Multiple federal agencies announced sweeping policy updates this week to block illegal aliens from receiving taxpayer-funded federal benefits.
The move comes in response to President Donald Trump’s February executive order aimed at restoring integrity to taxpayer-funded programs.
The order directed federal agencies to identify and close loopholes that have allowed illegal aliens to exploit public programs, often in violation of the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), a law that explicitly bans non-citizens from receiving “federal public benefits.”
“Under President Trump’s leadership, hardworking American taxpayers will no longer foot the bill for illegal aliens,” said Education Secretary Linda McMahon, as she announced the Department of Education’s (DOE) sweeping rollback of access to postsecondary benefits for illegals.
McMahon confirmed that illegal aliens will no longer be eligible for federal postsecondary education benefits, including Pell Grants, student loans, and other taxpayer-funded programs.
The department also rescinded a Clinton-era 1997 guidance letter that allowed illegals to exploit career, technical, and adult education programs.
The department blasted the 1997 directive for having “erroneously exempted” certain programs from PRWORA, calling it a deliberate mischaracterization of the law’s intent.
“Postsecondary education programs funded by the federal government should benefit American citizens, not illegal aliens,” McMahon stated.
DOE is now issuing guidance letters to grantees nationwide and warned that enforcement actions under PRWORA could begin as soon as August 9.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) also moved to revoke a 1998 interpretation of PRWORA, announcing that several of its programs, previously offered to illegal migrants, will now be reclassified as “federal public benefits.”
These include:
- Head Start (childcare subsidies for low-income families)
- Community Services Block Grants
- Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness
- Title X Family Planning Program
The reversal is expected to end illegal aliens’ access to these programs, consistent with the statutory limitations passed by Congress nearly three decades ago.
In a formal notice published in the Federal Register, the Department of Agriculture declared that illegal immigrants will be barred from receiving grants, loans, contracts, food assistance, housing benefits, and more.
“The generosity of the American taxpayer has long been abused by faulty interpretations of 1996 welfare reform law,” stated Agriculture Secretary Brooke L. Rollins.
“Today’s notice makes clear its intent—illegal aliens should not receive government dollars.”
The policy affirms that illegals are also ineligible for any retirement, welfare, health, disability, postsecondary education, or unemployment benefits funded by federal resources.
The Department of Labor (DOL) joined the crackdown, issuing new guidance requiring that participants in all federally funded workforce development programs must now prove valid work authorization.
This includes all recipients of funding from the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and similar grant programs.
The DOL said it would mandate policy changes across the national workforce system to ensure only legal workers receive job training and employment services.
In his executive order, Trump cited PRWORA’s original language, which declares that it is a “compelling government interest” to remove incentives for illegal immigration created by the availability of public benefits.
“Numerous administrations have acted to undermine the principles and limitations directed by Congress,” Trump wrote, pointing to years of “improper expenditure of significant taxpayer resources.”
He added that Title IV of PRWORA was clear in its intent that illegal aliens should not rely on public assistance to meet their needs.
This latest move by the Trump administration underscores a broader return to immigration enforcement and rule-of-law governance, while reversing decades of regulatory interpretations that critics say were used to subvert existing federal statutes and enable taxpayer-funded benefits for individuals in the country illegally.
With the executive order now in full effect, agencies are under strict orders to enforce eligibility rules and ensure that federal benefits flow only to American citizens and legal residents.
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