Disability rights advocates and home-care workers packed the steps of the State Capitol on Monday, calling out Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May Revision and its proposed cuts to In-Home Supportive Services. Organizers warned the changes could rip away the support that lets people get help with basics like showering, cooking and getting to medical appointments, and could force families into painful trade-offs. The crowd included IHSS recipients, family caregivers and several lawmakers, who argued the proposals cross a line.
As reported by the Los Angeles Times, Newsom’s revised budget would cut roughly $367.7 million from the IHSS program and shift some of the cost onto counties. “These aren’t just numbers in a budget; these are real people,” Assemblymember Jeff Gonzalez told the rally, underlining the human stakes advocates say are buried in the spreadsheets.
What the budget would change
According to an analysis from the Legislative Analyst’s Office, the governor’s plan revolves around three key moves: eliminating the permanent backup-provider system, aligning IHSS eligibility timelines with Medi-Cal and removing the state’s share of growth in IHSS hours per case. The LAO estimates those actions would generate savings in the low hundreds of millions, including about $3.5 million from ending the backup program, roughly $86 million from the eligibility changes and a larger shift of $233.6 million beginning in 2027-28, with counties left to shoulder added costs.
Unions warn of workforce fallout
United Domestic Workers, which represents hundreds of thousands of home-care providers, blasted the proposals as “unacceptable” and warned they would deepen what it calls an already serious recruitment and retention crisis for caregivers. In a press release, UDW leaders pointed out that the median IHSS wage hovers around $18 to $19 an hour and argued that cutting backup supports or shifting costs to counties would make it harder to keep workers on the job and would disrupt continuity of care for recipients.
Voices from the rally
Speakers stepped up to put names and faces to the numbers: parents, veterans and people with disabilities described how paid care keeps them living independently instead of in institutions. As recounted by the Los Angeles Times, Elizabette Guecamburu, who has a rare neuromuscular disorder, urged the governor to “remember compassion and community,” while advocates noted that some families have already quit jobs to provide unpaid care. Disability Rights California has been holding briefings and town halls to walk recipients through how the proposed changes could reduce their authorized hours or even end coverage entirely.
Why advocates say this matters
Advocates stress that IHSS is tightly linked to Medi-Cal eligibility, so budget moves that bring back strict asset tests or narrow who qualifies could cut off both health coverage and paid home support at the same time. Analysis from the California Budget & Policy Center and the Legislative Analyst’s Office shows the program serves roughly 875,000 Californians. Opponents of the cuts argue that even relatively small reductions would push some people into institutional care, which they say is a more costly outcome for counties and families alike.
Lawmakers now face a compressed calendar in Sacramento, with budget negotiations continuing as committees and county officials sort through the projected costs. Advocates at Monday’s rally said they plan to keep pressing state leaders to preserve IHSS hours, backup supports and the program’s current funding structure as the final deal comes together.
