Immigrant Food Stamp Restoration Included in Senate Farm Bill to Be Considered in January

IMMIGRANTS & PUBLIC BENEFITS

Food and Nutrition Programs

IMMIGRANT FOOD STAMP RESTORATION INCLUDED IN SENATE FARM BILL TO BE CONSIDERED IN JANUARY
Immigrants' Rights Update, Vol. 15, No. 8, Dec. 20, 2001

The Agriculture, Conservation, and Rural Enhancement Act of 2001 (S. 1731), which restores federal food stamp eligibility to a significant number of immigrants and includes $6.2 billion in food stamp improvements over 10 years, was debated on the Senate floor during the month of December. Because the Senate did not reach agreement on the Farm Bill, the debate will continue after Congress reconvenes on Jan. 23, 2002.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), would make the following changes in food stamp eligibility for "qualified" immigrants:

Lawful permanent residents (LPRs) with credit for 16 quarters of work history in the U.S. would be allowed eligibility for food stamps. Currently, LPRs must have 40 quarters of work history to qualify. Immigrants can claim credit for a spouse's work, or for work performed by a parent while the immigrant was under 18 years old (including periods before birth).
Qualified immigrant children would be allowed eligibility, regardless of when they entered the U.S. Currently, only children who were lawfully present in the U.S. on Aug. 22, 1996, are eligible.
Immigrants receiving disability-related benefits would be allowed eligibility, regardless of when they entered the U.S. Currently these immigrants must have been lawfully present in the U.S. on Aug. 22, 1996, to qualify under this exemption.
Refugees, asylees, and others fleeing persecution would remain eligible for food stamps after the expiration of the initial seven-year period of eligibility which current law grants to them.

The immigrant-related provisions represent almost 20 percent ($1.125 billion over 10 years) of the total food stamp spending in the bill. On Dec. 12, 2001, Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) offered an amendment to the Farm Bill that would have restored food stamp eligibility to a broader group of immigrants. Senator Lugar's proposal would have allowed all immigrants who either (1) entered the U.S. before Aug. 22, 1996, or (2) entered the U.S. on or after Aug. 22, 1996, and have been in qualified immigrant status for five years, to be eligible for food stamps. Lugar's proposal was tabled by a vote of 70-30, thereby ending all debate on the amendment.

Several other senators submitted amendments to the immigrant provisions of the bill. Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL), for example, drafted an amendment that would increase food stamp funding by $1.4 billion over 10 years. The amendment would also allow lawfully residing immigrant seniors to be eligible for food stamps, regardless of when they entered the United States. Currently, only seniors who were lawfully present in the U.S. on Aug. 22, 1996 (and were 65 years or older on that date) are eligible. Sen. Phil Gramm (R-TX) submitted an amendment that would strip the immigrant restorations from the bill. These amendments have not been debated.

Because the version of the Farm Bill passed by the House of Representatives (H.R. 4626) does not include restorations of benefits to immigrants, it is crucial that the Senate bill retain these provisions. An attempt by Senator Hutchinson (R-AR) to substitute the House language into the Senate bill was unsuccessful. As this issue goes to print, it appears likely that the Senate will continue debating the bill after it reconvenes on Jan. 23, 2002. The House and Senate bills will then go to a conference committee.