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The Trump administration announced Monday that it has launched an investigation into California’s Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, a advise program that offers month-to-month money advantages to a tiny preference of frail, blind, and disabled noncitizens who it claims are ineligible for Social Security advantages attributable to their immigration space.

The investigation began in Los Angeles, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Fatherland Security Investigations Los Angeles field space of enterprise issuing a Title VIII subpoena to California’s Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, the Division of Fatherland Security talked about in a news unlock.

Per the department, the subpoena requests all records from the Los Angeles County Division of Public Social Services and products, the company that administers the advise program, to uncover if ineligible immigrants got supplemental safety earnings from the Social Security Administration over the rest four years.

“Radical left politicians in California prioritize unlawful aliens over our have voters, at the side of by giving unlawful aliens access to money advantages,” Fatherland Security Secretary Kristi Noem talked about in an announcement.

“The Trump Administration is working collectively to call abuse and exploitation of public advantages and be determined those on this country illegally are now not receiving federal advantages or other monetary incentives to cease illegally,” Noem added. “Even as you are an unlawful immigrant, it is advisable depart now. The gravy put collectively is over. While this subpoena focuses finest on Los Angeles County — it is correct the beginning build.”

Per Fatherland Security, its Los Angeles investigations field space of enterprise is subpoenaing records at the side of applicants’ name and date of beginning, copies of functions, immigration space, proof of ineligibility for advantages from the Social Security Administration and affidavits that supported the application.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s space of enterprise did now not answer Monday to a demand for statement and referred The Times to the California Division of Social Services and products. A department spokesman talked about it became reviewing the Trump administration’s demand regarding the program administered by L.A. County.

A CDSS legit talked about the initiative created in 1998 beneath Republican Gov. Pete Wilson, is 100% advise-funded and administered by counties on behalf of the advise, and is mostly now not on hand for undocumented Californians.

All around the 2024-25 fiscal year, the legit talked about, the program served 16,556 of us.

The program is a advise version of the federal Supplemental Security Earnings program on hand for the frail, blind or disabled with factual protections, excellent space or in the heart of of developing expend of for both, at the side of victims of crime and trafficking.

The L.A. County Division of Public Social Services and products talked about in an announcement Tuesday that about 9,700 contributors were at expose signed on to salvage CAPI advantages, receiving a indicate of $1,077 a month. Remaining year, the county got over $108 million in funding from the advise to administer the program.

The Trump administration’s announcement of its investigation became “highly deceptive,” talked about Tanya Broder, senior counsel on health and financial justice protection on the Nationwide Immigration Real Center.

“They indicate that of us that are undocumented are receiving advantages, and so that they’re implying that they’re receiving federal advantages, after we’re talking about a advise-funded program,” she talked about.

Bigger than a quarter of a century prior to now, Broder talked about, California established the advise-funded program for seniors after a 1996 federal law rendered them ineligible for federal SSI advantages.

“The program became established in uncover to have up for the outlet,” Broder talked about. “It became for the duration of a duration when many seniors and patients with disabilities were enthusiastic that they would lose their month-to-month assistance. Some died by suicide, while others threatened to die by suicide.”

The 1996 federal law, Broder talked about, authorized states to present advantages to immigrants with their have money, no matter space.

“And that’s what California did,” she talked about. “Undocumented immigrants are now not eligible for this program. But states are authorized to present advantages with their have money in uncover to present protection to the health and safety and smartly being of of us living of their neighborhood.”

Benyamin Chao, health and public advantages protection supervisor with the California Immigrant Protection Center, described the subpoena as “one other instance of the Trump administration overreaching and threatening the privacy of susceptible Californians.”

“Cash funds via CAPI are finest on hand to certified immigrants, at the side of factual permanent residents, asylees [people who have been granted asylum], humanitarian parolees, and victims of human trafficking, home violence, or other, specifically enumerated excessive crimes,” Chao added. “By placing this program in its crosshairs, the Trump administration is focusing on a 100% advise-funded program that helps the aged and of us with disabilities.”

Some L.A. officers condemned the Trump administration for seeking to govern how the advise spent its money to present protection to aged and disabled factual immigrants.

L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis talked about in an announcement that the CAPI program helps “contributors who’ve constructed lives here, pay taxes, and make contributions every single day to the energy and vitality of our communities.”

“The Trump administration is unjustly focusing on Los Angeles County for a program that does now not expend federal funding,” Solis added. “The investigation into our Division of Public Social Services and products’ characteristic in administering CAPI is an invasive toddle that disregards privacy and due course of beneath the guise of holding taxpayer dollars. Los Angeles County is being singled out now not for misconduct, but for good its characteristic as a safety secure for all residents.”

Kevin R. Johnson, a professor of law at UC Davis, talked about that the scope of the subpoena became breathtakingly immense. The subpoena, he smartly-known, is now not narrowed for privacy pursuits and seeks affidavits from of us that give a enhance to immigrants’ functions.

Replacement of us may per chance seemingly be vexed, Johnson talked about, that any perceived give a enhance to of someone who’s undocumented may per chance have them discipline to prison prosecution for harboring undocumented immigrants.

“Issuing a subpoena with this breadth is admire making an attempt to make your mind up a fight, it’s soliciting for heaven and earth by manner of files,” Johnson talked about. “It’s traditional Trump administration handiwork.”

Johnson, who specializes in immigration law, talked about there are two aspects to the dispute: The federal authorities can work to be determined that advantages aren’t given to undocumented immigrants, as Congress has restricted who can accept Social Security advantages and the localities must note that law. But, he talked about, the county’s ardour is: “‘Successfully, in the occasion that they flip this files over, is it correct going to be grist for the Trump mass deportation advertising and marketing and marketing campaign?’”

The Division of Fatherland Security states in its news unlock that extra than 2 million “ineligible” immigrants got a Social Security quantity in fiscal year 2024.

Per the Public Protection Institute of California, about 1.1 million of us accept Supplemental Security Earnings and Advise Supplementary Funds month-to-month grants, extra than half of them age 65 and older. As smartly as, the institute talked about, the CAPI initiative serves about 15,000 factual residents who slay now not meet extra noncitizen standards for SSI.

California’s Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants’ web speak online states that the 1996 Welfare Reform Act eradicated SSI and SSP eligibility for most noncitizens. But a tiny preference of immigrants who stay in California are eligible for the program in the occasion that they are a low-earnings noncitizen who meets the immigration space standards in slay for the functions as of Aug. 21, 1996, are 65 or older, blind or disabled, and ineligible for the supplementary funds completely attributable to their immigration space.

Johnson talked about he anticipated the subpoena to inaugurate up a prolonged course of, with challenges from L.A. County attorneys along with a pair of court rulings.

While a extra narrowly tailored subpoena from the administration may per chance were extra efficient for its investigation, Johnson talked about he suspects its goal became broader: to have a chilling slay amongst immigrants.

“Hurt is done correct by seeking the materials,” Johnson talked about.

“I don’t basically think the Trump administration cares in the occasion that they get,” he added. “If they don’t salvage what they desire, they’ll advise it’s the total courts’ fault. But whilst you’re a particular person that receives any advantages, seemingly lawfully, you’re going to hear about this. It’s segment of a full mosaic of fright that’s being created in immigrant communities.”

The investigation comes after President Trump signed a presidential memorandum on April 15 to slay immigrants lacking documentation from obtaining Social Security Act advantages in what he referred to as a expose to slay incentivizing unlawful immigration and offer protection to taxpayer dollars.

The memorandum directed the secretary of Fatherland Security to be determined unauthorized immigrants slay now not accept funds from Social Security functions and prioritized civil or prison enforcement in opposition to states or localities for possible violations of Title IV of the Private Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act.

It also expanded the Social Security Administration’s fraud prosecutor program to a minimum of fifty U.S. authorized professional offices and established a Medicare and Medicaid fraud-prosecution program in 15 U.S. authorized professional offices.

Broder talked about she hoped California officers would now not reply to the Trump administration’s subpoena and provide files that it has silent with a promise of some privacy to applicants for the program.

“For functions to be winning in holding health and safety of a advise’s residents,” she talked about, “consumers must know that their files will more than seemingly be extinct to administer the program and won’t be extinct to space them or their kinfolk at ache.”