About CWIC
In 2025 California passed two historic pieces of legislation, SB 119 and SB 146, which, as described in the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) ACL 25-78 “established a set of historic reforms to the CalWORKs program that will center families’ voice and choice, improve access to services, and reduce penalties and administrative burden for families and county workers. Taken together, these reforms will contribute to stable and meaningful long-term employment and family well-being.”
CDSS has contracted with CFPIC to facilitate the development and maintenance of the CalWORKs Implementation Collaborative, which focuses on obtaining input from county leaders and subject matter experts on the impact of the reforms on local practice—both the challenges and benefits of each element of the Transforming CalWORKs initiative. This work began with a Kick-Off (link to Kick-off Powerpoint) on September 24, 2025 and has been moving forward with monthly meetings since November 2025, with active participation from CDSS staff, who are able to receive real-time input from county staff and to answer questions about the intent of the reforms.
The CWIC Role
- Act as bridge between the CalWORKs Advisory Committee’s vision and county implementation
- Assess feasibility of recommendations
- Identify implementation considerations for implementation of new policies/practices and for any recommendations coming out of Advisory Committee
- Elevate county and program participant needs
- Help to translate policy and training into county culture and practice
The CWIC Organizational Structure
To help guide the implementation of the new initiative, known as Transforming CalWORKs, CDSS has convened two major advisory structures that are providing input to the Department as it develops final guidance for county administration of the reformed CalWORKs program. CWIC consists of two parts working collaboratively to achieve shared goals:
To help guide the implementation of the new initiative, known as Transforming CalWORKs, CDSS has convened two major advisory structures that are providing input to the Department as it develops final guidance for county administration of the reformed CalWORKs program:
Since August, 2025, the Transforming CalWORKs Advisory Committee (TCAC) has been meeting monthly to bring together current and former CalWORKs participants, advocates, county leaders and CDSS staff to examine the policy changes articulated in SB 119 and SB 146 and “serve as thought partners and recommenders who can provide ‘check and balances’ on ideas and inclusivity, help think through process, challenge assumptions, weigh in on implementation of reform package, monitor implementation process and assist in measuring successes, challenges, and overall impact.”