Restrictions on public benefits.

2016
STATE OF WYOMING
16LSO-0288
Introduced
1.2

HOUSE BILL

NO.

HB0135

Restrictions on public benefits.

Sponsored by:
Representative(s) Jennings, Clem, Edmonds, Edwards, Eklund, Laursen, Lindholm, Miller, Pownall, Reeder and Steinmetz and Senator(s) Hicks and Meier

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to public benefits; conditioning eligibility for public benefits on lawful presence in the United States; requiring verification of lawful presence in the United States upon application for public benefits; providing a penalty; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1
.

W.S. 9
‑
21
‑
101

and
9
‑
21
‑
1
02
are
created to read:

CHAPTER 21
RESTRICTIONS ON PUBLIC BENEFITS

9
‑
21
‑
101
.

Definitions.

(a)

As used in this chapter:

(i)

"Emergency medical condition" means as defined in 42 U.S.C.
§
1396b(
v)(3);

(ii)

"Federal public benefit" means as defined in 8 U.S.C.
§
1611;

(iii)

"State or local public benefit
" means as defined in 8 U.S.C.
§
1621.

9
‑
21
‑
102
.

L
awful presence
required
for public benefits;
verification;
exceptions
; reporting
.

(a)

Except as otherwis
e provided
in subsection (
e
) of this section or where exempted
by federal law,
any natural person fourteen (14) years of age or
older shall be lawfully present
in the United States to receive
state or
local public benefits or federal public benefits that are administered by this state.

(b)

No agency
or political subdivision of the
state shall provide any state or local public benefit or federal public benefit to an applicant whose lawful presence in the United States has not been verified
if required
pursuant to this
chapter
.

(c
)

E
ach agency or political subdivision of the state shall verify the lawful presence in the United States of each natural person fourteen (14) years o
f
age or older who applies for state or local public benefits or fo
r federal public benefits
that are administered by an agency or political subdivision of this state for which lawful presence in the United States is required by
law, ordinance or rule.

(
d
)

This
chapter
shall be enforced without regard to race, religion, gender, ethnicity or national origin.

(
e
)

L
awful presence in the United States
and verification thereof
shall not be required:

(i)

For obtaining health care items and services that are necessary for the treatment of an emergency medical condition of the person involved and are not related to an organ transplant procedure;

(ii)

For short
‑
term, noncash, in
‑
kind emergency disaster relief;

(i
ii
)

For public health assistance for immunizations with respect to diseases and for testing and treatment of symptoms of communicable diseases whether or not such symptoms are caused by a communicable disease;

(
i
v)

For
p
rograms, services or assistance
such as
soup kitchens, crisis
counseling and intervention and short
‑
term shelter
s
that
:

(A)

Deliver in
‑
kind services at the community level, including services through public or nonprofit agencies;

(B)

Do not condition the provision of assistance, the amount of assistance provided or the costs of assistance provided on the individual recipient's income or resources; and

(C)

Are necessary for the protection of life or safety.

(v)

For the purpose of receiving any other public benefit for which lawful presence in the United State
s
is not req
uired by law, ordinance or rule
.

(
f
)

For verification of the lawful presence of an applicant in the United States, the agency or political subdivision required to make such verification shall provide notary public services at no cost to the applicant and require that the applicant execute an affidavit under penalty of perjury that:

(i
)

He is a United States
c
itizen; or

(ii
)

He is a qualified alien under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act and is lawfully present in the United States
.

(g
)

For any applicant who has executed an af
fidavit pursuant to paragraph (f
)(
ii) of this section, eligibility for benefits shall be determined through the systematic alien verification of entitlement program operated by the
United States
department of homeland security or a successor program designated by the
United States
department of homeland security. Until such eligibility verification is made, an affidavit executed pursuant to subsection (
f)
of this section may be presumed to be proof of lawful presence in the United States for the purposes of this section.

(h
)

Any person who knowingly makes a false or fraudulent statement of representation in an affidavit ex
ecuted pursuant to subsection (f
) of this section shall
be subject to criminal penalties under W.S. 6
‑
5
‑
303(
a). If the affidavit constitutes a false claim of United States citizenship under 18 U.S.C.

§
911, a complaint shall be filed by the agency or political subdivision which required the affidavit with the
United States
attorney for the district in which the affidavit was executed.

(j
)

Errors and significant delay by the federal systematic alien verification of entitlement program shall be reported to the United States department of homeland security and to the United States secretary of state to ensure that the application of the federal systematic alien verification of entitlement program is not wrongfully denying benefits to legal residents of this state.

Section

2
.

This
act is effective July 1,
201
6
.

(END)

1
HB0135