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AB 1796--Support for a Courageous Journey

We saw no front-page headlines announcing the passage of AB 1796, the law that now permits recovering felony drug users (not dealers) to apply for food stamps. But a recent conversation with a beneficiary of that enlightened legislation demonstrated for us its huge impact on the lives of people struggling to turn their shattered lives around.

We, a Hunger Commissioner and staff member, spoke with Nikki, a resident of the Mather Community Campus, a DHA transitional housing program supporting folks at a time when they need help with survival and rehabilitation. She has lived there since the summer of 2003, and has shared a family housing unit with her 14-year-old daughter since October of this year. Her two-year maximum stay at Mather will end this summer, and she is busily preparing for the added responsibilities that departure will bring. Foremost among those is finding adequate employment—something consistently denied her as soon as a prospective employer spots the felony narcotics conviction on her record. With assurance that her felony conviction will be reduced to a misdemeanor, she looks forward to a reversal of her job-hunting frustrations, and the challenge of self-support.

A great deal of Nikki's optimism springs from her ability to provide an adequate diet for her daughter and herself, something that was virtually impossible while limited to the daughter's food stamp allowance of less than $100 a month. Now, with budgeting classes at Mather, and her own food stamps adding about $70 a month to the food budget, the struggle is considerably eased. She beamed as she recalled her daughter's excitement at buying potato chips and a few other things beyond the absolutely bare essentials. The actual process of getting food stamps was an easy one for Nikki, with notification and assistance from Mather staff and her case worker.

From 20 years of drug addiction, homelessness, and abandonment by her parents, to rehabilitation at River City Recovery Center, to living support at Mather Community Campus, to the very real prospect of a self-sufficient, productive existence—it’s a courageous journey! Besides adequate employment, her future plans include enrollment in a course at American River College which will lead to a certificate and career as an addictions treatment counselor.

Acknowledging the central role played in this saga by her access to food stamps, Nikki believes that anyone committed to giving up drugs should be eligible for the food stamp program —that anyone struggling to get beyond this curse, regardless of the level of their past involvement, deserves this crucial support. We strongly agree.

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