This is David Vance (they/them), The Center’s Director of Advocacy and Civic Engagement, wishing you a happy Nonbinary People’s Day on Tuesday, July 14, as we begin San Diego Pride Week, and sharing some exciting wins for our LGBTQ+ community in the fiscal year 2026-27 California state budget!
Amid ongoing threats to federal funding that supports LGBTQ+ people, seeking out funding from state and local government sources is of the utmost importance for organizations like The Center. This year’s California state budget includes two major victories for our community: a $10 million investment in a new LGBTQ Community Center Fund that will provide a safety net to LGBTQ+ organizations throughout the state, and a $26 million investment in a Gender-Affirming Care Fund. Together, these funds will help protect the essential services that LGBTQ+ people across California rely on, especially our trans and nonbinary community members.
For the past several months, The Center, along with the Los Angeles LGBT Center and the Sacramento LGBT Center, has been leading a coalition of over 40 different LGBTQ+ centers and organizations throughout our state to advocate for an LGBTQ Community Center Fund in our state budget.
LGBTQ+ community centers are lifelines across California, providing safety, care, and belonging for people too often pushed to the margins. LGBTQ+ community centers are where folks turn to in moments of crisis, and where lives are stabilized, protected, and saved. The LGBTQ Community Center Fund will provide state resources that community centers can draw down for eligible activities supporting health, equity, and well-being to sustain continuity of care for the LGBTQ+ community in light of federal cuts.
After months of advocating with the state legislature, we were overjoyed that Governor Newsom included a $10 million allocation for the LGBTQ Community Center Fund when he signed the fiscal year 2026-27 state budget into law! The impact of this investment will reach every corner of California, strengthening LGBTQ+ centers statewide and supporting those who are overwhelmed by the fear that the services they rely on are being stripped away.
In addition, the fiscal year 2026-27 California state budget also includes a $26 million allocation for a Gender-Affirming Care Fund. This will establish a state-funded billing system that both protects clinics and providers of gender-affirming care from potential federal funding bans and ensures they can continue getting compensated for providing services, with funds to sustain access for uncompensated care.
California is home to one of the largest trans, nonbinary, and gender-diverse populations in the U.S., with approximately 263,700 adults and 84,600 youth identifying as trans in the state. The need is enormous, and without this dedicated state funding, too many people would lose access to medically-necessary care.
It’s especially exciting that this funding was signed into law so close to Nonbinary People’s Day, recognized internationally on July 14! Uplifting our nonbinary community members helps to honor our existence and ensure that we continue to have access to the care and services we deserve. The Gender Affirming Care Fund is the pathway to making sure our legal rights are backed by real access to care for the people who need it most.
Regardless of what our current federal administration has to say, trans and nonbinary people have always been here and we will continue to be here. We will continue to lead with action, with courage, and with real investment in our communities.
To my nonbinary community: we are real, we are valid, and we are the experts on who we are. I’m so proud to be part of a community whose vibrancy, fearlessness, and strength bring so much light and inspiration to our world. We will continue to shine bright.
I hope to see many of you at San Diego Pride!
In community,
David Vance (they/them)
Director of Advocacy and Civic Engagement