CA-GOV: Mahan, Porter pledge to protect AIDS funding if elected CA governor

Funding for LGBTQ services in California routinely turns into a budgetary tug of war between legislators and the governor. Negotiations take place over what gets included or axed from the budget, while proposed legislation benefitting queer and transgender individuals that comes with a high price tag often meets with a gubernatorial veto.

Last year, the Legislature restored $41 million for LGBTQ health programs that Governor Gavin Newsom had cut in his revised budget proposal released in May due to the state facing a projected $7.5 billion budget shortfall for the fiscal year that began July 1. As the Bay Area Reported had noted, it came after intense pushback from LGBTQ advocates.

The state’s 2025-2026 fiscal year budget ended up including more than $145 million allocated for specific services benefitting LGBTQ youth and adults, as well as people living with HIV. More than 68 community-based organizations had banded together under the banner of the Health Equity Coalition to mount a fierce lobbying campaign on behalf of the expenditures.

This year’s budget battles are beginning to heat up, with the governor’s office projecting a $2.9 billion deficit in the 2026-2027 fiscal year to address. It remains to be seen just how much will need to be cut as more Trump administration policies go into effect that erode federal funding sent to the Golden State.



https://www.ebar.com/story/165550/News/Politics/Political%20Notes%3A%20Mahan%2C%20Porter%20pledge%20to%20protect%20AIDS%20funding%20if%20elected%20CA%20governor