America First Act
A BILL
To limit eligibility for Federal benefits for certain immigrants, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Adjusting eligibility of certain non-citizens for Federal public benefits under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act
Sec. 3 Verification of citizenship by Head Start agencies
“(e) A child shall be considered ineligible for a Head Start program if—
“(1) the child is not—
“(A) a citizen of the United States; or
“(B) an alien who is admitted to the United States as a refugee under section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157); and
“(2) a parent (including a guardian) of the child is—
“(A) an alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) who is unlawfully present in the United States;
“(B) an alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5), 1126(a)(2)(B));
“(C) an alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a);
“(D) an alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158);
“(E) an alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012; or
“(F) an alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(3)).”
Sec. 4 Eligibility for certain Federal health care benefits
“(5) For purposes of paragraph (1), an alien shall not be considered to be lawfully admitted for permanent residence or otherwise permanently residing in the United States under color of law if the alien is—
“(A) granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act;
“(B) granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012;
“(C) granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;
“(D) granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act; or
“(E) granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
“1899C. Limiting Medicare coverage of parolees and TPS and DACA recipients
“(a) In general—Notwithstanding section 226, section 226A, section 1818(a), section 1836(a), or any other provision of this title, in no case may an applicable individual (as defined in subsection (b)) be entitled to, or enrolled for, benefits under this title.
“(b) Applicable individual defined—In this section, the term applicable individual means an alien—
“(1) granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act;
“(2) granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012;
“(3) granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;
“(4) granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act; or
“(5) granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
“(F) Disqualified individuals—The following shall not be treated as an applicable taxpayer:
“(i) Any alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
“(ii) Any alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
“(iii) Any alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
“(iv) Any alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012.
“(v) Any alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
Sec. 5 Housing
“(2) The Secretary shall not provide financial assistance to a family unless the eligibility of each member of the family has been affirmatively established under the program of financial assistance and under this section.”
“(j) Prohibition on eligibility guidelines—The applicable Secretary shall not issue any guidelines relating to eligibility for financial assistance under this section.”
“(j) Eligibility
“(1) In general—The Secretary shall make a loan under this section only to—
“(A) a citizen of the United States; or
“(B) an occupant or resident of a housing unit that does not include—
“(i) any alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a))) who is unlawfully present in the United States;
“(ii) any alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158);
“(iii) any alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5), 1126(a)(2)(B));
“(iv) any alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a);
“(v) any alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012; and
“(vi) any alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(3)).
“(2) Prohibition on eligibility guidelines—The Secretary shall not issue any guidelines relating to eligibility under paragraph (1) for a loan under this section.”
“(E) Disqualified individuals
“(i) In general—A unit shall not be treated as a low-income unit if such unit is occupied by any disqualified individual.
“(ii) Disqualified individual—The term disqualified individual means—
“(I) any alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act) who is unlawfully present in the United States,
“(II) any alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,
“(III) any alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act,
“(IV) any alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,
“(V) any alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012, and
“(VI) any alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
Sec. 6 Identification requirements for child tax credit and earned income tax credit; permanent extension of certain temporary rules for child tax credit
“(A) $400,000 in the case of a joint return, and
“(B) $200,000 in any other case.”
“(4) Maximum amount of refundable credit
“(A) In general—The amount determined under paragraph (1)(A) with respect to any qualifying child shall not exceed $1,700, and such paragraph shall be applied without regard to subsection (h).
“(B) Adjustment for inflation
“(i) In general—In the case of a taxable year beginning after 2024, the $1,700 amount in subparagraph (A) shall be increased by an amount equal to—
“(I) such dollar amount, multiplied by
“(II) the cost-of-living adjustment determined under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar year in which the taxable year begins, determined by substituting “2023” for “2016” in subparagraph (A)(ii) thereof.
“(ii) Rounding—If any increase under this subparagraph is not a multiple of $100, such increase shall be rounded to the next lowest multiple of $100.”
“(e) Additional requirements
“(1) Identification requirements—No credit shall be allowed under this section to a taxpayer who does not include on the return of tax for the taxable year—
“(A) the social security number of the taxpayer (and, in the case of a joint return, the social security number of the taxpayer's spouse),
“(B) with respect to any qualifying child, the name and the social security number of such qualifying child, and
“(C) for purposes of subsection (h), with respect to any dependent of the taxpayer, the name and the social security number of such dependent.
“(2) Social security number defined—For purposes of this subsection, the term social security number means, with respect to a return of tax, a social security number issued to an individual by the Social Security Administration, but only if the social security number is issued—
“(A) to a citizen of the United States or pursuant to subclause (I) (or that portion of subclause (III) that relates to subclause (I)) of section 205(c)(2)(B)(i) of the Social Security Act, and
“(B) before the due date for filing such return for the taxable year.
“(3) Citizenship and lawful presence requirements
“(A) In general—No credit shall be allowed under this section to a taxpayer unless—
“(i) the taxpayer (and, in the case of a joint return, the taxpayer's spouse) satisfy the requirements under subparagraph (B),
“(ii) with respect to any qualifying child, such child satisfies the requirements under subparagraph (B), and
“(iii) with respect to any dependent described in subsection (h), such dependent satisfies the requirements under subparagraph (B).
“(B) Requirements—The requirements described in this subparagraph are that the individual—
“(i) shall be a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully present in the United States, and
“(ii) may not be—
“(I) an alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158),
“(II) an alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5), 1126(a)(2)(B)),
“(III) an alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a),
“(IV) an alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(3)),
“(V) any nonimmigrant described in section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)),
“(VI) any alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012, or
“(VII) an alien who has been issued an employment-based immigrant visa described in section 203(b) of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)).”
“(h) Partial credit allowed for certain other dependents
“(1) In general—The credit determined under subsection (a) shall be increased by $500 for each dependent of the taxpayer (as defined in section 152) other than a qualifying child described in subsection (c).
“(2) Exception for certain noncitizens—Paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect to any individual who would not be a dependent if subparagraph (A) of section 152(b)(3) were applied without regard to all that follows “resident of the United States”.”
“(g) Citizenship and lawful presence requirements—No credit shall be allowed under this section to an eligible individual unless—
“(1) the individual (and, in the case of a joint return, the individual's spouse) satisfy the requirements described in section 24(e)(3)(B), and
“(2) with respect to any qualifying child, such child satisfies the requirements under such section.”
“(L) the inclusion on a return of a TIN required to be included on the return under section 21, 6428, or 6428A, or the inclusion on a return of a social security number required to be included on the return under section 24 or 32, if—
“(i) such TIN or social security number, as applicable, is of an individual whose age affects the amount of the credit under such section, and
“(ii) the computation of the credit on the return reflects the treatment of such individual as being of an age different from the individual's age based on such TIN or social security number, as applicable,”
Sec. 7 Federal Emergency Management Agency prohibitions
Sec. 8 Eligibility for postsecondary financial assistance based on immigration status
“(5) be a citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States; and”
Sec. 9 Reducing ESEA funding for sanctuary jurisdictions
“8549D. Funding reductions for Sanctuary jurisdictions
“(a) Funding reductions for sanctuary jurisdictions
“(1) In general—Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, if the Secretary determines for a fiscal year that a State or political subdivision of a State is a sanctuary jurisdiction, the Secretary shall reduce the allotment or grant that is otherwise authorized under any provision of this Act for the State educational agency of such State or for the eligible entity of such political subdivision, as applicable, by 50 percent for such fiscal year.
“(2) Reallotment—In any case in which the Secretary reduces an allotment or grant to a State educational agency or eligible entity under paragraph (1) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall reallot an amount for such fiscal year equal to such reduction to the remaining State educational agencies of States that are not sanctuary jurisdictions or eligible entities of political subdivisions that are not sanctuary jurisdictions, in accordance with the applicable requirements of that allotment or grant.
“(b) Subgrants
“(1) In general—Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, if the Secretary determines for a fiscal year that a political subdivision of a State is a sanctuary jurisdiction, the State educational agency shall reduce the subgrant amount otherwise authorized under this Act for an eligible entity of such sanctuary jurisdiction by 50 percent for such fiscal year.
“(2) Reallotment—In any case in which a State educational agency reduces a subgrant to an eligible entity under paragraph (1) for a fiscal year, the State educational agency shall reallocate an amount for such fiscal year equal to such reduction to eligible entities of the State that are not eligible entities of sanctuary jurisdictions, in accordance with the applicable requirements of that subgrant.
“(c) Sanctuary jurisdiction—The term sanctuary jurisdiction means a State or a political subdivision of a State, including a city, county, township, school district, or other political subdivision, with laws, ordinances, regulations, directives, policies, or practices that obstruct Federal and local law enforcement agencies from enforcing Federal immigration law, including—
“(1) prohibiting employees from sending, receiving, maintaining, or exchanging with any Federal, State, or local government entity, information regarding the citizenship or the lawful or unlawful immigration status of any individual; or
“(2) denying a request lawfully made by the Department of Homeland Security under section 236 or 287 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 16 (8 U.S.C. 1226 and 1357) to comply with a detainer for, or notify about the release of, an individual.”
Sec. 10 Limitation on refugee resettlement and other services for certain Haitian immigrants
Sec. 11 Prohibiting participation in Federal benefit programs until a satisfactory immigration status is verified
Sec. 12 Verification of citizenship for WIC and school meals
“(4) Citizenship requirements—An infant or a child shall be considered ineligible for the program under this section if—
“(A) the infant or child is not—
“(i) a citizen of the United States; or
“(ii) an alien who is admitted to the United States as a refugee under section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157); and
“(B) a parent (including a guardian) of the infant or child is—
“(i) an alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) who is unlawfully present in the United States;
“(ii) an alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158);
“(iii) an alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5), 1126(a)(2)(B));
“(iv) an alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a);
“(v) an alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012; or
“(vi) an alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(3)).”
“(16) Citizenship requirements—A child shall be considered ineligible for free or reduced price lunch under this Act and free or reduced price breakfast under section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773) if—
“(A) the child is not—
“(i) a citizen of the United States; or
“(ii) an alien who is admitted to the United States as a refugee under section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157); and
“(B) a parent (including a guardian) of the child is—
“(i) an alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) who is unlawfully present in the United States;
“(ii) an alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158);
“(iii) an alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5), 1126(a)(2)(B));
“(iv) an alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a);
“(v) an alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012; or
“(vi) an alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(3)).”
Sec. 13 Restrictions on use of Community Development Block Grant funds and Federal funding by tax-exempt organizations
“(i) Prohibition on monetary contributions or in-Kind goods or services for non-Citizens—A recipient of a grant under this title may not use any grant funds to provide monetary contributions or in-kind goods or services to—
“(1) any alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a))) who is unlawfully present in the United States;
“(2) any alien paroled into the United States under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5), 1226(a)(2)(B));
“(3) any alien granted asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158);
“(4) any alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a);
“(5) any alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012; or
“(6) any alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(3)).”
“(s) Prohibition of support to certain non-citizens—Notwithstanding subsection (a), an organization which is described in subsection (c)(3) shall not be exempt from taxation under subsection (a) for any taxable year if, at any time during such taxable year, such organization uses any Federal grant, appropriation, or other Federal funding to provide monetary support, services, or in-kind contributions to—
“(1) any alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act) who is unlawfully present in the United States,
“(2) any alien granted parole under section 212(d)(5) or 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act,
“(3) any alien granted temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,
“(4) any alien granted deferred action or deferred enforced departure, including pursuant to the memorandum of the Department of Homeland Security entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children” issued on June 15, 2012, or
“(5) any alien granted withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”