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Los Angeles LGBT Center Joins Statewide Coalition for LGBTQ+ Community Center Advocacy Day

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California community centers and advocates rally at the State Capitol to advance key LGBTQ+ budget priorities

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LOS ANGELES & SACRAMENTO, April 22, 2026  — The Los Angeles LGBT Center joined LGBTQ+ community centers and advocates from across California today for LGBTQ+ Community Center Advocacy Day, a coordinated day of action at the California State Capitol focused on advancing critical legislative and budget priorities for LGBTQ+ communities.

Organized in partnership with the Los Angeles LGBT Center, Sacramento LGBT Community Center, The San Diego LGBT Community Center, and dozens of LGBTQ+ organizations statewide, Advocacy Day brought together community leaders, staff, and advocates for meetings with state legislators to highlight urgent community needs and push for meaningful public investment—including Assemblymember Rick Zbur, who voiced his support during the press conference. Together, advocates lifted up the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ Californians and the essential role LGBTQ+ community centers play in providing health care, housing stability, violence prevention, and community support.

“LGBTQ+ community centers are vital to California’s social safety net. Every day, we meet urgent needs that too often go unmet elsewhere by providing affirming housing support, mental health and sexual health services, youth and older adult programs, employment assistance, and community spaces where LGBTQ+ people are safe, seen, and know they belong. At a time when our communities face rising hostility, isolation, and economic insecurity, protecting and strengthening the sustainability of this infrastructure is essential. This $35 million investment is an investment in health, stability, dignity, and the future of LGBTQ+ Californians.” – David Heitstuman (he/him), CEO of the Sacramento LGBT Community Center

“Rural LGBTQ+ folks in California are demanding support systems and investments that can help us live healthy, happy lives. It has never been more important to safeguard the progress we have made over the last 60 years. LGBTQ+ center’s are on the front lines every day, providing care for our state’s most vulnerable. It’s time for real and lasting investment in community centers who are doing the heavy lifting.” – Brian Poth (he/they), CEO, The Source LGBT+ Center, Visalia, CA

“The LGBTQ Community Center Fund is a direct response to the relentless rhetorical and legislative attacks that our LGBTQ+ communities have been subjected to; attacks on our fundamental rights, our dignity, our health care, and our ability to exist authentically in public. This fund is a critical lifeline for centers that have already lost federal funding or are at risk of losing it. California has long been a stronghold for human rights and protections for vulnerable communities. Yet even here, the Trump administration has chipped away at the rights and resources that keep people safe. That is why this moment demands action.” – David Vance (they/them), Director of Advocacy and Civic Engagement, The San Diego LGBT Community Center

“These investments say this: In California, we choose people over politics. The LGBTQ Community Center Fund represents safety, belonging, and a lifeline for people with nowhere else to turn. Gender-affirming care funding is about dignity, autonomy, and saving lives. These investments will help folks who often turn to local LGBTQ+ community organizations—from San Diego to Eureka—as their first stop for help. We urge California’s officials to support these initiatives, and continue to be a leader in the nation for LGBTQ+ rights—the time is more important than ever.” 

— Robert Gamboa (he/him), Associate Director of Public Policy, Los Angeles LGBT Center

Policy Priorities Highlighted During Advocacy Day

Participants urged legislators to support the following investments in the 2026–27 California State Budget:

  • LGBTQ Community Center Fund — $35 million
  • Gender-Affirming Care Fund — $26 million
  • Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Backfill — $100 million
  • Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Program — $1 billion
  • End the Epidemics HIV and STI Budget — $166 million

Advocates emphasized that these investments are critical to sustaining lifesaving services, especially as LGBTQ+ communities continue to face disproportionate rates of housing insecurity, violence, behavioral health challenges, and barriers to health care.

Through in-person meetings in Sacramento and virtual legislative visits via Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, participants shared data, personal stories, and program impacts, demonstrating how state funding directly affects the ability of LGBTQ+ centers to serve their communities.

The Center reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to advocating for policies that protect and uplift LGBTQ+ people across California—especially LGBTQ+ youth, seniors, transgender and nonbinary people, people living with HIV, and those most impacted by systemic inequities.

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About the Los Angeles LGBT Center

Since 1969, the Los Angeles LGBT Center has cared for, championed, and celebrated LGBTQ+ individuals and families in Los Angeles and beyond. Today the Center’s nearly 800 employees provide services for more LGBTQ+ people than any other organization in the world, offering programs, services, and global advocacy that span four broad categories: Health, Social Services and Housing, Culture and Education, Leadership and Advocacy. We are an unstoppable force in the fight against bigotry and the struggle to build a better world; a world in which LGBTQ+ people thrive as healthy, equal, and complete members of society. Learn more at lalgbtcenter.org. 

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