Issues Affecting Access to Benefits

Immigrant eligibility rules

Privacy, Confidentiality and Verification

Concerns about “Public charge”

Concerns about Sponsors

Linguistic and Cultural Competence

Logistical Barriers

The “Climate”

Immigrant Benefit Classifications

U.S. Citizens

“Qualified” immigrants

Entering the U.S. before 8/22/96

Entering the U.S. on or after 8/22/96

“Not Qualified” immigrants

PRUCOL (Permanently Residing Under Color of Law)

Other lawfully present non-citizens

Undocumented immigrants

Qualified Immigrants

Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs)

Refugees, Granted Asylum, Withholding of Deportation/Removal, or Conditional Entrant status

Paroled into U.S. for at least 1 Year

Cuban and Haitian Entrants

Certain Battered Spouses and Children

Certain Survivors of Trafficking

Not Qualified Immigrants

ALL Other Non-citizens

(Even if have work authorization and are lawfully present in U.S.)

Not Qualified Immigrants:Programs Barred

Federal

“Public Benefits” barred

State or Local

“Public Benefits” barred

unless state passes new law

Not Qualified Immigrants: Federal Program Bar

Bar on Federal “Public Benefits”“Public Benefits” to be defined by federal agencies (only HHS, FEMA and a few others have done so)

•Examples of “public benefit” in law

Grants, Contracts, Loans, Professional or Commercial Licenses

provided by government

Retirement, Welfare, Health & Disability, Housing, Post-

Secondary Education, Food Assistance, Unemployment Benefit,

FEMA, or any “similar benefit,” AND

Assistance provided to individual, household, or family

unit, by an agency/funds of federal government

Examples of HHS and other Federal Public Benefits

Adoption Assistance

Child Care and Development Fund

Foster Care

Independent Living

Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)(weatherization

of single unit buildings)

Medicare

Medicaid (except emergency medical)

Mental Health Clinical Training Grants

Refugee benefits (Cash, Medical, Social Services)

Social Services Block Grant (SSBG)

Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Programs Exempt from Federal Bar

Emergency Medicaid and other emergency medical services

Immunizations, testing and treatment for symptoms of

communicable diseases (outside of Medicaid)

Short-term non-cash disaster relief

Certain housing assistance if receiving on 8/22/96

School Lunch and School Breakfast

State option to provide WIC*

AND programs

1. delivered at the community level

2. do not condition assistance on income or resources

3. are necessary to protect life or safety

AG’s List of Programs“Necessary to Protect Life or Safety”

Child protection & adult protective services Violence and abuse prevention, including domestic violence Mental illness or substance abuse treatment Short-term shelter or housing assistance Programs during adverse weather conditions Soup kitchens, food banks, senior nutrition programs Medical & public health services & mental health, disability,

substance abuse services necessary to protect life or safety Programs to protect life & safety of workers, children & youth,

or community residents Other services necessary for the protection of life or safety

Affordable Care Act

• US citizens, nationals and lawfully present individuals eligible for private health insurance in the individual “marketplaces,” subsidies (premium tax credits and cost-sharing reductions), Basic Health Plan

– Undocumented and DACAmented immigrants ineligible even for full-price insurance in the individual marketplace

Lawfully Present under ACA

• Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs, aka green card holders), including applicant for adjustment of status

• Refugees

• Conditional Entrants (pre-1980 status similar to refugee status)

• Asylees

• Withholding of Deportation/Removal under INA or CAT

• Applicants for Asyulm or Withholding of Deportation/Removal (if granted employment authorization)

• Parolees of at least one year

• Cuban and Haitian entrants

• Temporary Protected Status (TPS)

• Deferred Enforced Departure

• Deferred Action (except DACA; DAPA exclusion expected)

• Special Immigrant Juveniles

Lawfully Present under ACA (cont’d)

• Certain domestic Violence Survivors and their children

• Trafficking victims and derivatives

• U visa holders

• Nonimmigrant visa holders

• Citizens of Micronesia, Marshall Islands and Palau (aka Compacts of Free Association states)

• Lawful Temporary Residents and Applicants for Legalization under IRCA

• Legalization under LIFE Act

• Applicants for Cancellation of Removal or Suspension of Deportation

• Order of Supervision

• Registry Applicants

Non-Profit Agencies

•Non-profit charitable organizations are not required to determine, verify or otherwise ask for proof of an immigrant’s status

Applies to immigrant restrictions in the 1996 welfare and immigration laws

Non-profits can create a safe environment for immigrants and their family members who are seeking services

Public Charge

• A “public charge” is a person considered primarily dependent on the

government for subsistence, as demonstrated by:

– receipt of public cash assistance for income maintenance or

– institutionalization for long-term care at government expense

• A person who is found likely to become a public charge may be denied:

– Admission to the U.S., or

– Lawful permanent resident status

Sponsor Deeming

Generally applies only to LPRs who immigrated via a family-based petition (not humanitarian-based)

Income/resources of sponsor may be added to immigrant’s in determining eligibility

Can render immigrant over-income for the benefit, even if receive nothing from sponsor

Exceptions to deeming may include domestic violence, indigence or others, depending on the program.

No Public Charge Test for:

Refugees, Granted Asylum or Withholding

Trafficking Victims, U visa holders

VAWA self-petitioners

Cubans under Cuban Adjustment Act

Haitians under Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act

NACARA Adjustment

Registry applicants

Special Immigrant Juveniles

Certain Indo-Chinese, Eastern European parolees applying for Adjustment

Citizenship applicants

Non-cash benefits and “special purpose” cash NOT considered

Examples of services that don’t affect public charge decision:

Medicaid, ACA, CHIP and other health insurance programs

Nutrition programs (SNAP, WIC, school meals) Housing Assistance, LIHEAP Child Care, Job Training, short-term rehab Disaster assistance “Special purpose” cash

Key Issues for Mixed-Status Families

• Undocumented individuals may apply for coverage on behalf of their dependent family members

• Applications should distinguish between applicants (e.g., U.S. citizen child) & non-applicants (e.g., undocumented parent)

• Non-applicants are not required to provide their immigration status

• Non-applicants without SSNs cannot be required to provide one (and should never provide an SSN unless officially issued by the Social Security Administration)

• Information provided on an application may be used ONLY to determine eligibility for program.

Verification of Eligibility and Immigration Status

• Key provisions of Sept 2000 Tri-Agency Guidance (CMS, ACF, USDA):

– Prohibits violation of Title VI Civil Rights Act of 1964 (based on race, color and national origin)

– Prohibits denying benefits to those who do not disclose information not required (i.e., SSN)

– Must inform when SSN is mandatory and how it will be used

– Cannot deny benefits to eligible individuals based on status of other household members

What Advocates CAN DO:

• Document harm of restrictive policies and benefits of improving

access

• Monitor policies to ensure they are implemented properly

• Educate families about available services

• Help ensure that immigration and health policies respond to

families and public health needs

• Address the barriers that prevent eligible families from securing

care

Open Enrollment Season 2

5 enrollment + tax centers

9,410 enrollment assists

5,503 enrolled in Marketplace health insuranceDirectly enrolled 4,135 & assisted 1,368 likely to enroll

$13,873,440 in Premium Tax Credits over 12 months$11.6m for directly enrolled & $2.3m for likely to enroll

96% of those enrolled received Premium Tax Credits Average $4,086/year

Who We Serve

61% Hispanic/Latino22% White/Caucasian10% African American/African/Black5% Asian2% Other

64% speak a language other than English55% speak Spanish

90% have household income ≤ 250% FPL

Reaching the Uninsured

69% of households we enrolled in OE2 had at least one parent who was currently uninsured

48% had been uninsured for at least one year

31% had been uninsured for 5 or more years

ACA Outreach

#1 Earned Media#2 Referrals from trusted partners-----------------------------------------------#3 Advertisements on Univision TV #4 Spokesperson endorsements on

Spanish talk radio

ACA Enrollment Challenges

1. Screening

2. Dealing with misinformation and bad actors

3. Determining eligibility for tax credits

(& the importance of understanding taxes)

4. Determining eligibility for credits below 100% FPL

5. Working in a non-expansion state

6. Assisting with post-enrollment challenges

Determining Eligibility for Tax Credits

Tool for determining

eligibility for tax credits

below 100% FPLpage 1

Tool for determining

eligibility for tax credits

below 100% FPLpage 2

Marketplace tips to get correct results for immigrants eligible for tax credits

below 100% FPL

Elizabeth Colvin, JDDirector, Insure Central Texas

A program of Foundation CommunitiesElizabeth.Colvin@foundcom.org

512-554-4409

Immigrant Access to Cash, Food Security and Public Housing

First Focus: Coalition for Access and Opportunity April 15, 2015

Stephanie Altman, Assistant Director Healthcare Justice, Shriver Center

stephaniealtman@povertylaw.org

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

• Provides cash assistance to pregnant moms and families with children 18 and under.

• States have a lot of flexibility to design their TANF programs.• Federal law bars states from using federal TANF dollars to assist

most legal immigrants until they have been in the U.S. for at least five years.– Applies to cash assistance, work supports such as child care,

transportation, and job training too.– States can choose to provide benefits to recent immigrants who are

subject to the five-year bar, but fewer than half do so.– States can also choose to provide TANF to legal immigrants not subject

the five-year bar (because they arrived before the 1996 law or have been in the country for at least five years) and nearly all states do.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) formerly known as the Food Stamp Program

• The average SNAP recipient received about $125 a month (or about $4.17 a day) in FY2014.

• Enrolled households receive an EBT card, which is loaded with benefits once a month.

• SNAP cannot be used to purchase alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, vitamin supplements, non-food grocery items such as household supplies, diapers or hot foods.

• SNAP eligibility rules and benefit levels are, for the most part, set at the federal level and uniform across the nation

• Under federal rules, before even considering immigration status, to qualify for SNAP benefits, a household must meet three criteria (states do have flexibility to adjust limits):

1. Its gross monthly income generally must be at or below 130% FPL, or $2,144 (about $25,700 a year) for a three-person family in fiscal year 2015. Households with an elderly or disabled member need not meet this limit.

2. Its net monthly income, or income after deductions are applied for items such as high housing costs and child care, must be less than or equal to the poverty line (about $19,800 a year or $1,650 a month for a three-person family in fiscal year 2015).

3. Its assets must fall below certain limits: in fiscal year 2015 the limits are $2,250 for households without an elderly or disabled member and $3,250 for those with an elderly or disabled member.

SNAP Immigration Eligibility Rules

• Eligible immediately if: U.S. Citizen (by birth or naturalization), Refugee (§207), Asylee (§208), Cuban/Haitian National admitted after 4/21/80, etc.

• Eligible after having status for 5 years of: Legal Permanent Resident (LPR); Conditional entrant under §203(a)(7); Parolee; Abused spouse or child or parent or child of abused person with petition pending under VAWA

• Eligible without 5 year wait if: Under 18, disabled or blind, Veteran, or LPR with 40 quarters, AND Status of LPR, conditional entrant, parolee, abused noncitizen, or special Iraqi/Afghan immigrant

• Undocumented immigrants are ineligible for SNAP. However, ineligible immigrants are still considered a part of the household, and should be listed on applications (and assets of an ineligible household member count in full).

Federal Housing Assistance:The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) oversees three major programs:

1. Housing Choice Vouchers:

– 75%of new households admitted each year must be “extremely low-income,” with incomes not exceeding 30% of the local median or the poverty line, whichever is higher. Other new households may have incomes up to 80% of the area median. Housing agencies may set admissions preferences based on housing need or other criteria.

2. Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance:

– A family must be “low-income” — meaning that its income may not exceed 80% of the local median income — in order to move into Section 8 PBRA housing.

3. Public Housing:

– A family must be “low-income” in order to move into public housing. At least 40% of the new families that an agency admits each year must be “extremely low-income”.

Federal Housing Assistance: Immigrant eligibility• Citizens: A citizen born in the United States; A naturalized citizen;

• Qualified Immigrants:

– A lawful permanent resident,

– A registry immigrant (admitted for permanent residence by the U.S. Attorney General and eligible for citizenship),

– A refugee or an asylee,

– A conditional entrant,

– A parolee,

– A withholding grantee,

– A person granted 1986 amnesty status,

– A resident of the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau, or Guam,

– A victim of trafficking or relatives of such a victim.

• If one member of your household fits into any of the categories above, your whole family can apply to all of the federal restricted programs. This person does not have to be the head of household.

• Only household members who claim to be a US citizen or "eligible immigrant" have to verify a valid Social Security Number. You should not have to give a Social Security number to a program that does not verify citizenship or immigration status.

How does a federally-funded housing program that restricts eligibility to U.S. citizens and "eligible

immigrants" figure out rent?

• It depends on the immigration status of the various family members.

• If everyone in the family is a U.S. citizen or an "eligible immigrant:" It depends on the program. Some programs, such as the Low Income Housing Tax Credit, charge all tenants in subsidized units the same rent amount regardless of income. HUD-funded housing programs generally base the rent amount on household income. When all members of the family are U.S. citizens or "eligible immigrants," families in these programs generally pay about 30% of their total income toward rent.

• If at least one person in the family is NOT a U.S. citizen or an "eligible immigrant (called a "mixed family"):" the rent will be higher than if all members were eligible. The landlord prorates, or figures out proportionately, the rent based on the number of citizens or "eligible immigrants" in the household.

• If no one in the family is a U.S. citizen or "eligible immigrant" by the 1-year anniversary date: Federally-funded housing assistance will be cut off. The family will get a certain deadline to leave their housing program.

General Application Rules for Mixed Status Families

• Generally, parents who are undocumented or not eligible for benefits may apply for public benefits for their citizen or qualified immigrant child or children.

• Whether the parents’ income is counted toward the child’s eligibility is determined by program.

• SSN numbers are not required when applying for public benefits for someone else such as your child.

Some Helpful Resources

• Welfare Rules Database: http://anfdata.urban.org/wrd/wrdwelcome.cfm

– Detailed information on state rules for cash assistance under TANF

– Eligibility rules for different immigrant categories, including pre-enactment qualified immigrants and nonqualified immigrants.

• http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/snap-policy-non-citizen-eligibility

• http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/mobile/eligibility/non-citizen-eligibility.html

• http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/Non-Citizen_Guidance_063011.pdf