HB 3C

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to eligibility for public benefits;
3	creating s. 409.954, F.S.; requiring verification of the
4	lawful presence in the United States of persons over a
5	specified age applying for certain public benefits;
6	providing exceptions; requiring execution of an affidavit
7	of eligibility; providing for verification of the
8	affidavit under a specified federal program; providing for
9	penalties for false affidavits; providing for variation of
10	requirements; providing for adjudication of unique
11	individual circumstances due to unusual hardship;
12	prohibiting provision of public benefits in violation of
13	specified provisions; providing for reports; providing an
14	effective date.
15
16	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
17
18	Section 1.  Section 409.954, Florida Statutes, is created
19	to read:
20	409.954  Verification of immigration status for public
21	benefits.-
22	(1)  Except as provided in subsection (3) or where exempted
23	by federal law, each agency of the executive, legislative, or
24	judicial branch of state government shall verify the lawful
25	presence in the United States of any natural person 18 years of
26	age or older who has applied for state public benefits as
27	defined in 8 U.S.C. s. 1621 or for federal public benefits as
28	defined in 8 U.S.C. s. 1611 that are administered by that
29	agency.
30	(2)  This section shall be enforced without regard to race,
31	religion, gender, ethnicity, or national origin.
32	(3)  Verification of lawful presence in the United States
33	under this section is not required for:
34	(a)  Any purpose for which lawful presence in the United
35	States is not restricted by law, ordinance, or regulation;
36	(b)  Assistance for health care items and services that are
37	necessary for the treatment of an emergency medical condition,
38	as defined in 42 U.S.C. s. 1396b(v)(3), of the alien involved
39	and are not related to an organ transplant procedure;
40	(c)  Short-term, noncash, in-kind emergency disaster
41	relief;
42	(d)  Public health assistance for immunizations with
43	respect to diseases and for testing and treatment of symptoms of
44	communicable diseases, regardless of whether such symptoms are
45	caused by a communicable disease; or
46	(e)  Programs, services, or assistance such as soup
47	kitchens, crisis counseling and intervention, and short-term
48	shelter specified by the United States Attorney General, in the
49	sole and unreviewable discretion of the United States Attorney
50	General after consultation with appropriate federal agencies and
51	departments, which:
52	1.  Deliver in-kind services at the community level,
53	including through public or private nonprofit agencies;
54	2.  Do not condition the provision of assistance, the
55	amount of assistance provided, or the cost of assistance
56	provided on the income or resources of the individual recipient;
57	and
58	3.  Are necessary for the protection of life or safety.
59	(4)  Verification of lawful presence in the United States
60	by an agency required to make such verification shall require
61	that the applicant execute an affidavit under penalty of perjury
62	that the applicant is:
63	(a)  A United States citizen; or
64	(b)  A qualified alien under the Immigration and
65	Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. ss. 1101 et seq., and is lawfully
66	present in the United States.
67	(5)  For any applicant who has executed the affidavit
68	described in paragraph (4)(b), eligibility for benefits shall be
69	made through the Systematic Alien Verification of Entitlement
70	program operated by the United States Department of Homeland
71	Security or a successor program designated by that department.
72	Until such eligibility verification is made, the affidavit may
73	be presumed to be proof of lawful presence for the purposes of
74	this section.
75	(6)  Any person who knowingly and willfully makes a false,
76	fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation in an
77	affidavit executed pursuant to subsection (4) and any person who
78	aids or abets a person in knowingly and willfully making such a
79	statement or representation in an affidavit shall be subject to
80	criminal penalties applicable in this state for fraudulently
81	obtaining public assistance program benefits and must disgorge
82	any benefit received and make restitution to the agency that
83	administered the benefit or entitlement. If the affidavit
84	constitutes a false claim of United States citizenship under 18
85	U.S.C. s. 911, a complaint shall be filed by the agency
86	requiring the affidavit with the appropriate United States
87	Attorney.
88	(7)  An agency may adopt variations to the requirements of
89	this section that demonstrably improve the efficiency of or
90	reduce delay in the verification process, or to provide for
91	adjudication of unique individual circumstances where the
92	verification procedures in this section would impose unusual
93	hardship on a legal resident of this state. However, no
94	variation adopted under this subsection may have the effect of
95	eliminating the requirement for verification as provided in
96	subsection (1).
97	(8)  An agency may not provide any state or federal
98	benefit, as defined in 8 U.S.C. s. 1611 or s. 1621, in violation
99	of this section.
100	(9)  Each agency of the executive, legislative, or judicial
101	branch of state government that administers a program of state
102	public benefits shall provide an annual report to the Secretary
103	of Children and Family Services with respect to its compliance
104	with this section. Any and all incidents of noncompliance shall
105	be reported to the United States Department of Homeland Security
106	by the Secretary of Children and Family Services.
107	Section 2.  This act shall take effect October 1, 2010.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.