A household is a mandatory categorically eligible (CE) Food Stamp household only if:

• All members of the federally eligible food stamp household are receiving or authorized to receive benefits from a Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program (i.e. CalWORKs)
• Those benefits are means-tested
• Those benefits are in excess of 50% TANF funded, or
• Those benefits are in excess of 50% TANF maintenance of effort expenditures

To date the only families who have been identified as being mandatory CE families under the maintenance of effort criteria are CalWORKs AUs aided under the separate state program for two parent families.

Households with any members receiving or authorized to receive state-funded CFAP benefits are not mandatory CE households because CE status cannot be conferred upon federal food stamp ineligible noncitizens. CDSS intends to issue a follow-up ACL to identify categories of people who may optionally be CE for food stamps in California.