Pólizas y Leyes

March 27th, 2020

There are many important provisions in the CARES Act that will provide support and assistance to [many] survivors, including immigrant survivors. ****One crucial provision in the bill increases support for domestic violence victim services funded under the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act ($45 million) and the National Domestic Violence Hotline ($2 million).There are many other provisions that will provide both targeted and broad assistance to those struggling in the face of this crisis. These include:

Providing cash payments of $1200 to eligible individuals (or $2400 for eligible individuals filing joint tax returns), plus $500 for qualifying children. An important note: with limited exceptions, individuals without Social Security Numbers (SSNs), including those with Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs), are ineligible for cash payments, even if some in the family have SSNs that are valid for employment;Expansion of unemployment insurance;Increased funding for numerous services and programs, including:

• $350 million to support the State Department with Refugee Processing;
• Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs, including: $4 billion for Emergency Solutions Grants for homelessness assistance and $5 billion in Community Development Block Grants; and
• Legal Services Corporation ($50 million) to support civil legal aid needs of low-income individuals.

In addition, the bill does not increase funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).

STILL, THERE IS MORE WORK TO BE DONE

There are still significant gaps in our community response to the COVID-19 crisis. The CARES Act failed to include the following important measures, among others, that must be included in future legislation:

1. Expanded access to Medicaid to ensure all individuals have access to COVID-19 testing, care and treatment, including currently ineligible immigrants, such as U-visa holders and survivors holding DACA and TPS, certain green card holders, and undocumented individuals;
2. Access to cash payments for all taxpayers, including those in mixed status families;
3. Extensions of immigration status or work authorization for those whose status or authorization expired/will expire;
4. Increased funding for Office on Violence Against Women programs, including the Sexual Assault Services Program; transitional housing, rural programs, Legal Assistance for Victims; Culturally Specific programs, etc.;
5. Waivers for program match requirements for OVW & VOCA funds; and
6. Specific language in HUD program funding ensuring access for victim services programs.

Many of these gaps are included in the House-introduced COVID-19 bill, H.R. 6379, which will likely serve as a starting point for future negotiations on COVID-19 related legislation. We will keep you posted about opportunities for you to take action as developments unfold.As Congress finishes its work on the CARES Act and Members go on recess and back to district offices, we urge you to continue to **educate your Representative and Senators about the importance of access to vital health care and economic assistance to everyone, and about the unique needs of immigrant survivors for support in order to escape abuse and rebuild their lives.**Contact information for your Representative can be found here and your Senators here.