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Listen to ELCA Advocacy’s “Here I Pod” for Season 2 Episode 2 with host Regina Banks as we explore FEMA Changes and Lutheran Disaster Response.

On June 27, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the new state budget for Fiscal Year 2025-26 that makes sweeping cuts to Medi-Cal access for immigrant adults as a way to offset the state’s $11.8 billion dollar budget deficit. A handful of legislators led efforts to oppose these harsh cuts with us and our work continues to urge all of our state representatives to equitably invest in and support immigrant Californians. The budget decisions at the state and federal levels will exacerbate the harms immigrant communities are already facing in their communities. The deployment of federal immigration agents, the military and National Guard for…

“For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us” (Ephesians 2:14). In Ephesians, either Paul or his disciple invites us to see our vocations, the gifts and responsibilities entrusted to us, as holy offerings to the household of God. In this divine architecture, all are called to build the Kin(g)dom of God through mutual dignity, truth-telling, and service. The text challenges us to submit our vocational lives, be it as lawmakers, policy professionals, caregivers, or neighbors, to the self-giving love of Christ,…

What is CSW? The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is a function commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council. It occurs for two weeks every year, bringing together representatives of United Nations member states and civil society organizations to further efforts for global gender equality. This year marked 30 years since the adoption of the Bejing Declaration and Platform for Action, so the focus was on analyzing the progress made in its implementation and how we can continue to move forward and work towards achieving gender equality globally. What is the Bejing Declaration and Platform for Action?…

On February 12th, we held a special hour-long session of AIQ that focused on the impacts of Executive Orders and funding freezes on social, health, and human services in California. The recording of our session will be shared at noon on Friday. In the meantime, we would like to provide resources that explain the potential impacts on Californians. Federal Funds Supporting California According to the California Budget & Policy Center report “California at Risk: Proposed Federal Funding Cuts Jeopardize Key Services” around a third of California’s state budget comes from federal funds. A majority of these funds support health and…

On January 10th Governor Newsom released his proposed budget for the State of California. It is important to note that this is the first iteration of the budget, it will be revised in May before a final version is passed this summer. Click here to read the proposed budget in its entirety. To further understand the proposal and learn more about its expected impacts and shortfalls, click here to read the California Budget and Policy Center’s report.

As we head into a new Legislative Session, we want to highlight all of the bills we followed last year that were signed into law. Click here to learn moreDownload

 A Video Guide to the 2024 California Ballot Propositions, available in English or Spanish! Here is a link to a video recording of last night’s event on our YouTube Channel. A Guide to the 2024 California Ballot Propositions or Guía para el votante de la medida electoral de noviembre de 2024. Please share with others.