To restrict certain Federal assistance benefits to individuals verified to be citizens of the United States.

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 756 To restrict certain Federal assistance benefits to individuals verified to be citizens of the United States. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 3, 2021 Mr. GROTHMAN (for himself, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. POSEY, and Mrs. LESKO) in- troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Over- sight and Reform A BILL To restrict certain Federal assistance benefits to individuals verified to be citizens of the United States. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. RESTRICTING CERTAIN FEDERAL ASSISTANCE 3 BENEFITS TO INDIVIDUALS VERIFIED TO BE 4 CITIZENS. 5 (a) RESTRICTION.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 7 provision of law, an individual is not eligible for a 8 Federal assistance benefit (as defined in paragraph 9 (2) of this subsection) unless the individual meets 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 756 IH the citizenship requirement specified in subsection 1 (b)(1). 2 (2) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE BENEFIT.—In this 3 section, the term ‘‘Federal assistance benefit’’ 4 means, with respect to an individual, assistance fur- 5 nished to the individual (or to the household, family, 6 or other similar unit that includes the individual) 7 under any Federal assistance program (as defined in 8 subsection (e)), including any benefit furnished 9 under a grant or contract made pursuant to any 10 such program, but does not include an entity receiv- 11 ing a grant or contract under such a program if the 12 grant or contract is used to furnish assistance other 13 than to the entity receiving the grant or contract. 14 (b) CITIZENSHIP, ATTESTATION, AND CITIZENSHIP 15 VERIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.— 16 (1) CITIZENSHIP REQUIREMENT.—The citizen- 17 ship requirement specified in this paragraph, with 18 respect to an individual, is that the individual must 19 meet— 20 (A) the attestation requirement of para- 21 graph (2); and 22 (B) the citizenship verification requirement 23 of paragraph (3). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 756 IH (2) ATTESTATION REQUIREMENT.—An indi- 1 vidual meets the attestation requirement of this 2 paragraph for a Federal assistance benefit if the in- 3 dividual has filed, in connection with the application 4 for the benefit (or, in the case of an individual who 5 is a recipient of the benefit, filed with the provider 6 of the benefit), a declaration in writing (under pen- 7 alty of perjury and in a form and manner specified 8 under subsection (c)(3)) that the individual is a cit- 9 izen or national of the United States. 10 (3) CITIZENSHIP VERIFICATION REQUIRE- 11 MENT.— 12 (A) IN GENERAL.—An individual meets the 13 citizenship verification requirement of this para- 14 graph— 15 (i) in connection with an application 16 for a Federal assistance benefit, if the in- 17 dividual— 18 (I) furnishes in connection with 19 the application satisfactory documen- 20 tary evidence (as defined in section 21 1903(x)(3) of the Social Security Act 22 (42 U.S.C. 1396b(x)(3)) of United 23 States citizenship or nationality; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 756 IH (II) furnishes in connection with 1 the application a photographic iden- 2 tity document described in section 3 274A(b)(1)(D) of the Immigration 4 and Nationality Act; and 5 (III) furnishes in connection with 6 the application the individual’s name 7 and social security account number 8 and has the name and number and 9 citizenship or nationality status con- 10 firmed in accordance with subpara- 11 graphs (B)(ii) and (C)(ii) as being 12 consistent with information in the 13 records maintained by the Commis- 14 sioner of Social Security or the Sec- 15 retary of Homeland Security, respec- 16 tively; or 17 (ii) in the case of a recipient of a Fed- 18 eral assistance benefit, if the individual 19 furnishes to the provider of the benefit the 20 documentary evidence and other informa- 21 tion described in clause (i), and has the in- 22 dividual’s name and social security account 23 number and social security number and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 756 IH citizenship or nationality status confirmed 1 as described in clause (i)(III). 2 (B) CONFIRMATION THROUGH SOCIAL SE- 3 CURITY.— 4 (i) TRANSMITTAL OF SSN TO SSA.— 5 An entity that is furnished a name, social 6 security account number, and other iden- 7 tity information for an individual under 8 subparagraph (A) shall submit the name 9 and number to the Commissioner of Social 10 Security for confirmation under clause (ii) 11 of this subparagraph. 12 (ii) CONFIRMATION OR NONCON- 13 FIRMATION BY SSA.—Upon receipt of a 14 submittal under clause (i) from an entity, 15 the Commissioner shall compare the infor- 16 mation submitted with the information in 17 the records maintained by the Commis- 18 sioner and transmit to the entity either a 19 confirmation or nonconfirmation as to 20 whether the number submitted is valid and 21 whether the information in the Social Se- 22 curity Administration indicates that the in- 23 dividual is a citizen or national of the 24 United States. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 756 IH (C) CONFIRMATION THROUGH DHS.— 1 (i) TRANSMITTAL TO DHS.—An entity 2 that is furnished a name and social secu- 3 rity account number and other identity in- 4 formation for an individual under subpara- 5 graph (A) of this paragraph shall submit 6 the name and number and such other iden- 7 tifying information as the Director may re- 8 quire under subsection (c)(3)(B) respecting 9 the individual to the Secretary of Home- 10 land Security for confirmation under 11 clause (ii) of this subparagraph. 12 (ii) REVIEW AND CONFIRMATION OR 13 NONCONFIRMATION BY DHS.—Upon re- 14 ceipt of a submittal under clause (i) from 15 an entity, the Secretary of Homeland Se- 16 curity shall transmit to the entity either a 17 confirmation or nonconfirmation as to 18 whether the information in the records of 19 the Department of Homeland Security in- 20 dicates that the individual is a citizen or 21 national of the United States. 22 (D) VERIFICATION THROUGH SAVE PRO- 23 GRAM.—An entity that is furnished a name and 24 social security account number and other iden- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 756 IH tity information for an individual under sub- 1 paragraph (A) shall verify that the individual is 2 not included as a noncitizen in the Systematic 3 Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) 4 Program of the Department of Homeland Secu- 5 rity. 6 (E) NOTICE.—In the case of an individual 7 who does not provide the documentary evidence 8 referred to in subparagraph (A) or who does 9 not receive confirmation of United States citi- 10 zenship or nationality under subparagraph 11 (B)(ii) or (C)(ii), the entity processing the ap- 12 plication for, or providing, the Federal assist- 13 ance benefit involved shall notify the individual 14 of the individual’s ineligibility under this section 15 with respect to the benefit, and of the oppor- 16 tunity of the individual to appeal the ineligi- 17 bility determination. 18 (F) APPEALS PROCESS.—The head of any 19 department or agency of the Federal Govern- 20 ment who is administering a Federal benefit 21 program shall provide a process through which 22 an individual may appeal a determination made 23 under this Act that an individual is ineligible 24 for a Federal assistance benefit. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 756 IH (4) NATIONAL DEFINED.—In this section, the 1 term ‘‘national’’ means a national of the United 2 States (as defined in section 101(a)(22) of the Im- 3 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 4 1101(a)(22)). 5 (c) ADDITIONAL RULES; ADMINISTRATION.— 6 (1) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN FAMILIES AND 7 HOUSEHOLDS.—In the case of a Federal assistance 8 benefit which is made available based on— 9 (A) eligibility for a child, the child shall be 10 treated as meeting the citizenship requirement 11 of subsection (b)(1) if the child, or a parent or 12 legal guardian of the child, meets the require- 13 ment; and 14 (B) eligibility for a household or other 15 family unit, the members of the household or 16 family unit shall be treated as meeting the citi- 17 zenship requirement if any individual who is 18 treated as a member of the household or family 19 unit meets the requirement, except that— 20 (i) if the program under which the 21 benefit is furnished is the program for sup- 22 portive housing for the elderly under sec- 23 tion 202 of the Housing Act of 1959 (12 24 U.S.C. 1701q), the citizenship requirement 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 756 IH must be met by an elderly individual who 1 is a member of the household; and 2 (ii) if the program under which the 3 benefit is furnished is the program for sup- 4 portive housing for persons with disabilities 5 under section 811 of the Cranston-Gon- 6 zalez National Affordable Housing Act (42 7 U.S.C. 8013), the citizenship requirement 8 must be met by a disabled individual who 9 is a member of the household. 10 (2) SATISFACTION OF REQUIREMENT.—Once an 11 individual meets the citizenship requirement of sub- 12 section (b)(1) with respect to a Federal assistance 13 benefit, the individual shall be treated as continuing 14 to meet the requirement for the benefit so long as 15 the individual otherwise remains continuously eligi- 16 ble for the benefit. 17 (3) GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.— 18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Of- 19 fice of Management and Budget may issue such 20 regulations and guidance as may be required to 21 carry out this section. 22 (B) SPECIFICATIONS OF DECLARATION 23 FORM AND VERIFICATION PROCESS.—Not later 24 than 30 days after the date of the enactment of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 756 IH this Act, the Director shall specify the form and 1 manner of the declaration of citizenship form 2 under subsection (b)(2) and the method for 3 verifying citizenship to be used under sub- 4 section (b)(3) consistent with the following: 5 (i) The declaration form shall be 6 based on the declaration form used for 7 purposes of section 1137(d)(1)(A) of the 8 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320b– 9 7(d)(1)(A)). 10 (ii) The verification process described 11 in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of sub- 12 section (b)(3) shall be based on the process 13 used for purposes of paragraphs (1) and 14 (2) of section 1902(ee) of the Social Secu- 15 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(ee)). 16 (4) SUPERSEDING OTHER CITIZENSHIP-RE- 17 LATED ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—The provi- 18 sions of this section supersede any provisions of law 19 relating to the eligibility for Federal assistance bene- 20 fits of individuals based on citizenship, nationality, 21 or immigration status, unless the Director of the Of- 22 fice of Management and Budget determines that the 23 provisions of the law are more restrictive than the 24 requirements of this section. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 756 IH (d) DISQUALIFICATION FOR WILLFUL AND RE- 1 PEATED NONCOMPLIANCE.— 2 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Director of the Office 3 of Management and Budget determines that an enti- 4 ty providing a Federal assistance benefit has will- 5 fully and repeatedly furnished the benefit to individ- 6 uals who have not met the citizenship requirement 7 of subsection (b)(1) or has willfully and repeatedly 8 failed to submit information as required under sub- 9 paragraph (B)(i) or (C)(i) of subsection (b)(3), the 10 entity is disqualified from furnishing the benefit, 11 and the Director shall add the name of the entity to 12 the List of Excluded Individuals/Entities, until the 13 Director determines that any such benefit furnished 14 to any such individual has been recovered. 15 (2) MONITORING OF PROGRAMS BY THE IN- 16 SPECTORS GENERAL.—The Inspector General for the 17 respective Federal Department or agency with pri- 18 mary responsibility for a Federal assistance program 19 shall provide for regular reports on compliance of 20 the entities furnishing benefits under the program in 21 applying subsection (a). 22 (e) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM DEFINED.—In 23 this section, the term ‘‘Federal assistance program’’— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 756 IH (1) means any provision of Federal law (other 1 than the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or any 2 other Federal law pertaining to taxation) that au- 3 thorizes a benefit to be furnished for which eligibility 4 is based in whole or in part on the income or re- 5 sources of the beneficiary; and 6 (2) includes any provision of the Social Security 7 Act that authorizes a benefit to be furnished. 8 (f) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) shall apply to 10 determinations (including redeterminations) of eligi- 11 bility made on or after the date that is 1 year after 12 the date of the enactment of this Act. 13 (2) TRANSITION RULE.—In no case shall an in- 14 dividual remain eligible for a Federal assistance ben- 15 efit after the date that is 2 years after the date of 16 the enactment of this Act without satisfying the citi- 17 zenship requirement of subsection (b)(1). 18 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Mar 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS