Our Mission

Golden State Opportunity (GSO) is a nonprofit dedicated to ending poverty by providing all Californians with the tools to build financial well-being and thrive.

HOW WE WORK

Golden State Opportunity (GSO) is led by doers who educate, engage, and empower working families. Our groundbreaking, culturally relevant work in thirteen languages reaches millions of low-income Californians and connects them with the financial resources they need to survive and then thrive.

GSO leads comprehensive statewide campaigns to help families access public benefits, receive tailored financial coaching, achieve financial stability and plan for the future through programs that uplift low-income Californians. What works in Oakland doesn’t always work in Salinas. That’s why GSO has partnerships with 40+ community-based organizations across the state led by trusted community messengers.

Grassroots advocacy is in our DNA. Our community of working families is leading the charge for public policies that meaningfully reduce–rather than exacerbate–poverty in California. Government should make things easier for people when they’re struggling, but too often bureaucracy gets in the way. GSO won’t stop pushing for systemic change until everyone can easily access the resources they need to meet their basic needs and transform their lives with financial stability.

WHY IT MATTERS

Although California is the richest state in the country and the fifth largest economy in the world, more than one in six Californians live in poverty. Millions more live on the brink of poverty, and the COVID-19 pandemic is only making things worse. Living paycheck to paycheck is expensive due to unexpected costs, high fees, predatory landlords, and predatory lending. Increasingly, there are two Californias divided by haves and have-nots.

Everyone in our state should be able to afford life’s basic needs: food, housing, and health care. Generational wealth and opportunity should be accessible to all Californians, not only the wealthiest among us. We can make this goal a reality if we give people a hand to escape poverty traps and build financial well-being. With comprehensive financial education and policies that support low-income workers, such as the minimum wage, public benefit reform, and continued expansion of the federal EITC, we can end poverty as we know it.

Decades of research show that tax credits have a positive impact on children, their families, and their communities by:

Improving infant and child health outcomes

Increasing student academic performance

Reducing the likelihood of childhood neglect

Helping women afford to remain in the workforce

Stimulating local economies

Lifting families above the poverty line, and disrupting generational cycles of poverty—particularly for children of single parents and children of color.

One of the most effective tools to lift families out of poverty is the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a cashback tax credit for low-income workers. We help Californians make sure that money isn’t left on the table.

The EITC is the nation’s most effective tool for reducing poverty after Social Security, and it lifts more children out of poverty than any other federal policy. Now, more than ever, hardworking families across California need access to this critical anti-poverty tool.

Families that are living paycheck to paycheck, or falling further into debt, need to stabilize their finances through the EITC, public benefits, and avoiding high-interest debt. Financial security and well-being for families will ensure that everyone can afford life’s basic needs and invest in their future.

GSO is here to help.

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