US adds welfare to checklist
Advocates say measure would leave immigrants ‘hungrier, sicker, poorer’
The Trump administration has proposed strict new rules to deny green cards to millions of potential immigrants if they are deemed likely to use food stamps, welfare, housing vouchers or Medicaid when applying to enter the United States or trying to become permanent residents.
Department of Homeland Security officials, who announced the proposal late Saturday, claim it would save federal taxpayers $2.7 billion annually by deterring immigrants from applying for benefits for which they would otherwise be qualified. It would affect about 380,000 people annually, federal officials said, and is designed to ensure the immigrants can support themselves.
“Under long-standing federal law, those seeking to immigrate to the United States must show they can support themselves financially,” said DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. “This proposed rule will implement a law passed by Congress intended to promote immigrant self-sufficiency and protect finite resources by ensuring that they are not likely to become burdens on American taxpayers.”
The proposed rules are slated to take effect after a 60-day public review and comment period.
Immigration officials for decades have considered applicants’ financial status in deciding whether to permit them entry, but the new rules are significantly stricter than previous policy.
Pro-immigration groups are girding for a major fight to stop or alter the proposal. The proposed Trump policy means immigrants will be “hungrier, sicker and poorer,” said Olivia Golden, the executive director of the Center for Law and Social Policy. “It targets documented working parents who are playing by the rules. Everything that we know suggests that it’s a terrible idea. We have to fight back.”