II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4307 

To amend section 402 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 

Reconciliation Act of 1996 to extend the eligibility period for supplemental security income benefits for refugees, asylees, and certain other 

humanitarian immigrants, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 23, 2020 

Mrs. MURRAY introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To amend section 402 of the Personal Responsibility and 

Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to extend 

the eligibility period for supplemental security income 

benefits for refugees, asylees, and certain other humanitarian immigrants, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Benefits 

5 for Elderly Refugees and Refugees with Disabilities Dur6 ing COVID–19 Act of 2020’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF ELIGIBILITY PERIOD FOR SSI BENE2 FITS FOR CERTAIN RECIPIENTS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 402(a)(2)(M) of the Per4 sonal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation 

5 Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1612(a)(2)(M)) is amended— 

6 (1) in clause (i)(I), by inserting ‘‘and the period 

7 beginning on January 31, 2020, and ending on Sep8 tember 30, 2021,’’ after ‘‘fiscal years 2009 through 

9 2011,’’; and 

10 (2) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘and the period 

11 beginning on January 31, 2020, and ending on Sep12 tember 30, 2021,’’ after ‘‘fiscal years 2009 through 

13 2011’’. 

14 (b) SPECIAL RULE IN CASE OF APPEALED NATU15 RALIZATION APPLICATION.—Section 402(a)(2)(M)(ii) of 

16 the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Rec17 onciliation Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1612(a)(2)(M)(ii)), as 

18 amended by subsection (a)(2), is amended— 

19 (1) in the heading, by inserting ‘‘, APPEALED,’’ 

20 after ‘‘PENDING’’; 

21 (2) by inserting ‘‘or on appeal’’ after ‘‘that is 

22 pending’’; and 

23 (3) by inserting ‘‘, appealed,’’ after ‘‘such appli24 cation is pending’’. 


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1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

2 402(a)(2)(M) of such Act is amended, in the subpara3 graph heading, by striking ‘‘THROUGH FISCAL YEAR 2011’’. 

4 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall take effect on January 31, 2020. 

6 SEC. 3. NATURALIZATION APPLICATION FEE WAIVER. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sections 286(m) 

8 and 344(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

9 U.S.C. 1356(m) and 8 U.S.C. 1455(a)), no fee shall be 

10 charged or collected from an applicant described in sub11 section (b) in conjunction with— 

12 (1) filing an application for naturalization; 

13 (2) conducting a hearing on such application; or 

14 (3) the issuance of a certificate of naturaliza15 tion upon being granted United States citizenship. 

16 (b) APPLICANT DESCRIBED.—An applicant is de17 scribed in this section if the applicant— 

18 (1) is receiving payments under the supple19 mental security income program established under 

20 title XVI of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1381 

21 et seq.); and 

22 (2) is applying, or has applied, to become a nat23 uralized citizen of the United States in accordance 


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1 with section 334 of the Immigration and Nationality 

2 Act (8 U.S.C. 1445). 

Æ 


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