FEDERATION FOR AMERICAN IMMIGRATION REFORM Legislative Fact Sheet —————————————————————————————————————————————— NEW YORK SENATE BILL 7879 AND ASSEMBLY BILL 10129 Summary Senate Bill (S.B.) 7879, also known as the “New York is home act,” was introduced by Senator Gustavo Rivera on June 16, 2014. An identical bill, Assembly Bill (A.B.) 10129, was introduced in the Assembly by Assemblyman Karim Camara on the same day. The bills are omnibus bills that grant identification cards, driver’s licenses, professional licenses, state Medicaid coverage, eligibility to vote in state and local elections, eligibility to hold civic office, scholarships, and financial aid to illegal aliens. They also include provisions restricting cooperation between state and local law enforcement with federal immigration officials and limiting compliance with detainer requests. The bills also provide illegal aliens with protection under New York’s discrimination laws and expand the definition of racial profiling. Particulars of S.B. 7879 and A.B. 10129 Under the bills, any individual, regardless of his or her immigration status, who meets either of the following requirements, shall be deemed to be a citizen of New York: 1. Is a resident of the state who is a citizen of the United States; 2. Is adjudged by the Office for New Americans to satisfy all of the following criteria: a. Has proof of identity; b. Has been a resident of the state for not less than three years; c. Has paid state resident personal income taxes for a period of not less than three taxable years (provided however, that such requirement shall not apply to individuals who are students, primary caregivers, unable to work due to disability, unemployed or otherwise not required pursuant to tax law to report his or her income); d. Has pledged to abide by the laws of the state and to uphold the provisions of the state constitution; and e. Has attested to his or her willingness to serve on jury duty and to continue to pay any taxes required to be paid by him or her pursuant to any provision of state or local law. New York State citizenship status ends when an individual is no longer a resident of New York State. The bills create a “New York State Identification Card” that contains a “New York State Identification Number” and date of issuance. The bills authorize the Office for New Americans, established by the Governor, to grant or renew a New York State identification card to any 25 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE, NW • SUITE 330 • WASHINGTON, DC 20001 • 202 328 7004 • 202 387 3447 (FAX) WWW.FAIRUS.ORG 2|Page individual who meets the criteria set forth above. Any U.S. citizen New York resident who desires the card must also obtain the card through the Office for New Americans. Except where otherwise prohibited by federal law, the bills require a New York State identification card to be accepted and deemed valid government identification anywhere a state driver’s license would also be accepted. They also require that a New York State identification number be accepted as a valid substitution for a social security number. S.B. 7879 and A.B. 10129 provide that any person in possession of a valid New York State identification card shall not be disqualified from eligibility on the basis of immigration status for any state license, permit, certificate or grant of permission required as a condition for the lawful practice of any occupation, employment, trade, vocation, business or profession in the State of New York. The professional licenses covered under this bill include the fields of law, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, engineering, private security, real estate, and architecture. The bills grant eligibility to a person in possession of a valid New York State identification card to register for and vote at state and local elections. They also allow any “New York State citizen,” including illegal aliens, to hold a state or local civil office. S.B. 7879 and A.B. 10129 extend state Medicaid coverage to illegal aliens who are “New York State citizens.” The bills grant any “New York State citizen,” including illegal aliens, eligibility to receive a New York driver’s license, by allowing a New York identification number to be used in lieu of a social security number on a driver’s license application. They also require the Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner to provide for the acceptance of alternative proofs of identity, including a New York State identification card, foreign identification cards, foreign birth certificates and foreign passports. The bills provide post-secondary education benefits to “New York State citizens,” including illegal aliens. Under current New York law, illegal aliens are eligible to receive in-state tuition at New York’s public colleges and universities. S.B. 7879 and A.B. 10129 would make illegal aliens eligible for additional post-secondary benefits, including general awards, academic performance awards, and student loans for higher education, assistance under the Higher Education Opportunity Programs and the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program, financial aid for students attending the State University of New York, the City University of New York and Community Colleges, and eligibility to participate in the New York State College Choice Tuition Savings Program. To receive the post-secondary education benefits, an illegal alien applicant need only demonstrate that he or she: 1. Attended a registered approved New York high school for two or more years or attended a New York program for a state high school equivalency diploma; 2. Graduated from a registered approved New York High School or received the equivalent of a High School diploma in New York; 3|Page 3. Applied for attendance to undergraduate college or university within five years of graduating from high school or obtaining the equivalent of a high School diploma or applied for attendance to graduate college or university within ten years of graduating from high school or obtaining the equivalent of a high School diploma; 4. Is eligible for in-state tuition rates and fees; and 5. Filed an affidavit with the college or university stating that the applicant has filed an application to legalize immigration status, or will file such application when eligible to do so. The bills also create the Dream Fund Commission whose mission is to advance “the educational opportunities of the children of immigrants.” The Commission is comprised of twelve members who are appointed by various elected officials and serve without compensation. The main function of the Commission is to promote and raise funds for the DREAM Fund and develop criteria and a selection process for the recipients of the scholarships to be distributed from the DREAM Fund. The DREAM Fund is funded entirely by private contributions. To receive a scholarship from the DREAM Fund, an applicant must demonstrate that he or she: 1. Resided with parents or legal guardians while attending high school in New York; 2. Graduated from a New York high school or received the equivalent of a high school diploma in New York; 3. Attended a New York high school for at least two years as of the date of graduation or obtained the equivalent of a high school diploma in New York; 4. Has at least one parent or guardian who immigrated to the United States. S.B. 7879 and A.B. 10129 prohibit “discrimination” against illegal aliens on the basis of their status as a New York State citizen by adding New York State citizenship status as a class subject to protection under New York’s discrimination laws. “Discrimination” is prohibited in the areas of employment, employment services, public accommodation, housing and real estate, education, membership in volunteer fire departments or fire companies, and in banking and financial services, including lending. The bills contain anti-enforcement provisions limiting state and local cooperation with federal immigration officials. Specifically, they prohibit law enforcement officers and probation officers from honoring a civil immigration detainer or administrative warrant from federal immigration officials by holding a person beyond the time when such person would otherwise be released from custody. They also prohibit law enforcement officers and probation officers from expending time or resources responding to inquiries or communicating with federal immigration authorities of such person’s incarceration status, release dates, court appearance dates, or any other information related to an individual in custody unless such a response or communication is required or protected by law. Unless an immigration agent has a valid and properly issued criminal warrant, or law enforcement officials have a legitimate law enforcement purpose that is not related to the enforcement of immigration law, law enforcement officers and probation officers are also 4|Page prohibited from permitting any federal immigration official to have access to any person in their custody, or have access to any facility owned or operated by the state, or by any municipality within the state, for the purpose of investigating potential violations of the civil immigration law. S.B. 7879 and A.B. 10129 also require the each law enforcement and probation department to post on the department’s website a report that includes: 1. The number of detainer requests received from federal immigration authorities; 2. The number of persons held pursuant to civil immigration detainers beyond the time when such persons would otherwise be released from custody; 3. The number of persons transferred to the custody of federal immigration authorities pursuant to an ICE detainer; 4. The justification and legal authority for the transfer of any individual to the custody of federal immigration authorities. S.B. 7879 and A.B. 10129 prohibit the Superintendent of State Police and members of the division of State Police from “racial profiling.” The bills define racial profiling to mean “the practice of a law enforcement officer or agency relying, to any degree, on race, ethnicity, national origin, or religion in selecting which individual to subject to routine or spontaneous investigatory activities or in deciding upon the scope and substance of law enforcement activity following the initial investigatory procedure, except when there is trustworthy information, relevant to the locality and timeframe, that links a person of a particular race, ethnicity, national origin, or religion to an identified criminal incident or scheme.” The bills create a special civil cause of action for declaratory and injunctive relief for any person claiming injury from racial profiling. The bills also authorize courts to award attorney’s fees and costs, including expert fees, to any prevailing plaintiff in such a lawsuit. To prevail, a plaintiff need merely demonstrate a routine or spontaneous investigatory activity by members of the division of the New York State Police that has a disparate impact on a racial, ethnic, or religious minority.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Sep 2014 11:26:22 +0000
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