a qualified alien will be considered a nonqualified alien for purposes of receiving public
benefits.
Intent of Congress to Provide Public Benefits to Aliens
Nonqualified aliens are not eligible for federal, state or local benefits which often fund the
services traditionally used to provide protection in APS cases. The Personal
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996 (PRWOA) limits the provision of
services or benefits to nonqualified aliens living in this country. The intent of Congress in
its passage of the PRWOA was to clearly state that "it continues to be the immigration
policy of the United States that aliens within the Nation’s borders not depend on public
resources to meet their needs, but rather rely on their own capabilities and the resources
of their families, their sponsors, and private organizations". This Act further states that "it
is a compelling government interest to remove the incentive for illegal immigration
provided by the availability of public benefits".
Federal Public Benefits Defined
The PRWOA states that an alien who is not a "qualified alien" is not eligible for programs
and services meeting the definition of a "Federal Public Benefit". A "Federal Public
Benefit" is defined, in part, as "any retirement, welfare, health, disability, public or
assisted housing, post-secondary education, food assistance, unemployment benefit or
any other similar benefit for which payments or assistance are provided to individuals,
households or families by a federal agency or through appropriated federal funds".
State and Local Public Benefits Defined
The PRWOA also restricts eligibility for state and local benefits to nonqualified aliens.
The Act states that a nonqualified alien is not eligible for "State or Local Public Benefits".
These are defined, in part, as "any retirement, welfare, health, disability, public or
assisted housing, post-secondary education, food assistance, unemployment benefit, or
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". An example of a State or local benefit
for which a nonqualified alien is not eligible is State/County Special Assistance.
The PRWOA allows a state to provide state or local benefits to nonqualified aliens, but
only through the enactment of a law subsequent to the PRWOA that affirmatively
provides for such eligibility. The North Carolina General Assembly has not enacted such
a law. Without such a law, states are prohibited from creating any benefits for
nonqualified aliens that would be similar to a federal, state or local benefit as defined in
the PRWOA. This means state and local governments cannot use funds or create
benefits that would replace those prohibited as "Federal Public Benefits". For example, if
a nonqualified alien needs nursing home care and is ineligible for Medicaid because of
his immigration status, neither the state nor county may create a fund to pay for his care
in a nursing home.
U.S. Attorney General Exception for the Provision of Adult Protective Services
The U.S. Attorney General is authorized to establish limited exceptions to the provision of
"Federal Public Benefits", including such services as soup kitchens, short-term shelter or
housing for the homeless, community food banks, and programs for victims of domestic