The Trump administration has moved to require US states to provide information on undocumented immigrants or risk losing federal funding for two major public assistance programs, marking a new escalation in its immigration crackdown.
Elliot Gaiser of the Office of Legal Counsel said the administration believes the reporting requirement follows directly from federal law. The Justice Department said states that participate in TANF accept an obligation to report undocumented immigrants to federal authorities. TANF provides cash assistance and other support to low-income households, while SSI provides monthly payments to low-income senior citizens and people with disabilities. Assistant Attorney General T. However, the opinion applies only to future federal funding, and it remains unclear how the administration will enforce the new interpretation in practice.
Legal challenges expected
The move is likely to face legal challenges from states and immigration advocates who could argue that the federal government is improperly using federal welfare funding to obtain state-held immigration information. The latest action follows other efforts by the Trump administration to increase federal access to information held by states. The administration also threatened to withhold federal funding from states that did not comply.
The US Department of Agriculture previously sought records from states concerning people potentially receiving food assistance.
