,i #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #fihg ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,january #h1 #bjbf,mr4 ,nehls 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,moore of ,alabama1 ,mr4 ,weber of ,texas1 ,mr4 ,grothman1 ,mr4 ,roy1 ,mr4 ,gosar1 ,mr4 ,harris of ,north ,carolina1 ,mr4 ,hunt1 ,mr4 ,jackson of ,texas1 and ,mr4 ,gill of ,texas7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act to clarify the definition of public charge and likely at any time to become a public charge1 to establish requirements for affidavits of support and public charge bonds1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,public ,charge ,clarification ,act of #bjbf4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,section #bab7;a77#d7 of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahb7;a77#d77 establishes that an alien who1 in the opinion of the consular officer or the ,attorney ,general1 is likely at any time to become a public charge is inadmissible4 7#b7 ,congress has laid out specific factors to be considered in determining whether an alien is likely to become a public charge1 including the alien's age1 health1 family status1 assets1 resources1 financial status1 education1 and skills1 as well as any affidavit of support under section #bac;,a4 7#c7 ,these statutory factors have not been faithfully applied in the intended totality of the circumstances analysis by executive agencies1 leading to inconsistent and overly permissive interpretations that undermine congressional intent to ensure self-sufficiency among immigrants4 7#d7 ,the proposed rule entitled ,inadmissibility on ,public ,charge ,grounds1 published by the ,department of ,homeland ,security in the ,federal ,register on ,october #aj1 #bjah 7#hc ,,fr #eaaad71 provided a clear framework for identifying public benefits that render an alien a public charge1 including both monetizable and non-monetizable benefits4 7#e7 ,to protect ,american taxpayers and promote immigrant self-sufficiency1 it is necessary to codify and expand upon this framework1 ensuring that all current and future government benefits are considered in public charge determinations4 #c4 ,definition of public charge ,section #bab7;a77#d7 of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahb7;a77#d77 is amended to read as follows3 7#d7 ,public charge 7,a7 ,in general ,any alien who1 in the opinion of the consular officer at the time of application for a visa1 or in the opinion of the ,attorney ,general at the time of application for admission or adjustment of status1 is likely at any time to become a public charge is inadmissible4 7,b7 ,definition ,for purposes of this paragraph-- 7i7 ,the term public charge means an alien who receives one or more public benefits 7as defined in subparagraph 7,c77 for more than #ab months in the aggregate within any #cf-month period 7such that1 for instance1 receipt of two benefits in one month counts as two months74 7ii7 ,an alien is likely at any time to become a public charge if the alien is likely to receive one or more public benefits 7as defined in subparagraph 7,c77 for more than #ab months in the aggregate within any #cf-month period after the date of admission or adjustment of status4 7,c7 ,public benefits defined ,the term public benefits means any ,federal1 ,state1 local1 or tribal cash assistance for income maintenance1 supplemental nutrition assistance1 housing assistance1 non-emergency medical assistance1 or other similar benefits1 including all monetizable and non-monetizable benefits as defined in the proposed rule entitled ,inadmissibility on ,public ,charge ,grounds1 published in the ,federal ,register on ,october #aj1 #bjah 7#hc ,,fr #eaaad74 ,this definition shall include-- 7i7 ,supplemental ,security ,income 7,,ssi7 under title ,,xvi of the ,social ,security ,act2 7ii7 ,temporary ,assistance for ,needy ,families 7,,tanf7 under part ,a of title ,,iv of the ,social ,security ,act2 7iii7 ,any ,federal1 ,state1 local1 or tribal cash benefit program for income maintenance2 7iv7 ,the ,supplemental ,nutrition ,assistance ,program 7,,snap7 under the ,food and ,nutrition ,act of #bjjh2 7v7 ,section #h ,housing ,choice ,voucher ,program under section #h of the ,united ,states ,housing ,act of #aicg2 7vi7 ,section #h ,project-,based ,rental ,assistance 7including ,moderate ,rehabilitation7 under section #h of the ,united ,states ,housing ,act of #aicg2 7vii7 ,public housing under section #i of the ,united ,states ,housing ,act of #aicg2 7viii7 ,medicaid under title ,,xix of the ,social ,security ,act 7except for emergency medical assistance1 benefits provided to individuals under #ba years of age1 or benefits provided to pregnant women72 7ix7 ,premium and cost-sharing subsidies under section #cf;,b of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf 7relating to refundable credit for coverage under a qualified health plan7 or section #adjb of the ,patient ,protection and ,affordable ,care ,act 7relating to reduced cost sharing72 and 7x7 ,any other ,federal1 ,state1 local1 or tribal program providing monetizable or non-monetizable benefits1 including programs created after the date of enactment of the ,public ,charge ,clarification ,act of #bjbe4 7,d7 ,publication of list of benefits ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of the ,public ,charge ,clarification ,act of #bjbe1 the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security1 acting through the ,director of ,u4,s4 ,citizenship and ,immigration ,services1 shall publish in the ,federal ,register a comprehensive list of all public benefits 7as defined in subparagraph 7,c77 that may render an alien a public charge or likely to become a public charge4 ,the ,secretary shall update such list as necessary to include any new programs or benefits created after publication and shall publish notice of such updates in the ,federal ,register4 7,e7 ,factors to be considered ,in determining whether an alien is inadmissible under this paragraph1 the consular officer or the ,attorney ,general shall consider1 in the totality of the circumstances1 the alien's-- 7i7 age2 7ii7 health2 7iii7 family status2 7iv7 assets1 resources1 and financial status2 7v7 education and skills2 7vi7 prospective immigration status and expected period of admission2 and 7vii7 any affidavit of support under section #bac;,a4 ,no single factor shall be dispositive1 and the determination shall be based on a holistic assessment of the alien's likelihood of becoming a public charge4 7,f7 ,exemptions ,this paragraph shall not apply to-- 7i7 refugees admitted under section #bjg2 7ii7 asylees granted asylum under section #bjh2 or 7iii7 aliens serving in the ,armed ,forces of the ,united ,states or the dependents of such aliens4 7,g7 ,waivers ,no waiver of inadmissibility under this paragraph shall be granted to any alien not exempted under subparagraph 7,f71 unless specifically authorized by an ,act of ,congress4 7,h7 ,affidavits of support 7i7 ,an affidavit of support under section #bac;,a may be considered as one factor in the totality of the circumstances under subparagraph 7,e71 but shall not be sufficient1 standing alone1 to overcome a finding that an alien is likely to become a public charge4 7ii7 ,any affidavit of support submitted under section #bac;,a shall be accompanied by documentary evidence demonstrating the sponsor's ability to financially support the alien and all members of the sponsor's household1 including proof of income1 assets1 and resources sufficient to maintain the household at an annual income equal to at least #abe percent of the ,federal poverty line4 7,i7 ,public charge bonds 7i7 ,the consular officer or the ,attorney ,general shall require the posting of a public charge bond as a condition of admission or adjustment of status if the alien is determined to be likely to become a public charge but other factors warrant conditional approval4 7ii7 ,such bond shall be in an amount of not less than #aj1jjj1 payable to the ,united ,states1 and shall be forfeited if the alien becomes a public charge within #aj years of admission or adjustment of status4 7iii7 ,the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security shall establish regulations for the administration1 forfeiture1 and cancellation of such bonds4 4 #d4 ,conforming amendments 7a7 ,section #bac;,a of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahc;a7 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7i7 ,requirements for public charge determinations ,affidavits of support under this section shall comply with the requirements of section #bab7;a77#d77;,h74 4 7b7 ,any reference in ,federal law or regulation to public charge or likely to become a public charge shall be construed in accordance with the amendments made by this ,act4 #e4 ,effective date ,the amendments made by this ,act shall take effect #ahj days after the date of enactment of this ,act and shall apply to all applications for visas1 admission1 or adjustment of status pending on or filed after such effective date4