The California Senate took a contentious step earlier this year toward extending substantial jobless benefits to illegal immigrants, which mostly went unnoticed by the national media.
The California Senate approved on Tuesday to give $300 weekly checks to unemployed illegal immigrants, despite the state’s $31.5 billion deficit and massive illegal immigration. (Source: Washington Free Beacon)
Increasing Illegal Immigrants at the State
According to The Free Beacon, the California Senate passed in May to pay $300 weekly checks to unemployed illegal immigrants. The decision comes as the state faces a $31.5 billion deficit and increased fears about increasing illegal immigration. Democratic state senators led by Sen. Mara Elena Durazo passed Senate Bill 227 30-7 in May, sending the proposal to the Assembly for further consideration. The proposed law would offer illegal workers with up to 20 weeks of $300 weekly unemployment benefits in exchange for satisfying minimum labor criteria.
According to The Free Beacon, critics have pointed out that the unemployment insurance fund tasked with administering these payouts is already saddled with $31 billion in fraud losses connected to the COVID-19 outbreak. Furthermore, California employers, who are burdened with the fund’s $20 billion debt, face the prospect of increased payroll taxes, which is a source of contention for small businesses and restaurants, as both sectors have already been strained by state Democrats’ stringent COVID-19 lockdowns.
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Heads up for the Legibility of $300 for Illegal Immigrants
The proposed rule includes an unusual provision that forbids fund employees from questioning applicants for their social security number eligibility or checking their job status with previous or present employers. Applicants would self-certify their credentials by providing proof such as tax returns or payment app records. The legislative development comes just days after California’s Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom expressed concern that an inflow of undocumented migrants could “break” the state.
Furthermore, according to the New York Times, when President Joe Biden revoked the Title 42 health order banning immigration earlier this year, Democratic San Diego mayor Todd Gloria declared that the city could not deal with a large number of immigrants. According to The Free Beacon, California, which is known for its liberal policies toward undocumented immigrants, already supplies this group with free healthcare and driver’s licenses. A broad range of Democratic-aligned interest organizations, including those concerned with immigration, LGBT rights, the environment, and labor unions, have largely backed the plan.
While the Assembly is expected to approve the plan, it is unclear whether Gov. Newsom will sign it into law, given that he vetoed a similar proposal last year, citing “operational issues and fiscal concerns.
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