or obtain a CWD determination that the WTW activities were not appropriate or would not readily lead to employment. Pregnant participants now are granted a 30-day automatic exemption upon verbal attestation that they are pregnant and are only required to provide proof of pregnancy to continue their exemption throughout their pregnancy. Passage of SB 65 should result in a direct increase in WTW exemption rates.

As of May 1, 2022, CDSS adopted a new set of CalWORKs hourly participation requirements in compliance with  Assembly Bill 79 as described in ACL 20-120. That policy change made it easier for CalWORKs participants to fulfill their participation requirements. It is possible that, as a result, fewer WTW participants have subsequently been found noncompliant and subject to sanction.

Assembly Bill 2300 passed on September 27, 2022, and became effective January 1, 2023. It expanded WTW good cause reasons to include an array of worker’s rights protections and was implemented via ACL 23-30. AB 2300 established that any WTW participant who states they experienced a worker’s rights violation must be granted good cause. 

The most significant recent policy change was the May 11, 2023, expiration of the “blanket” good cause COVID-19 flexibility. Up until May 11, 2023, counties could apply “blanket” good cause to WTW participants for as long as the Governor’s Declared State of Emergency remained in effect to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 on participants and CWDs during the pandemic. All County Information Notice I-21-23 announced the expiration of blanket good cause, after which, any subsequent decrease in application of good cause, as well as any corresponding increase in both WTW noncompliance and sanction rates during the period immediately following May 11, 2023, could be largely attributed to the expiration of blanket good cause.

Additionally, WTW written and verbal guidance to counties has increasingly emphasized use of incentives, good cause, and any other administrative flexibilities to effectively engage WTW participants. At the same time, WTW guidance has encouraged counties to reduce reliance upon non-compliance and sanctions to incentivize participants to meet participation requirements. (See All County Welfare Director’s Letter dated December 30, 2022.) This shift towards effective participant engagement may also help explain recent and ongoing reductions in non-compliance and sanction rates and/or increase in application of good cause.


This figure reflects individuals and families whose cases are newly entering the safety net over time. Case types include Safety Net, Fleeing Felons, and Long-Term Sanction cases.

CalWORKs has two types of time limits: the TANF 60-month time limit and the CalWORKs 60-month time limit. State law allows adults to receive cash aid for a lifetime limit of 60 countable months in CalWORKs; however, children of adults who exhaust the 60-month time limit may continue to receive cash aid up to age 18. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many time limits associated with aid and services were paused (the time on aid clock was stopped), but time limits were reinstated when the time on aid limit increased from 48 months to 60 months effective May 1, 2022.

The CalWORKs Safety Net provides a reduced amount of cash assistance for families who have lost their regular program eligibility. The goal of the program is to help families who are in crisis and prevent them from becoming homeless or experiencing other types of instability. To be eligible for CalWORKs Safety Net, families must continue to meet CalWORKs eligibility after exhausting their 60 months of lifetime aid.

The CalWORKs Safety Net is incredibly important because it provides assistance to some of California’s most vulnerable families. The Safety Net portion of the program provides cash assistance to families with children who are experiencing hardship, are unable to work, or who have disabilities. The Safety Net continues to provide the child-portion of the CalWORKs grant. TANF Timed-Out cases are not included in this count, as they still receive the full CalWORKs grant for as long as they have months available on their CalWORKs time on aid clock.

Without the Safety Net, many families would be at risk of homelessness, hunger, and other types of hardship. The program helps ensure that families have the support they need to keep their children healthy, safe, and secure. It is an essential resource for many families in California who are struggling to make ends meet.

This graphic extrapolates on the information presented in the SRL item, CalWORKs Cases Without the Adult Portion of Aid, by highlighting the impact of the increase of the CalWORKs Time Limit from 48 to 60 months where there is a marked decrease of families entering the Safety Net in May 2022, followed by a marked increase in May 2023, reflective of the 12 months of additional time on aid where CalWORKs families might otherwise have been in the CalWORKs Safety Net but instead received the full CalWORKs grant, along with WTW supportive services.

Not evident in this graphic but anticipated following implementation after automation is completed, certain Safety-Net and Child-Only cases will have child support arrears passthrough and all child support income will be exempt when determining eligibility and the calculation of the CalWORKs grant.

Increase of the CalWORKs Time Limit to 60 Months

The CalWORKs Time-on-Aid (TOA) limit was increased from 48 months to 60 months in May 2022. Safety Net cases in which the parent or caretaker relative was excluded from the assistance unit (AU) for reaching their 48-month TOA limit were re-evaluated, and the parent/caretaker relative was added back to the AU for an additional 12 months of aid. This likely resulted in a decrease of safety-net cases which is reflected above starting in Q2/Q3 of SFY 2021-2022. Additionally, these families received a higher grant amount because of the increase in the AU size, and the parent/caretaker relative became eligible for WTW supportive services.

Once a parent/caretaker relative that was added back to the AU exhausts the additional 12 months of aid, the case would once again transition to a safety-net case, resulting in an increase in safety-net cases which is reflected in Q2/Q3 of SFY 2022-2023 above.

Increase in Aid Amounts

Effective October 1, 2023, the CalWORKs maximum aid payment (MAP) was increased by 3.6 percent. With the new increase, the MAP levels for a CalWORKs family of three is at 57 percent of the federal poverty level, effectively ending deep poverty for program recipients.

Child Support Arrears Passthrough & Full Disregard

Federal TANF rules (Title 42 of USC Section 608(a)(3)) and State statutes (WIC Section 11477) require families to assign their child support rights to the State as a condition of eligibility for CalWORKs. This means that in order to receive aid under TANF and CalWORKs, families must redirect their child support income to the State to cover the federal, state, and county costs of CalWORKs aid for that family. The State uses the child support collected to repay months of CalWORKs assistance that the family received, and the repaid months are added back to the family’s CalWORKs time-on-aid clock. However, CalWORKs families in which all adults are unaided due to exceeding the time on aid limits, in WTW sanction status for 12 consecutive months or longer (long-term WTW sanction) or fleeing felon status are not required to assign child support rights per state law. This means that any current child support payments are passed through to the family because current support is not assigned to the state, but only up to $200 is disregarded from consideration in the eligibility determination and grant calculation. Effective April 1, 2024, child support “arrears” will be passed through to certain Child-Only and safety-net families. In addition, all child support will be disregarded for these families.

The term child support “passthrough” refers to the assigned support collection that the State collects and forwards to the family, rather than utilizing the child support to reimburse itself and the federal government for the cost of providing cash assistance paid to the family. Under existing law, past due child support owed, known as “arrears,” are collected by the State to repay CalWORKs assistance that current and former recipients received. Arrears that accrued during periods of time a family received CalWORKs benefits are held by the state for all CalWORKs case types.

The term “disregard” refers to the amount of child support passthrough that is not considered when determining eligibility for CalWORKs and the amount of cash assistance a family will receive. Any remaining child support paid to the family above the allowable disregard amount is counted dollar-for-dollar against the aided family members’ grant. For a family with one child, up to $100 is disregarded, and for a family with two or more children, up to $200 is disregarded. 


Families in the CalWORKs program are eligible to receive a variety of supportive services in addition to cash aid, CalFresh, and Medi-Cal. The first graph shows the number of participants receiving ancillary services. This may include the cost of books, tools, clothing, fees, or other necessary costs specifically required for the job or training goals established in a participant’s Welfare To Work (WTW) plan.

The second graph shows the number of participants receiving transportation services which is often provided through payment by the county for public transportation or mileage reimbursement. Some counties provide alternative transportation services such as transportation vouchers, vehicle repair programs, commuter programs, and the purchase of motor vehicles or bicycles.

CalWORKs participants are required to participate in WTW activities as a condition of eligibility for aid and must be provided with the necessary supportive services to do so. If needed supportive services are not available or provided, the participant has good cause for not participating in WTW. Ancillary services in CalWORKs are essential for removing barriers to employment, such as lack of childcare or transportation, and for providing job readiness training. These services help participants achieve long-term employability and economic stability by addressing immediate and holistic needs. Overall, the chart can help partners understand what services are needed to ensure that participants can secure and maintain stable employment while supporting their families.

No significant policy changes in the most recent 12 months.


The information provided relates to the availability and importance of Behavioral Health Services for individuals participating in Welfare To Work (WTW) activities, including mental health services, substance abuse services, and domestic abuse survivor services.

The first tab displays a graph with the number of referrals received and services provided for domestic abuse survivors. The second tab displays data for the number of referrals received and services provided for mental health services, and lastly, the third tab shows a graph for the number of referrals received for substance abuse services.

The process for identifying barriers that may qualify an individual for a WTW exemption and how mental health, substance abuse, and domestic violence concerns are addressed through evaluations and referrals are determined by the County Health and Human Services Agency.

This highlights the critical role of Behavioral Health Services in supporting individuals' ability to participate in WTW activities and secure employment. This approach enables individuals to access tailored support that facilitates their successful participation in WTW activities and ultimately helps them obtain gainful employment.

No significant policy changes in the most recent 12 months.