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In its latest ineligible challenge, the Department of Homeland Security has subpoenaed California's currency assistance programme for immigrants. It is demanding a slew of records from Los Angeles County to find if individuals successful the United States illegally received payments stemming from the Social Security Administration, dating backmost to 2021.
The ineligible enactment centers connected California's Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, oregon CAPI, providing currency assistance to "certain aged, blind, and disabled ineligible immigrants" ineligible for societal information payments owed to their migration status.
The pending probe led by Los Angeles' Homeland Security Investigations – an investigative limb of DHS – has sought the pursuing records:
- Applicant's Name and Date of Birth
- Copies of Applications
- Immigration Status
- Proof of Ineligibility for SSI from the Social Security Administration
- Affidavits successful Support of the Application
Recipients of Los Angeles County's CAPI programme must beryllium non-citizens who person been lawfully admitted into the U.S., paroled, granted conditional entry, oregon whose removal has been withheld. Candidates see Afghan and Ukrainian humanitarian parolees. According to Los Angeles County's website, the payments are designed for recipients who are ages 65 oregon over, blind, oregon disabled.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, "more than 2 cardinal ineligible amerciable aliens received a Social Security Number successful fiscal twelvemonth 2024 alone."
The Public Policy Institute of California estimates that astir 1.1 cardinal radical person Supplemental Security Income (SSI) oregon State Supplementary Payment (SSP) monthly grants, with conscionable implicit fractional of each payments granted to those 65 years and older. That fig includes astir 15,000 ineligible residents who bash not conscionable further non-citizen criteria for societal information payments.
Last month, President Trump issued an executive order aimed astatine curbing incentives for individuals surviving illegally successful the United States. The memo directs the caput of Homeland Security to enactment with the secretaries of Labor and Health and Human Services, the commissioner of the Social Security Administration, and the U.S. lawyer general, "to guarantee ineligible amerciable aliens bash not person funds from Social Security programs and prioritize civilian oregon transgression enforcement against states oregon localities for imaginable violations" of federal law.
In a statement, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem accused "radical near politicians successful California" of prioritizing migrants successful the U.S. implicit American citizens by "giving amerciable aliens entree to currency benefits." Noem vowed that the Trump Administration is moving to "identify maltreatment and exploitation of nationalist benefits and marque definite those successful this state illegally are not receiving national benefits oregon different fiscal incentives to enactment illegally."
"If you are an amerciable immigrant, you should permission now," Noem said. "The gravy bid is over. While this subpoena focuses lone connected Los Angeles County – it is conscionable the beginning."
Nicole Sganga is CBS News' homeland information and justness correspondent. She is based successful Washington, D.C. and reports for each shows and platforms.
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