LIFT the BAR Act of 2023

Bill: 118-s-2038
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Hirono, Mazie K. [D-HI]
Introduced: 2023-06-15
Policy area: Social Welfare
Latest action: action_date: 2023-06-15
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Summaries:
action_date: 2023-06-15
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><strong>Lifting Immigrant Families Through Benefits Access Restoration Act of 2023 or the LIFT the BAR Act of 2023</strong></p><p>This bill repeals certain limits on the eligibility of noncitizens who lawfully reside in the United States for federal means-tested programs, including Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), programs funded through Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) grants, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and certain nutrition and housing programs.</p>

tv_txt: II 118th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 2038 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES June 15, 2023 Ms. Hirono (for herself, Ms. Warren , Mr. Brown , Mr. Welch , Mr. Padilla , Mr. Markey , Mrs. Murray , Mr. Sanders , Mrs. Gillibrand , Mr. Booker , Mr. Heinrich , and Mr. Luján ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance A BILL To amend the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to provide certain benefits to noncitizens, and for other purposes.

1. Short titles This Act may be cited as the Lifting Immigrant Families Through Benefits Access Restoration Act of 2023 or the LIFT the BAR Act of 2023 . 2. Availability of basic assistance to lawfully present noncitizens (a) Elimination of arbitrary eligibility restrictions (1) In general Sections 402, 403, 411, 412, 421, and 422 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1612 , 1613, 1621, 1622, 1631, and 1632) are repealed. (2) Conforming amendments Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. ) is amended— (A) in section 401(b)(5) ( 8 U.S.C. 1611(b)(5) ), by striking the program defined in section 402(a)(3)(A) (relating to the supplemental security income program) and inserting the Supplemental Security Income Program under title XVI of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1381 et seq. ) ; (B) in section 404(a) ( 8 U.S.C. 1614(a) ), by striking , 402, or 403 ; (C) in section 413 ( 8 U.S.C. 1625 )— (i) by striking A State and inserting the following: (a) State or local public benefit defined In this section, the term State or local public benefit — (1) except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3), means— (A) any grant, contract, loan, professional license, or commercial license provided by an agency of a State or local government or by appropriated funds of a State or local government; and (B) any retirement, welfare, health, disability, public or assisted housing, postsecondary education, food assistance, unemployment benefit, or any other similar benefit for which payments or assistance are provided to an individual, household, or family eligibility unit by an agency of a State or local government or by appropriated funds of a State or local government; (2) does not apply— (A) to any contract, professional license, or commercial license for a nonimmigrant whose visa for entry is related to such employment in the United States, or to a citizen of a freely associated state, if section 141 of the applicable compact of free association approved in Public Law 99–239 or 99–658 (or a successor provision) is in effect; (B) with respect to benefits for an alien who as a work authorized nonimmigrant or as an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence under the Immigration and Nationality Act qualified for such benefits and for whom the United States under reciprocal treaty agreements is required to pay benefits, as determined by the Secretary of State, after consultation with the Attorney General; or (C) to the issuance of a professional license to, or the renewal of a professional license by, a foreign national not physically present in the United States; and (3) does not include any Federal public benefit. (b) Proof of eligibility requirement A State ; and (ii) in subsection (b), as redesignated, by striking (as defined in section 411(c)) ; (D) in section 432(d) ( 8 U.S.C. 1642(d) ), by striking (as defined in section 411(c)) and inserting (as defined in section 413(a)) ; (E) in section 435 ( 8 U.S.C. 1645 ), by striking (as provided under section 403) ; and (F) in section 436 ( 8 U.S.C. 1646 )— (i) by striking the food stamp program (as defined in section 402(a)(3)(B)) and inserting the supplemental nutrition assistance program established under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 ( 7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq. ) ; and (ii) by striking the supplemental security income program (as defined in section 402(a)(3)(A)) and inserting the Supplemental Security Income Program under title XVI of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1381 et seq. ) . (b) Qualified noncitizens Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. ) is amended— (1) in the title header, by striking Aliens and inserting Noncitizens ; (2) in the header of section 401 ( 8 U.S.C. 1611 ), by striking Aliens who are not qualified aliens and inserting Noncitizens who are not qualified noncitizens ; (3) by striking qualified alien each place such term appears and inserting qualified noncitizen ; (4) by striking qualified aliens each place such term appears and inserting qualified noncitizens ; (5) by striking qualified alien’s each place such term appears and inserting qualified noncitizen’s ; (6) by striking an alien each place such term appears and inserting a noncitizen ; (7) by striking alien each place such term appears and inserting noncitizen ; (8) by striking aliens each place such term appears and inserting noncitizens ; and (9) by striking alien’s each place such term appears and inserting noncitizen’s . (c) Access to basic services for lawfully residing noncitizens Section 431 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1641 ) is amended— (1) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following: (b) Qualified noncitizen For purposes of this title, the term qualified noncitizen means a noncitizen who, at the time the noncitizen applies for, receives, or attempts to receive a Federal public benefit, is lawfully present in the United States. ; (2) in subsection (c)— (A) in the header, by striking qualified aliens and inserting qualified noncitizens ; (B) in paragraph (3), by striking or at the end; (C) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; or ; and (D) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following: (5) a noncitizen— (A) in a category that was treated as lawfully present for purposes of section 1101 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 ( 42 U.S.C. 18001 ); (B) who met the requirements of section 402(a)(2)(D) of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1612(a)(2)(D) ) on or before January 1, 2021; (C) who is granted special immigrant juvenile status as described by section 101(a)(27)(J) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)(J) ); (D) who has a pending, bona fide application for nonimmigrant status under section 101(a)(15)(U) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1101(1)(15)(U) ); (E) who was granted relief under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program; or (F) who is not described in subparagraphs (A) through (E), is not a citizen of the United States, resides in a State or territory of the United States, and is authorized by Federal law to be present in the United States. ; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (d) Noncitizen In this title, the term noncitizen means any individual who is not a citizen of the United States. . (d) Child nutrition programs Section 742 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1615 ) is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) in the header by striking School lunch and breakfast programs and inserting Child nutrition programs ; (B) by striking the school lunch program and inserting any program ; and (C) by striking the school breakfast program under section 4 of the and inserting any program under ; and (2) in subsection (b), by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows: (1) In general A State may not deny benefits under programs established under the provisions of law described in paragraph (2) on the basis of an individual’s citizenship or immigration status. . (e) Exclusion of medical assistance expenditures for citizens of Freely Associated States Section 1108(h) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1308(h) ) is amended— (1) by striking Expenditures and inserting: (1) In general Expenditures ; and (2) by adding at the end the following: (2) Exception With respect to eligibility for benefits under a State plan approved under title XIX (other than medical assistance described in section 401(b)(1)(A) of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1611(b)(1)(A) )), paragraph (1) shall not apply to any individual who lawfully resides in 1 of the 50 States or in the District of Columbia in accordance with the Compacts of Free Association between the Government of the United States and the Governments of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau and shall not apply, at the option of the Governor of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, or American Samoa as communicated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services in writing, to any individual who lawfully resides in the respective territory in accordance with such Compacts. . (f) Child Health Insurance Program Section 2107(e)(1) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1397gg(e)(1) ) is amended— (1) by striking subparagraph (O); and (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (P), (Q), (R), (S), (T), and (U) as subparagraphs (O), (P), (Q), (R), (S), and (T), respectively. (g) Conforming amendments (1) Supplemental food assistance program The Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 ( 7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq. ) is amended— (A) in section 5 ( 7 U.S.C. 2014 )— (i) in subsection (d)(10), by striking (k) and inserting (j) ; (ii) by striking subsection (i); and (iii) by redesignating subsections (j), (k), (l), (m), and (n) as subsections (i), (j), (k), (l), and (m), respectively; (B) in section 6 ( 7 U.S.C. 2015 )— (i) in subsection (f), by striking an alien lawfully admitted for permanent and all that follows through the end of the subsection and inserting a noncitizen who is lawfully present in the United States. ; and (ii) in subsection (s)(2), by striking (i), (k), (l), (m), and (n) and inserting (j), (k), (l), and (m) ; and (C) in section 11(e)(2)(B)(v)(II) ( 7 U.S.C. 2020(e)(2)(B)(v)(II) ) by striking aliens and inserting noncitizens . (2) Medicaid Section 1903(v) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1396b(v) ) is amended— (A) in paragraph (1), by striking admitted for and all that follows and inserting present in the United States. ; and (B) by striking paragraph (4). (3) Housing assistance Section 214(a) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980 ( 42 U.S.C. 1436a(a) ) is amended— (A) by redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as paragraphs (7) and (8), respectively; and (B) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following: (6) a qualified noncitizen (as defined in section 431 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 ( 8 U.S.C. 1641 )); . (4) Assistance not treated as debt absent fraud Section 213A of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1183a ) is amended— (A) in subsection (a)(3)— (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking (as provided under section 403 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996) ; and (ii) in subparagraph (B), in the undesignated matter following clause (ii), by striking (as provided under section 403 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996) ; and (B) in subsection (b)(1)(A) is amended by striking benefit, and inserting benefit by fraud, . (h) Preserving access to health care Section 36B(c)(1)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read as follows: (B) Special rule for certain individuals lawfully present in the United States If— (i) a taxpayer has a household income which is not greater than 100 percent of an amount equal to the poverty line for a family of the size involved, (ii) the taxpayer is a non-citizen lawfully present in the United States, (iii) the taxpayer is ineligible for minimum essential coverage under section 5000A(f)(1)(A)(ii), and (iv) under the Medicaid eligibility criteria for non-citizens in effect on December 26, 2020, the taxpayer would be ineligible for such minimum essential coverage by reason of the taxpayer’s immigration status, the taxpayer shall, for purposes of the credit under this section, be treated as an applicable taxpayer with a household income which is equal to 100 percent of the poverty line for a family of the size involved. . 3. Federal agency guidance Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, each Federal agency affected by any of the amendments made by this Act shall issue guidance with respect to the implementation of such amendments. 4. Effective date The amendments made by this Act— (1) shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act; and (2) shall apply to services furnished on or after the date that is 180 days after the date on which any guidance is issued pursuant to section 3.