,,ii #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #cfjb ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,january #h 7legislative day1 ,january #g71 #bjbf,mr4 ,marshall 7for himself and ,mr4 ,scott of ,florida7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act to clarify the definitions 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#d77;,a7 of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahb7;a77#d77;,a77 establishes that an alien who1 in the opinion of the consular officer or the ,director of ,u4,s4 ,citizenship and ,immigration ,services1 is likely at any time to become a public charge is inadmissible4 7#b7 ,in section #bab7;a77#d77;,b7 of such ,act1 ,congress 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 and any affidavit of support executed by a sponsor of such alien in accordance with section #bac;,a7a77#a7 of such ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahc;a7a77#a774 7#c7 ,these statutory factors have not been faithfully applied in the intended totality of the circumstances analysis by executive agencies1 which has resulted in inconsistent and overly permissive interpretations that undermine congressional intent to ensure self-sufficiency among new immigrants4 7#d7 ,the proposed rule entitled ,inadmissibility on ,public ,charge ,grounds 7#hc ,fed4 ,reg4 #eaaad71 which was published in the ,federal ,register by ,u4,s4 ,citizenship and ,immigration ,services on ,october #aj1 #bjah1 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 ,definitions ,in this paragraph3 7i7 ,likely at any time to become a public charge ,the term likely at any time to become a public charge1 with respect to an alien1 means the alien is likely to receive #a or more public benefits for more than #ab months1 in the aggregate1 during any #cf-month period after the date on which-- 7,i7 the alien is admitted to the ,united ,states2 or 7,,ii7 the alien's status is adjusted under this title4 7ii7 ,public benefits ,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 7as defined in the proposed rule entitled ,inadmissibility on ,public ,charge ,grounds1 7#hc ,fed4 ,reg4 #eaaad771 including benefits received from-- 7,i7 supplemental security income authorized under title ,,xvi of the ,social ,security ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #acha et seq472 7,,ii7 temporary assistance for needy families authorized under part ,a of title ,,iv of such ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #fja et seq472 7,,iii7 any ,federal1 ,state1 local1 or tribal cash benefit program for income maintenance2 7,,iv7 the supplemental nutrition assistance program authorized under the ,food and ,nutrition ,act of #bjjh 7#g ,u4,s4,c4 #bjaa et seq472 7,v7 the housing choice voucher program and project-based rental assistance 7including moderate rehabilitation7 authorized under section #h of the ,united ,states ,housing ,act of #aicg 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adcg;f72 7,,vi7 public housing funds authorized under section #i of such ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adcg;g72 7,,vii7 the ,medicaid program authorized under title ,,xix of the ,social ,security ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #acif et seq471 excluding emergency medical assistance1 benefits provided to individuals who are younger than #ba years of age1 and benefits provided to pregnant women2 7,,viii7 premium and cost-sharing subsidies authorized 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 7#ad ,u4,s4,c4 #ahjga2 relating to reduced cost sharing72 and 7,,ix7 any other ,federal1 ,state1 local1 or tribal program providing monetizable or non-monetizable benefits1 including programs established after the date of the enactment of the ,public ,charge ,clarification ,act of #bjbf4 7iii7 ,public charge ,the term public charge means an alien who receives #a or more public benefits for more than #ab months1 in the aggregate1 within any #cf-month period4 ,the receipt of #b benefits in a single month shall be deemed to constitute #b months of benefits for purposes of this clause4 7,c7 ,publication of list of benefits 7i7 ,in general ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of the ,public ,charge ,clarification ,act of #bjbf1 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 that may render an alien a public charge or likely to become a public charge4 7ii7 ,updates ,the ,secretary shall-- 7,i7 update the list described in clause 7i7 whenever necessary to include any new programs or benefits created after the publication of such list2 and 7,,ii7 publish notice of such updates in the ,federal ,register4 7,d7 ,factors to be considered 7i7 ,in general ,in determining whether an alien is inadmissible under this paragraph1 the consular officer or the ,director of ,u4,s4 ,citizenship and ,immigration ,services shall consider1 in the totality of the circumstances1 the alien's-- 7,i7 age2 7,,ii7 health2 7,,iii7 family status2 7,,iv7 assets1 resources1 and financial status2 7,v7 education and skills2 7,,vi7 prospective immigration status and expected period of admission2 and 7,,vii7 any affidavit of support executed by a sponsor in accordance with section #bac;,a7a77#a74 7ii7 ,determination ,no single factor listed under clause 7i7 shall be dispositive4 ,the determination of inadmissibility shall be based on a holistic assessment of the alien's likelihood of becoming a public charge4 7,e7 ,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 and the dependents of such aliens4 7,f7 ,waivers ,no waiver of inadmissibility under this paragraph shall be granted to any alien1 other than the aliens exempted under subparagraph 7,f71 unless such waiver is specifically authorized by an ,act of ,congress4 7,g7 ,affidavits of support ,an affidavit of support submitted by the sponsor of an alien in accordance with section #bac;,a-- 7i7 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 line2 and 7ii7 may be considered as a factor in the totality of the circumstances under subparagraph 7,d71 but shall not be sufficient to overcome a finding that an alien is likely to become a public charge4 7,h7 ,public charge bonds 7i7 ,requirement ,the consular officer or the ,director of ,u4,s4 ,citizenship and ,immigration ,services shall require the posting of a public charge bond as a condition of an alien's admission or adjustment of status if the alien is likely at any time to become a public charge1 but other factors warrant conditional approval4 7ii7 ,amount2 forfeiture ,each public charge bond required under clause 7i7 shall be-- 7,i7 in an amount equal to not less than #aj1jjj2 7,,ii7 payable to the ,united ,states2 and 7,,iii7 forfeited if the alien for whom it is posted becomes a public charge during the #aj-year period immediately following the alien's admission to the ,united ,states or adjustment of status4 7iii7 ,rulemaking ,the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security1 in consultation with the ,director of ,u4,s4 ,citizenship and ,immigration ,services1 shall promulgate regulations for the administration1 forfeiture1 and cancellation of public charge bonds required under this subparagraph4 4 #d4 ,conforming amendments 7a7 ,immigration and ,nationality ,act ,section #bac;,a of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahc;a7 is amended-- 7#a7 by redesignating subsections 7h7 and 7i7 as subsections 7g7 and 7h71 respectively2 and 7#b7 by adding at the end the following3 7i7 ,requirements for public charge determinations ,affidavits of support under this section shall comply with the requirements set forth in section #bab7;a77#d77;,g74 4 7b7 ,other laws ,any reference in any ,federal law or regulation to public charge or likely to become a public charge shall be construed in accordance with the amendments made by section #c4 #e4 ,effective date ,the amendments made by this ,act shall-- 7#a7 take effect on the date that is #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act2 and 7#b7 apply to all applications for visas1 admission1 or adjustment of status pending on1 or filed after1 such effective date4