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February 26, 2026 ALL COUNTY LETTER NO. 26-15 TO: ALL COUNTY WELFARE DIRECTORS ALL CALFRESH PROGRAM SPECIALISTS ALL CONSORTIA REPRESENTATIVES ALL QUALITY CONTROL COORDINATORS SUBJECT: CALFRESH ONE-YEAR ABLE-BODIED ADULTS WITHOUT DEPENDENTS TIME LIMIT WAIVER FOR ALPINE, MERCED, MONTEREY, AND PLUMAS COUNTIES REFERENCE: TITLE 7 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS 273.24; WELFARE AND INSTITUTIONS CODE SECTION 18926; HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1 (PUBLIC LAW 119-21); ALL COUNTY LETTER (ACL) NO. 25-41; ACL NO. 24-42; ACL NO. 19-93; ACL NO. 22-74; ACL NO. 25-64; ACL NO. 25-93; ACL NO. 25-79 The purpose of this All County Letter (ACL) is to inform County Welfare Departments (CWDs) that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has approved a one-year waiver of the Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents (ABAWD) time limit requirement under Title 7 Code of Federal Regulations Section 273.24 for Alpine, Merced, Monterey, and Plumas counties effective November 1, 2025, through October 31, 2026. ABAWD TIME LIMIT WAIVER COUNTIES Welfare and Institutions Code Section 18926, requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to annually seek a federal waiver of the ABAWD time limit for all eligible counties. Federal law and regulations provide that the USDA FNS shall waive the ABAWD time limit in a state or areas within a state that meet specified criteria. As previously announced in ACL No. 25-79 issued on November 7, 2025, the USDA FNS approved Colusa, Imperial, and Tulare counties for an ABAWD time limit waiver effective November 1, 2025, through October 31, 2026. Based on newly available data, CDSS submitted an ABAWD time limit waiver modification request to add four additional counties: Alpine, Merced, Monterey, and Plumas. CDSS received FNS approval on February 10, 2026.