U.S President Donald Trump has signed an order to halt federal assistance for people in the country illegally, the White House announced Wednesday.
This is the latest in a slew of immigration crackdowns.
The White House stated that the directive aimed to prohibit “all taxpayer-funded benefits for illegal aliens,” but it was unclear which perks would be targeted.
Except for emergency medical care, people who are illegally present in the nation do not qualify.
A 1982 Supreme Court decision established that all children, regardless of immigration status, are entitled to a free K-12 public education.
The order notes that a 1996 welfare overhaul denies most public benefits to people in the country illegally but says that the law has been gradually undermined.
Trump’s words appear to be directed at former President Joe Biden’s extensive use of parole authority to temporarily allow people into the country, including more than 900,000 through an online appointment app called CBP One used at border crossings with Mexico, as well as more than 500,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans who flew to the US on their own with a financial sponsor. Trump abruptly terminated both programmes.
Biden also granted parole to almost 300,000 Ukrainians and Afghans.
People granted parole for at least a year are considered “qualified non-citizens,” making them eligible for some income-based benefits, but only after five years.
They include Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which provides coverage to children in families that earn too much money to qualify for Medicaid, according to the US Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Some states have shortened the five-year wait.
Trump’s order appears to have other targets, some already subjects of earlier edicts and Justice Department lawsuits.
It directs all departments and agencies to identify federal benefit spending that is inconsistent with the 1996 welfare law.
It also seeks to prevent state and local governments from using federal funds to support “sanctuary” policies or promote illegal immigration.
Trump issued ten executive orders on immigration on his first day in office.
They included ending automatic citizenship for people born in the United States and offering asylum at the southern border.
The birthright citizenship order has been temporarily blocked in court.
