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California's caller Golden State Start diaper program is facing backlash aft viral societal media posts claimed taxpayers were paying arsenic overmuch arsenic 50 cents per diaper done a concern with Baby2Baby.
The Newsom medication fired back, insisting the existent outgo is conscionable 15.5 cents per diaper.
But a CBS News California Investigates reappraisal of the state's own fund documents, Baby2Baby tax filings and societal media claims recovered some sides are leaving retired important context.
There are besides galore claims we can't yet information cheque because, astir a period aft the governor publically announced the program and touted the competitory enactment process, his medication volition not merchandise the Baby2Baby authorities declaration oregon competitory bid records to CBS News California Investigates.
The medication says it needs much clip to find whether the records are disclosable nether California's Public Records Act, pushing the deadline to determine whether to merchandise the records to the archetypal week of June, a afloat period aft the nationalist announcement.
Key information checks
- Californian's are presently paying 18.5 cents per diaper nether the caller program.
- The viral "50 cents per diaper" disapproval combines aggregate years of projected spending and divides it by lone the archetypal year's diaper total.
- The Newsom administration's 15.5-cent information cheque ignores authorities bureau costs that adhd an further 3 cents per diaper successful the archetypal year.
- This is not a acquisition paper oregon cash-assistance program; parents volition permission the infirmary with astir 400 diapers for their newborns.
- Experts caution that stockpiling newborn diapers often leads to waste because babies turn astatine antithetic rates and tin rapidly outgrow diapers successful the archetypal fewer weeks.
- So far, officials can't accidental however they program to guarantee payer funded diapers fixed retired successful bulk volition not spell to waste.
- The Baby2Baby co-CEOs, wide linked to Gov. Newsom's wife, marque little than $80,000 per twelvemonth – not the $240,000 wide circulated online.
Online critics repeatedly constituent to the Baby2Baby co-CEOs' narration with First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom. The politician besides alluded to a longstanding narration betwixt his medication and Baby2Baby during the programme launch.
Baby2Baby was previously awarded $1.5 million successful the 2023/24 authorities fund to administer diapers successful Los Angeles County. However, the authorities outgo is not included connected the nonprofit's nationalist 2024 taxation return, which shows a full gross of much than $70 million.
According to Baby2Baby, the authorities outgo was included on with charitable contributions successful a confidential information of the public taxation filing, labeled arsenic "restricted."
50-cent diaper mathematics isn't mathing
The viral disapproval spreading online started with a societal media station by gubernatorial campaigner Steve Hilton, who filmed himself wrong a Target diaper aisle.
"Gavin Newsom is taking $20 cardinal of your wealth to nonstop 100,000 babies 400 diapers," Hilton said successful the viral X video. "That works retired astatine 50 cents per diaper."
Conservative commentators and influencers rapidly amplified the claim.
"Allegedly, the diapers for the program, supplied by a nonprofit called Baby2Baby, are estimated to outgo 50 cents per diaper," commentator Isabel Brown said successful a abstracted X post.
Fox News and influencers besides questioned the nonprofit's governmental connections.
But CBS News California Investigates recovered the "50 cents per diaper" mathematics relies connected an inaccurate calculation. The critics disagreement the program's afloat projected two-year fund — astir $20 cardinal — by lone the archetypal year's diaper total: 40 cardinal diapers.
Lawmakers person not approved the afloat two-year fund for a full 120 cardinal diapers.
So acold they person lone approved is $7.4 cardinal for 40 cardinal diapers successful the archetypal twelvemonth which means California taxpayers are presently paying 18.5 cents per diaper.
That's inactive much than the 16-cent diapers Hilton recovered astatine Target, but acold little than the 50-cent fig circulating online.
- FY25/26: Total $7.4 cardinal / 40 cardinal diapers = 18.5 cents per
- FY26/27: Total $12.5 cardinal / 80 cardinal diapers = 15.6 cents per
- Combined: $19.9 cardinal / 120 cardinal diapers = 16.6 cents per diaper delivered to the infirmary and sent location with each newborn
The Newsom medication was speedy to fact-check Hilton, saying Californians are paying conscionable 15.5 cents per diaper to Baby2Baby, the vendor hired to manufacture and administer the diapers to participating hospitals.
"The 2025-26 State Budget includes funds for a diaper declaration that was awarded to Baby2Baby. The $6.2 cardinal declaration Baby2Baby received is designed to screen 25% of California births astatine 400 diapers per infant, which equates to 15.5 cents per diaper," the governor's bureau told CBS News California Investigates.
That calculation counts lone the Baby2Baby $6.2 cardinal declaration itself, which includes diaper manufacturing, warehousing, and nonstop programme implementation.
It does not see authorities staffing, oversight, oregon aboriginal programme readying costs. The authorities has not provided the requested fund breakdowns for the further $1.2 cardinal successful authorities bureau fees.
According to the California Department of Finance Budget Proposal, this is what Californians are paying for:
- Manufacturing: 9.5 cents per diaper
- Warehouse/distribution: 4 cents
- Direct programme costs: 2 cents
- State operations: 1.75 cents
- Phase 2 planning/RFI exploration: 1.25 cents
Baby2Baby background
The online backlash besides targeted Baby2Baby itself, with immoderate posts falsely claiming executives were making "hundreds of thousands" of dollars from payer money.
"Did I notation that Baby2Baby CEO Norah Weinstein is truly bully friends with Gavin Newsom's wife?" blimpish commentator Brittany Hughes said in another video, echoing claims that she made $240,000 successful 2024.
Public IRS 990 taxation filings reviewed through ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer and Charity Navigator amusement co-CEOs Kelly Sawyer Patricof and Norah Weinstein each reported compensation of astir $77,566 during the astir caller filing play — acold beneath the $240,000 figures circulating online.
There are several operational employees who bash marque six-figure salaries; however, the full salaries and compensation magnitude to astir 10% of the full revenue.
Tax records amusement the nonprofit generated much than $77 cardinal successful gross successful 2024 alone, with astir 95% coming from charitable contributions.
By comparison, the state's existent $6.2 cardinal diaper declaration represents a comparatively tiny information of the organization's wide backing and representatives accidental Baby2Baby volition not nett from the authorities contract.
However, the authorities has yet to merchandise the Baby2Baby contract, truthful CBS News California tin not independently corroborate that.
Questions besides stay astir the state's enactment process.
Online critics repeatedly constituent to the longstanding narration betwixt Baby2Baby enactment and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom.
"Was it truly a rigorous process if you're champion friends with the CEO of the company?" commentator Isabel Brown asked successful a viral societal media post.
Governor Newsom maintains Baby2Baby won the declaration done a competitory bidding process. But until the authorities releases the contract, bid sheets and scoring records, CBS News California Investigates cannot independently verify however the nonprofit was selected oregon however it scored against competing applicants.
Will escaped diapers spell to waste?
The authorities says the programme is not a acquisition paper oregon cash-assistance program, arsenic immoderate person claimed online.
Instead, participating hospitals serving precocious numbers of low-income and Medi-Cal patients volition administer diapers straight to qualifying families instantly aft birth, meaning parents volition virtually permission the infirmary with astir 400 diapers for their newborns.
Program officials told CBS News California Investigates:
- More than 100 hospitals person already expressed interest
- Roughly 60 to 70 hospitals are expected to enactment initially
- Hospitals serving the highest-need families volition beryllium prioritized.
However, they could not code immoderate applicable questions astir however the diaper organisation volition work.
Parenting and pediatric experts caution that newborns often outgrow diaper sizes wrong the archetypal fewer weeks, and stockpiling leads to waste.
Some families could yet extremity up with boxes of diapers that their babies outgrow earlier they tin usage them. So far, officials can't accidental however they program to guarantee payer funded diapers fixed retired successful bulk volition not spell to waste.
They accidental hospitals volition mostly grip those logistics individually.
Meanwhile, diaper insecurity remains a documented contented nationwide.
A Tampa Bay Times / ProPublica diaper investigation recovered astir 1 successful 3 American families struggles to spend diapers and estimated diapering a kid tin outgo families astir $1,000 annually.
And portion the governmental statement online continues, the biggest unanswered questions whitethorn nary longer beryllium astir diaper mathematics astatine each — but astir transparency, oversight and whether California taxpayers judge the authorities should beryllium backing escaped diapers successful the archetypal place.
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