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LOS ANGELES – The sharply rising costs of food, housing, gasoline, coupled with the inflation rate hovering at 8.3%  has many Californian scrambling to supplement their access to food. The cost for food alone in the Southern California region has risen 1% from February 2022 to March 2022, and food prices were 8.8% higher than in March 2021.

A California assemblyman thinks the state's massive state budget surplus could be put to work helping the state's low-income families.

Los Angeles-area elected officials Monday gathered to celebrate and spread the word about Medi-Cal’s recent expansion to cover low-income undocumented immigrants who are 50 years old and over.

“If there’s one thing COVID-19 has taught us, it’s the importance of having access to basic healthcare,” said Assemblyman Miguel Santiago, D-Los Angeles.

As Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers contemplate how to deliver the state’s surplus dollars back to Californians facing high gas prices and other rising costs of living, one group of advocates is pushing for another stimulus-like payment for the state’s lowest-income residents.

A coalition of anti-poverty organizations is calling for the state to send a one-time payment of $2,000 per child to families making less than $30,000 a year. More than 1 million families in the state would be eligible.

The pandemic has made it clear: America is choosing to let its children live in poverty.

Californians facing eviction could get a temporary reprieve under a bill endorsed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Assembly Bill 2179 would extend eviction protections through June 30 for Californians applying for funds from the state’s COVID-19 rent relief program.

California homeowners struggling to make payments can apply for assistance with the California Mortgage Relief Program.

The program, launched in January, covers past due mortgage payments in full as a one-time grant — up to $80,000 per household — with a direct payment to the homeowner’s mortgage servicer.

“In many ways, this is a game-changer and it will help people get back on their feet as we’re starting to open back up again,” said Assemblyman Miguel Santiago, D-Los Angeles.

Despite the economic upheaval Americans experienced throughout the pandemic, we made impressive progress in reducing child poverty. Those gains are at risk, however, if we don’t take action soon.

Over the past six months, U.S. child poverty dropped by half due to an expanded federal child tax credit. The credit puts money directly in the pockets of struggling families, helping them ride out the financial uncertainty affecting millions of households.

With a large pair of scissors Jan Perry cut the ribbon, officially opening the Terasaki Budokan in Little Tokyo on Friday afternoon. Officials and a cluster of kids from the Mi Casa in Little Tokyo afterschool program, in bright green T-shirts, joined in the celebration of, at long last, the completion of the gymnasium on Los Angeles Street.

The ceremony held in the courtyard was the first of two public events to mark the completion of the long-fought, long-delayed gymnasium. Terasaki Budokan opened last year, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed its official dedication.

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Boyle Heights’ Hollenbeck Park has received a $5 million grant from the California Department of Transportation to pay for major improvements, Councilman Kevin de León announced.

“This $5 million Clean California Grant is an incredible win for the city of Los Angeles — but an even bigger victory for the community of Boyle Heights,” de León said Friday morning at the park alongside state Sen. Maria Elena Durazo and Assemblyman Miguel Santiago. “These are park investments long overdue for Boyle Heights.”