AB 2345, as introduced, Gonzalez. Public social services: eligibility: noncitizens.
Existing law establishes various social services programs that provide cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families and individuals, including the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program. Under existing law, an alien is eligible for aid under these programs only if he or she has been lawfully admitted for permanent residence, or is otherwise permanently residing in the United States under color of law.
Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to establish a food assistance program for certain immigrants residing in this state, including, among others, a battered immigrant spouse or a Cuban or Haitian entrant, as described in specified provisions of federal law.
This bill would additionally provide that a noncitizen is eligible for aid under these programs if he or she is lawfully present in the United States. To the extent this bill would expand eligibility for CalWORKs and the food assistance program, which are administered by the counties, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program.
This bill would instead provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 11104 of the Welfare and Institutions
2Code is amended to read:
begin deleteAliens shall end deletebegin insert(a)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertNoncitizens of the United States shall end insert
4be eligible for aid only to the extent permitted by federal law.
5An alien shall
end delete
6begin insert(b)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertA noncitizen of the United States shallend insert only be
eligible for
7aid ifbegin delete the alienend deletebegin insert he or sheend insert has been lawfully admitted for permanent
8residence,begin insert is lawfully present in the United States,end insert or is otherwise
9permanently residing in the United States under color of law. No
10aid shall be paid unless evidence as to eligiblebegin delete alienend deletebegin insert noncitizenend insert
11 status is presented.
Section 18930 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
13amended to read:
(a) The State Department of Social Services shall
15establish a Food Assistance Program to provide assistance for
16those persons described in subdivision (b). The department shall
17enter into an agreement with the United States Department of
18Agriculture to use the existing federal Supplemental Nutrition
19Assistance Program coupons for the purposes of administering
20this program. Persons who are members of a household receiving
21CalFresh benefits under this chapter or under Chapter 10
22(commencing with Section 18900), and are receiving CalWORKs
23benefits under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 11200) of
24Part 3 on September 1, 1998, shall have eligibility determined
25under this chapter without need for a new application no later than
P3 1November 1, 1998, and the beginning date of assistance under this
2chapter for those persons shall be
September 1, 1998.
3(b) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) and
4Section 18930.5, noncitizens of the United States shall be eligible
5for the program established pursuant to subdivision (a) if the
6person’s immigration status meets the eligibility criteria of the
7federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in effect on
8August 21, 1996, but he or she is not eligible for federal
9Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits solely due
10to his or her immigration status under Public Law 104-193 and
11any subsequent amendments thereto.
12(2) Noncitizens of the United States shall be eligible for the
13program established pursuant to subdivision (a) if the person is a
14battered immigrant spouse or child or the parent or child of the
15battered immigrant, as described in Section 1641(c) of Title 8 of
16the United States Code, as amended by Section 5571
of Public
17Law 105-33, or if the person is a Cuban or Haitian entrant as
18described in Section 501(e) of the federal Refugee Education
19Assistance Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-122)begin insert, or is otherwise
20lawfully present in the United Statesend insert.
21(3) An applicant who is otherwise eligible for the program but
22who entered the United States on or after August 22, 1996, shall
23be eligible for aid under this chapter only if he or she is sponsored
24and one of the following apply:
25(A) The sponsor has died.
26(B) The sponsor is disabled as defined in subparagraph (A) of
27paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 11320.3.
28(C) The applicant, after entry into the United
States, is a victim
29of abuse by the sponsor or the spouse of the sponsor if the spouse
30is living with the sponsor.
31(4) An applicant who is otherwise eligible for the program but
32who entered the United States on or after August 22, 1996, who
33does not meet one of the conditions of paragraph (3), shall be
34eligible for aid under this chapter beginning on October 1, 1999.
35(5) The applicant shall be required to provide verification that
36one of the conditions of subparagraph (A), (B), or (C)begin insert of paragraph
37(3)end insert has been met.
38(6) For purposes of subparagraph (C) of paragraphbegin delete (2)end deletebegin insert
(3)end insert, abuse
39shall be defined in the same manner as provided in Section 11495.1
40and Section 11495.12. A sworn statement of abuse by a victim, or
P4 1the representative of the victim if the victim is not able to
2competently swear, shall be sufficient to establish abuse if one or
3more additional items of evidence of abuse is also provided.
4Additional evidence may include, but is not limited to, the
5following:
6(A) Police, government agency, or court records or files.
7(B) Documentation from a domestic violence program, legal,
8clinical, medical, or other professional from whom the applicant
9or recipient has sought assistance in dealing with abuse.
10(C) A statement from any other individual with knowledge of
11the circumstances that provided the basis for the claim.
12(D) Physical evidence of abuse.
13(7) If the victim cannot provide additional evidence of abuse,
14then the sworn statement shall be sufficient if the county makes a
15determination documented in writing in the case file that the
16applicant is credible.
17(c) In counties approved for alternate benefit issuance systems,
18that same alternate benefit issuance system shall be approved for
19the program established by this chapter.
20(d) (1) To the extent allowed by federal law, the income,
21resources, and deductible expenses of those persons described in
22subdivision (b) shall be excluded when calculating CalFresh
23benefits under Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 18900).
24(2) No household
shall receive more CalFresh benefits under
25this section than it would if no household member was rendered
26ineligible pursuant to Title IV of Public Law 104-193 and any
27subsequent amendments thereto.
28(e) This section shall become operative on September 1, 1998.
No appropriation pursuant to Section 15200 of the
30Welfare and Institutions Code shall be made for purposes of
31implementing this act.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
33this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
34local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
35pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
364 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
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