STEP 1: Submit a Comment to Governor Newsom
Go to: https://www.gov.ca.gov/contact/
Select the following options:
Topic: Budget May Revise 2025-26
Purpose: Leave a comment
Stance: Con
Subject: Budget May Revise 2025-26 – Fund CalAccount
Message:
I do not support the current budget without funding for CalAccount. Now more than ever, as federal regulations limiting bank fees and undermining consumer protections are being rolled back, working people need CalAccount.
About 2.5 million California households, or one in six, are unbanked or underbanked, meaning they either donât have a bank account or canât fully use one. This forces people to rely on check cashers, prepaid cards, and payday lenders, costing the average household over $300 a year just to access their own money. In total, California families lose approximately $4.5 billion annually to financial fees. Thatâs money that should go toward rent, groceries, and bills, not bank profits.
CalAccount is a cost-effective solution. The cost to implement is modest, especially compared to the economic relief it provides to working families and the long-term savings for the state. Itâs especially critical for low-income and immigrant households, Black and Latino families, single moms, people with disabilities, and survivors of gender-based violence, communities most harmed by financial exclusion.
I urge you to include CalAccount implementation funding in this yearâs budget. Thank you.
STEP 2: Email the Senate Budget Leaders
After submitting your message to the Governor, please email the same message to the Senate President pro Tempore Senator Mike McGuire and Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee Chair Scott Wiener and CC us at info@capublicbanking.com so we can track support:
Senator Mike McGuire – President pro Tempore
Email: senator.mcguire@senate.ca.gov
Senator Scott Wiener – Senate Budget Chair
Email: senator.wiener@senate.ca.gov