Noncitizen Eligibility for Major Federal Public Assistance Programs: Policies and Legislation

Publication Date: March 2004

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Social conditions

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Abstract:

The eligibility of noncitizens for major public assistance programs remains an issue in the 108th Congress. The original law authorizing the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program expired October 31, 2002, and TANF and its related programs have been operating on temporary spending authority due to expire March 31, 2004. H.R. 4 that would reauthorize TANF passed the House in February 2003, and the Senate Committee on Finance reported its version of H.R. 4 in October 2003. Provisions on the eligibility of noncitizens for other major programs (e.g., Medicaid and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program) as well as TANF are possible amendments to H.R. 4. The issues are what classes of legal permanent residents (LPRs) should be eligible and what types of assistance or programs should be available to them.

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-193) dramatically changed noncitizen eligibility for public assistance. It restricted the eligibility of LPRs, refugees, asylees, and other noncitizens for means-tested public aid. These ranged from categorical eligibility bars to new rules governing aliens with sponsors and their sponsors' responsibilities. Noncitizens' eligibility for major federal means-tested benefits largely depends on their immigration status, whether they arrived (or were on a program's rolls) before August 22, 1996, the enactment date of P.L. 104-193, and how long they have lived and worked in the United States.

Refugees and asylees are eligible for SSI benefits, and Medicaid for seven years after arrival (five years for TANF). After this, they are ineligible for SSI, and may be eligible, at state option, for Medicaid and TANF. LPRs with a substantial (10year) work history or a military connection are eligible for the full range of programs. LPRs entering after August 1996 are barred from TANF, Medicaid, and food stamps for five years, after which TANF and Medicaid coverage becomes a state option. LPRs who are children are eligible for food stamps; food stamps also are available to LPRs who were elderly and resident as of August 1996. There are also special eligibility provisions for disabled LPRs and those on SSI. Finally, in the case of LPRs sponsored for admission after 1997, the income and resources of their sponsor are "deemed" available to them when judging their income eligibility.

In the 107th Congress, noncitizen eligibility for food stamps was a key issue in the comprehensive legislation reauthorizing Agriculture Department programs (P.L. 107-171, H.R. 2646). Known as the "farm bill," it opened up food stamp eligibility to LPRs who meet a five-year (rather than10-year) residence test and all LPR children. In the 108th Congress, one set of concerns is focused whether eligibility should be extended to refugees and asylees who have exhausted their time-limited benefit eligibility for all major programs except food stamps. Another concern that continues to arise is whether to give states the option of extending Medicaid and SCHIP coverage to lower-income LPRs and pregnant and postpartum LPR women and their children. The later provision was included in the Senate's prescription drug bill (S. 1) and may come up when the Senate considers H.R. 4.