Justice Department tells Orange County to verify citizenship status of 1,754 people

October 27, 2026 By Kaitlyn Schallhorn 3 Comments

For those whose citizenship cannot be determined, the federal government requests their ballots be ‘segregated’ and not counted.

The U.S. Department of Justice told Orange County election officials on Friday it wants their help to determine the citizenship status of 1,754 people within 48 hours.

And for those whose citizenship cannot be determined, the federal government asked that election officials “segregate — not cancel — those individuals’ vote-by-mail ballots until their citizenship status can be determined,” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in the letter obtained by The Orange County Register.

Federal prosecutors sent letters to county registrars across California on Friday demanding that local officials set aside and verify ballots that the Justice Department said may belong to noncitizens.

The letters are the latest escalation in a legal battle between California and President Donald Trump’s Justice Department, which has recently focused on the state in its efforts to root out noncitizen voting ahead of the midterm elections. Data shows illegal voting by people who aren’t U.S. citizens is incredibly rare, difficult to prove and has not been shown to change the outcome of races.

In Orange County, the letter was hand-delivered to Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen late Friday afternoon, instead of Bob Page, the county’s registrar of voters.

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Page said county counsel would inform the Justice Department that it’s the registrar’s office that maintains voter registration records and administers elections, not the county clerk-recorder.

“County counsel is evaluating the requests in the USDOJ letter,” Page said.

The letter said the federal government had identified 1,754 “likely aliens” registered to vote in Orange County, although county officials had not yet reviewed the accuracy of that list by late Friday evening. It was not immediately clear if any of these people had actually received a ballot or attempted to vote.

There are more than 1.9 million registered voters in Orange County, according to the latest voter registration statistics from the California secretary of state.

Ballots were mailed to all registered voters at the beginning of the month, and voting is well underway, with less than two weeks left until Election Day.

“I write to make unmistakably clear the legal implications of continuing to send vote-by-mail ballots to those people on the list or tabulating ballots cast by them until citizenship can be verified,” Essayli, a former Republican California Assemblymember, said in the letter.

It goes on to say that “anyone who aids, abets, counsels, induces, or procures the commission of a federal offense is equally liable. If persons knowingly tabulate ballots cast by individuals identified by federal agencies as noncitizens, they risk becoming aiders and abettors to a federal crime.”

“The Department is not asking Orange County to adjudicate immigration status; it is asking it to temporarily set aside ballots from individuals whose eligibility is credibly in question — a standard election-administration practice implemented nationwide,” Essayli said in the letter.

Click here to read the full article in the OC Register

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California and Arizona Still Fighting DOJ Lawsuits Over In-State Tuition for Illegal Immigrants

October 4, 2026 By Megan Barth Leave a Comment

Six other states have already lost or dropped their laws as the California and Arizona cases remain in court

California and Arizona are still defending laws that let illegal immigrants pay in-state college tuition as the U.S. Department of Justice finishes a nationwide campaign against every state with a similar policy.

The department said Sept. 10 that it had filed its final four complaints, against Hawaii, Arkansas, Utah and the District of Columbia, and that it has now sued every state with a law providing in-state tuition to illegal immigrants under circumstances the government contends violate federal law. The total is 25 cases against states and the District of Columbia. 

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Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. said the department had “sued every state across our Nation that has a state law or regulation granting illegal aliens in-state tuition.” Six of those cases—Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Illinois and Kansas—have produced orders permanently blocking the challenged provisions. 

California and Arizona are among the states still in court. At the center of both fights is a 1996 federal statute, Section 505 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, codified at 8 U.S.C. § 1623. It provides that an alien who is not lawfully present in the United States shall not be eligible, on the basis of residence within a state, for a postsecondary education benefit unless a U.S. citizen is eligible for a benefit of the same amount, duration and scope regardless of whether that citizen lives in the state. 

The Justice Department argues that high-school-attendance rules used by California and Arizona are a proxy for residency and therefore conflict with the statute and the Supremacy Clause.

Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate said when the final suits were announced that “colleges cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens.”

California

The Justice Department sued California on Nov. 20, 2025, challenging Education Code section 68130.5, the statute rooted in AB 540. The law lets certain students who attended a California high school for at least three years and graduated in the state pay resident tuition regardless of immigration status. 

The complaint also targets later laws extending state scholarships and subsidized loans to those students. The United States named Gov. Gavin Newsom and the governing boards of the University of California, California State University and California Community Colleges.In its complaint announcement, the department said California extends in-state tuition, scholarships and subsidized loans to illegal aliens while requiring U.S. citizens from other states to pay higher rates. 

Then-Attorney General Pam Bondi said California was “illegally discriminating against American students and families.” 

Higher Ed Dive reported that California is home to roughly 103,000 undocumented residents enrolled in higher education, about a fifth of the national total tracked by the Higher Ed Immigration Portal.

The California Globe previously reported that the tuition suit was one of several Justice Department actions against California sanctuary policies, alongside challenges to the state’s mask restrictions on federal officers. That case remains pending, according to the department’s Sept. 10 status list.

The tuition fight sits alongside other state spending on noncitizen students that the Globe has documented. In June, the Globe reported that lawmakers were putting another $350 million into the CalNEW “immigrant newcomer” school program even as the state enrolled nearly 237,000 such students, the largest population in the country. 

Last week, the Globe reported that President Trump’s nearly $1 billion pocket rescission targeted leftover federal grants for illegal-alien services, including $25 million from Education Department Special Programs for Migrant Students.  Earlier Globe reporting also tracked AB 91, the 2023 bill to let certain students living in Mexico attend San Diego and Imperial County community colleges at in-state rates.

Arizona

Arizona was sued Aug. 27, 2026, along with New Mexico, Oregon and Washington. The target is Proposition 308, the 2022 ballot measure that lets students pay in-state tuition and receive state financial aid regardless of immigration status if they attended school in Arizona for at least two years and graduated from an Arizona high school. 

Voters approved it 51.2 percent to 48.8 percent.

The Justice Department’s announcement of those suits said the laws put illegal aliens ahead of U.S. citizens. In its Arizona filing, the department cited Arizona State University and said the gap between resident and nonresident tuition was roughly $24,000 a year. 

Click here to read the full article at the California  Globe

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California Taxpayers Are Paying for Welfare Benefits for Illegal Immigrants

September 27, 2026 By Katy Grimes Leave a Comment

What exactly are California taxpayers getting out of this budget?

California Governor Gavin Newsom’s free healthcare for illegal immigrants drove Medi-Cal to insolvency, the Globe reported one year ago. One year ago California’s Medi-Cal system was bankrupted by the governor, who expanded it to provide free medical care to millions of people in the state illegally, while California taxpayers were not only on the hook for the bill, but waiting in long lines for the medical care they have to pay for.

Medi-Cal is California’s version of Medicaid, providing free or low-cost health coverage.

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That Gov. Newsom wants to continue to give free healthcare to illegal immigrants is not rumor. The Globe has covered this saga for some time now.

Newsom’s Medi-Cal program for low-income Californians was insolvent, and is now being funded by the state’s taxpayers. We have Gavin Newsom to thank; he gifted free Medi-Cal coverage to every illegal immigrant in the state, costing  taxpayers $23 billion over 2 years, forcing Newsom to get both an emergency loan and a bailout, Rep. Kevin Kiley confirmed.

But even before fully bankrupting California’s Medi-Cal system, we reported Newsom planned to cut Medi-Cal to any poor or disabled elderly Californian who has $2,000 in “assets.”

It’s hard to see how anyone able to access Medi-Cal benefits has any measurable assets. Medi-Cal is medical health care for people on welfare.

In California, rental homes are very expensive, requiring renters to have enough on hand to cover future rent payments, as well as emergency expenses and medical expenses not covered by Medi-Cal.

The average rent in San Francisco is $3,845 per month for 1-bedroom units, $4,599 per month for 2-bedroom units. The average rent in Los Angeles is around $2,758 per month. Two-bedroom units rent for $3,364. Three-bedrooms rent for $4,365. Houses for rent in Los Angeles are significantly more expensive at $4,925 per month on average. The average rent in San Diego is $3,100.

It’s difficult to find many “assets” with people on Medi-Cal who are renting in San Francisco, Los Angeles or San Diego. The very idea that the governor would cut Medi-Cal benefits to California residents to provide it to illegal immigrants is ruthless.

The governor also proposed “freezing new enrollment” for illegal aliens as a way to cut Medi-Cal costs. Really? Not signing up more illegal aliens for Medi-Cal will “cut Medi-Cal costs?”The numbers we had last year said Newsom had already cost taxpayers $10-$12 billion.

“I can’t be overdrawn – I still have checks left,” was my favorite dumb blonde bumper sticker in the 1980’s, and apropos in California today. Newsom is overdrawn – but with no checks left.

In March 2025, Newsom confessed that California’s Medi-Cal was insolvent. As Rep. Kiley noted, “the cost of Newsom’s policy of giving free coverage to every illegal immigrant in the state has ballooned to $9.5 billion, and he’s now asked for a $3.4 billion “loan” just to continue making payments for this month.”

This week, Chris Rufo at City Journal did a deep dive into California’s welfare system and reported “California runs the nation’s largest welfare system, devoting more than $180 billion annually to food, health care, and other programs for the poor and downtrodden. To sustain the arrangement, the state imposes the nation’s highest tax rates.”

The entire California annual budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 is approximately $495.6 billion, including a projected $20 to $35 billion deficit, marking a continuation of significant financial difficulties in the state. Newsom’s spending has exploded during his governorship, far outstripping stagnant population growth, Dan Walters reported earlier in the year. “In the seven budgets Newsom has signed, beginning with 2019-20, and the eighth one he has proposed, revenues have increased by 60%, mostly from taxes that tapped into a 48% increase in Californians’ personal income during the period. Total spending, however, jumped 72%, from $203 billion to $349 billion.”

Rufo found that California’s welfare system serves “large numbers of illegal immigrants. Today, California oversees a shadow welfare system that allows noncitizens to receive health care, rental assistance, college grants, tax credits, low-cost car insurance, and even smartphones on the taxpayers’ dime.”

Before he was appointed U.S. Attorney for the Central District, then-Assemblyman Bill Essayli asked in a budget committee hearing, “Is there any limit to how many people can sign up for this new program? It’s an entitlement. So if a million people cross the border tomorrow and come sign up for Medi-Cal, can they do that?”

The response from the State of California: “I don’t believe there is any requirement or lack of requirement.”

Rufo found this out first hand: “We visited four public-services offices in Southern California, each of which admitted that illegal aliens can enroll in public-welfare programs or receive benefits on their children’s behalf.”

The programs Rufo discovered provided to illegal immigrants include Medi-Cal, CAPI (Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants), CalWORKs, Section 8 rental subsidies, CalEITC (California Earned Income Tax Credit), and related tax credits, California LifeLine phones, low-cost auto insurance, and state college grants via the CADAA application.

Click here to read the full article in the California Globe

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$1.5 million ‘legal empowerment’ fund launched for low-income immigrants in Orange County

August 29, 2025 By Mona Darwish 1 Comment

About $1.5 million in public-private funds is now available to support groups that are assisting Orange County residents who lack legal representation as they navigate the immigration court system.

Described as one of the first programs of its kind, the Orange County Liberty Fund was announced Wednesday, Aug. 27. It is using a network of legal providers, volunteer groups and community organizations to provide resources to low-income immigrant and refugee communities in Orange County.

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“At a time when immigrant families face vicious abuse from unjust federal policies, and at an absence of due process, I felt compelled to assist all our families,” OC Second District Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento said Wednesday, during an announcement event at the county administration building with funding partners, grantees and advisory members. “Over the last year, we’ve come together to discuss how the legal empowerment model could support communities impacted by abuse, terror tactics and family separations.”

But providing legal services was simply not enough, said Carlos Perea, executive director of the Harbor Institute for Immigrant and Social Justice, one of fund’s advisory groups.

“We saw that there were other things we could fund to amplify our impact,” he said, “and that’s where the idea of Liberty Fund came about. Which is looking at a public-private dollar fund that focuses on empowering the communities rather than just serving them. Specifically, funding organizations that are in the front lines and oftentimes resource-limited.”

The money raised so far includes $500,000 from Sarmiento’s Second District discretionary funds and private philanthropic partners, including the Weingart Foundation and St. Joseph Fund. Grant recipients will be determined by the Liberty Fund Advisory Council, made up of various public-private stakeholders, which are expected to share progress and document the impact of these grants to the public.

Click here to read the full article in the OC Register

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Find someone who loves you as much as Karen Bass loves illegal immigration

June 13, 2025 By Susan Shelley 2 Comments

The answer to the violence and vandalism going on in Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass insisted during a news conference on Tuesday morning, “is for the federal government to stop the raids.”

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It’s my sincere wish for all humans on earth to have someone in their lives who loves them as much as Mayor Karen Bass loves illegal immigration.

“I want to tell him to stop the raids,” she said in answer to a question about what she would say to President Donald Trump if she spoke with him on the phone. “I want to tell him that we are a city of immigrants.”

Los Angeles is also a city in the United States, where the federal government can enforce federal law, and not just immigration law. “Border czar” Tom Homan told MSNBC on Monday that three criminal warrants were served on a business in the downtown fashion district as the result of a multi-agency investigation into suspected money laundering, tax evasion and customs fraud. “The Fashion District wasn’t an immigration raid,” Homan said.

But immigrants’ rights organizations have formed a “Rapid Response Network” that spreads the word of any sighting of any federal officers. Bass said she learns of “raids” from this network.

Did you hear about the car wash “raids” this week? Local government officials raced to the microphones to fear-monger that ICE was going to car washes to tear families apart.

But last month in New Orleans, the district attorney announced the seizure of a car wash following a months-long investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, the New Orleans Police Department Special Operations Division and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The car wash, the D.A. said, was a front for “criminal activities” such as alleged drug activity and trafficking.

California Democratic politicians are filtering every federal law enforcement activity through their “stop the raids” lens. The story they want to tell is that President Trump is needlessly disturbing the idyllic conditions in California’s perfectly calm cities because he is, in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s words, “reckless” and “immoral.”

On Monday, Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a press release disguised as a lawsuit asserting that the president has taken the supposedly illegal and unconstitutional action of federalizing the National Guard without the governor’s permission. The president doesn’t need the governor’s permission.

It’s no secret that Trump has gained significant political support from Latino voters, something that Democrats would like to reverse with their attacks on the president.

But what is a secret is the funding of the actions on the streets. On June 6, Mayor Bass said in a statement, “My Office is in close coordination with immigrant rights community organizations. We will not stand for this.”

Who funds these organizations that “will not stand” for the enforcement of federal law?

Click here to read the full article in the OC Register

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California Democrats push to block ICE from schools, hospitals and shelters

June 6, 2025 By Jeanne Kuang 2 Comments

by Jeanne Kuang

Hospitals. Schools. Shelters.

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This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

Those are some of the places that California lawmakers want to shield from immigration arrests and raids. They advanced a package of bills this week as President Donald Trump’s administration continues its ramped-up deportation campaign around the country. 

The Democratic-dominated Legislature can’t block federal agents from entering places where someone has allowed them to be. They also can’t stop ICE from going where officers have the legal authority to be, such as immigration courthouses. But the bills the state Senate passed Monday push local officials to limit cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and to require agents to get a warrant to enter. 

One bill would bar immigration agents from entering “nonpublic” parts of schools without a warrant. Another would do the same in hospitals, and prohibit health care providers from sharing patients’ immigration status with federal authorities unless they have a warrant. Another would limit immigration agents from accessing homeless or domestic violence shelters. 

Other bills limit information sharing. One would require California health departments, when issuing birth certificates, to shield the parents’ countries of birth from the publicly viewable portion of the document. Another would require cities and counties that license street vendors — a business dominated by immigrants — from sharing information about licensees with federal authorities.

Senate Majority Leader Lena Gonzalez, a Long Beach Democrat who authored the schools bill, said she was responding to a recent string of highly publicized raids and other enforcement operations that have rattled immigrant communities and threaten to send workers, students and patients into hiding.

ICE last week raided two San Diego restaurants in a search for workers allegedly living in the country illegally, setting off a confrontation with protesters outside. Immigration agents in April showed up trying to speak with students at two Los Angeles elementary schools; school administrators turned them away. That month they also detained a group of day laborers in the parking lot of a Pomona Home Depot. 

The lawmakers’ proposals sailed through the Legislature so far, and passed the Senate this week with near-unanimous support from Democrats. They now head to the Assembly.

Click here to read the full article in CalMatters

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California Democrats won’t rule out new taxes to pay for health care for undocumented immigrants

May 21, 2025 By Ashley Zavala 1 Comment

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Leaders of California’s Democratic Legislative Latino Caucus on Monday said everything should be considered in order to keep providing health insurance to undocumented immigrants, including a new tax on Californians.

The leader of the caucus, State Sen. Lena Gonzalez, made the comment as the group held a news conference to blast Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed limits on the state’s Medi-Cal program, also known as Medicaid.

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Budget documents show California taxpayers this year have spent about $11 billion providing coverage to 1.6 million undocumented residents. State leaders underestimated just how much the program would cost this year.

The news conference comes after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced California is grappling with a budget shortfall of $12 billion and proposed limiting the program in order to save money.

“The rhetoric, what they want you to believe, is that our community is at fault for the state’s deficit,” said State Sen. Carolina Menjivar, D-Van Nuys. “But it’s not. Year after year, after year after entities and businesses are getting away with providing a less than livable wage, are getting away with forcing them into our state’s driven Medi-Cal program.”

According to the California Legislative Analyst, more than half of the state’s Medi-Cal funds come from the federal government. The federal government typically shares the cost of care for low-income Californians. But because of their immigration status, the federal government will not share the expenses or reimburse the state for the cost of providing healthcare to undocumented people. That means California taxpayers are on the hook for 100% of their healthcare.

The Latino Legislative Caucus did not offer or provide any specific solutions to the problem. The group took repeated questions from reporters about the possibility of making cuts to other state services or creating new taxes to help with the added costs.

Click here to read the full article in KCRA

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California faces an additional budget deficit of $12 billion

May 15, 2025 By Taryn Luna 4 Comments

The new shortfall comes on top of $27.3 billion in fiscal remedies already planned for 2025-26.

California is facing an additional $12-billion state budget shortfall next year, a deficit largely caused by overspending that Gov. Gavin Newsom said was made worse by President Trump’s federal tariff policy.

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“California is under assault,” Newsom said. “The United States of America, in many respects, is under assault because we have a president that’s been reckless.”

Newsom unveiled the forecast during a presentation Wednesday of his $321.9-billion revised spending plan that proposes walking back free healthcare for low-income undocumented immigrants, eliminating Medi-Cal benefits for expensive weight loss treatments and cutting back overtime hours for in-home supportive service workers, among dozens of other trims.

The new deficit comes in addition to $27.3 billion in fiscal remedies, including $11.2 billion in cuts and a $7.1-billion withdrawal from the state’s rainy day fund, that lawmakers and the governor already agreed to make in 2025-26.

The overall shortfall marks the third year in a row that Newsom and lawmakers have been forced to reduce funding for state programs after dedicating more money than California has available to spend.

Though Newsom said his plan still provides significant funding for Californians in need of government support, his proposed cuts received fierce pushback from unions and other advocacy groups often allied with Democrats.

“While California leads the fight against Trump’s extremist attacks on our neighbors, our co-workers and our families, we must stand strong behind our values here at home,” said David Huerta, president of SEIU California, in a statement. “Instead, the governor’s proposed budget reads more like a CEO wishlist — sticking it to the working poor to protect tax breaks for the rich, and continuing to hollow out good, middle-class jobs.”

New budget

cuts proposed

Among the new cuts Newsom put on the table Wednesday is a call to cut back on his signature policy to provide free healthcare coverage to income-eligible undocumented immigrants.

Newsom is proposing freezing new Medi-Cal enrollment for undocumented adult immigrants as of Jan. 1 and requiring those over 18 to pay $100 monthly premiums to receive healthcare coverage through Medi-Cal.

The cost share will reduce the financial burden on the state and could lower the total number of people enrolled in the healthcare program if some immigrants cannot afford the new premiums. Freezing enrollment may prevent the price tag of the program from continuing to balloon after more people signed up for coverage than the state anticipated.

The changes offer minor savings next year, which grow to $5.4 billion in 2028-29. The finance department said the cap is expected to result in a decline of 18,000 patients per month as people exceed income limits or drop out for other reasons and no new applicants are accepted.

Newsom’s budget proposes other cuts to healthcare for immigrants, including saving $333.3 million in 2025-26 by eliminating long-term care benefits for undocumented immigrants and others who are not recognized as citizens under federal law.

The California Immigrant Policy Center said the organization was “outraged by the cuts” to Medi-Cal and other funding reductions.

“At a time when Trump and House Republicans are pushing to slash healthcare access and safety net programs while extending tax cuts for the wealthy, California must lead by protecting, not weakening, support for vulnerable communities,” said Masih Fouladi, executive director of CIPC, in a statement.

The governor is following the federal government’s lead and cutting $85 million in benefits for Ozempic and other popular weight loss medications from all Medi-Cal coverage plans.

Newsom also wants to cap overtime hours for in-home support service workers, according to his budget, to save another $707.5 million next year.

The governor’s budget includes a controversial proposal to grab $1.3 billion in funding in 2025-26 from Proposition 35, a measure voters approved in November that dedicated the revenue from a tax on managed care organizations to primarily pay for increases to Medi-Cal provider rates.

The decision drew pushback from a coalition of doctors, clinics, hospitals and other healthcare groups that supported the proposition, which nearly 68% of voters backed. They said the governor’s move “raises serious legal concerns and disregards the will of California voters.”

Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California said the proposed changes in Newsom’s budget would slash the organization’s annual budget in the state by a third.

Click here to read the full article in the LA Times

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White House is investigating state’s benefits for immigrants

May 13, 2025 By Jenny Jarvie 2 Comments

Critics dispute its claims, deny federal aid goes to noncitizens

The Trump administration announced Monday that it has launched an investigation into California’s Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, which provides monthly cash benefits to a small number of aged, blind or disabled noncitizens who it claims are ineligible for Social Security benefits due to their immigration status.

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The investigation began in Los Angeles, with the local field office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations issuing a Title VIII subpoena to the program, the Department of Homeland Security said in a news release.

According to the department, the subpoena requests all records from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services, which administers the state program, to determine whether ineligible immigrants received Supplemental Security Income from the Social Security Administration over the last four years.

“Radical left politicians in California prioritize illegal aliens over our own citizens, including by giving illegal aliens access to cash benefits,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement.

“The Trump Administration is working together to identify abuse and exploitation of public benefits and make sure those in this country illegally are not receiving federal benefits or other financial incentives to stay illegally,” Noem said. “If you are an illegal immigrant, you should leave now. The gravy train is over. While this subpoena focuses only on Los Angeles County — it is just the beginning.”

According to Homeland Security, its Los Angeles investigations field office is subpoenaing records including applicants’ name and date of birth, copies of applications, immigration status, proof of ineligibility for benefits from the Social Security Administration and affidavits that supported the application.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office did not respond Monday to a request for comment and referred The Times to the California Department of Social Services.

A department spokesman said it was reviewing the Trump administration’s request regarding the program administered by L.A. County.

A department official said the initiative created in 1998 under Republican Gov. Pete Wilson is 100% state-funded and administered by counties on behalf of the state, and is generally not available for undocumented Californians.

During the 2024-25 fiscal year, the official said, the program served 16,556 people.

The program is a state version of the federal Supplemental Security Income program available for the aged, blind or disabled with legal protections, with lawful status or in the process of applying for either, including victims of crime and trafficking.

The Trump administration’s announcement of its investigation was “highly misleading,” said Tanya Broder, senior counsel on health and economic justice policy at the National Immigration Legal Center.

“They imply that people who are undocumented are receiving benefits, and they’re implying that they’re receiving federal benefits, when we’re talking about a state-funded program,” she said.

More than a quarter of a century ago, Broder said, California established the state-funded program for seniors after a 1996 federal law rendered them ineligible for federal SSI benefits.

“The program was established in order to make up for the gap,” Broder said. “It was during a period when many seniors and patients with disabilities were concerned that they would lose their monthly assistance. Some died by suicide, while others threatened to die by suicide.”

The 1996 federal law, Broder said, authorized states to provide benefits to immigrants with their own money, regardless of status.

“And that’s what California did,” she said. “Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for this program. But states are authorized to provide benefits with their own money in order to protect the health and safety and well-being of people living in their community.”

Benyamin Chao, health and public benefits policy manager with the California Immigrant Policy Center, described the subpoena as “another example of the Trump administration overreaching and threatening the privacy of vulnerable Californians.”

“Cash payments through CAPI are only available to qualified immigrants, including legal permanent residents, asylees [people who have been granted asylum], humanitarian parolees, and victims of human trafficking, domestic violence, or other, specifically enumerated serious crimes,” Chao said. “By placing this program in its crosshairs, the Trump administration is targeting a 100% state-funded program that helps the elderly and people with disabilities.”

Kevin R. Johnson, a professor of law at UC Davis, said the scope of the subpoena was breathtakingly broad.

The subpoena, he noted, is not narrowed for privacy interests and seeks affidavits from people who support immigrants’ applications.

A lot of people could be worried, Johnson said, that any perceived support of someone who is undocumented could make them subject to criminal prosecution for harboring undocumented immigrants.

“Issuing a subpoena with this breadth is like trying to pick a fight, it’s asking for heaven and earth in terms of information,” Johnson said. “It’s classic Trump administration handiwork.”

Johnson, who specializes in immigration law, said there are two sides to the dispute: The federal government can work to ensure that benefits aren’t given to undocumented immigrants, as Congress has limited who can receive Social Security benefits and the localities have to comply with that law. But, he said, the county’s interest is: “Well, if they turn this information over, is it just going to be grist for the Trump mass deportation campaign?”

Click here to read the full article in the LA Times

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Trump administration creates registry for immigrants who are in the US illegally

February 28, 2025 By REBECCA SANTANA 1 Comment

The National Immigration Law Center warned the registry was meant to help find potential targets for deportation.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is creating a registry for all people who are in the United States illegally, and those who don’t self-report could face fines or prosecution, immigration officials announced Tuesday.

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Everyone who is in the U.S. illegally must register, give fingerprints and provide an address, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. It cited a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act — the complex immigration law — as justification for the registration process, which would apply to anyone 14 and older.

The announcement comes as the administration seeks to make good on campaign promises to carry out mass deportations of people in the country illegally and seal the border to future asylum-seekers.

“An alien’s failure to register is a crime that could result in a fine, imprisonment, or both,” the statement said. “For decades, this law has been ignored — not anymore.”

On its website, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service said it would soon create a form and process for registration.

In one of his 10 inauguration day executive orders related to immigration, President Donald Trump initially outlined plans for creating a registry and required that Homeland Security “immediately announce and publicize information about the legal obligation of all previously unregistered aliens in the United States to comply.”

It was not immediately clear how many people living in the country illegally would voluntarily come forward and give the federal government information about who they are and where they’re living. But failure to register would be considered a crime, and the administration has said its initial priority target for deportation is people who’ve committed crimes in the U.S.

Click here to read the full article in the OC Register

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