Thread: Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant: No state aid for illegal immigrants

Gov. Phil Bryant issued an executive order today that reaffirms state law prohibiting illegal immigrants from receiving public benefits, according to a press release.
The order also requires executive state agencies that administer such benefits to clarify their processes in order to guard against erroneously issuing benefits to persons recently granted deferred action status by President Barack Obama’s administration, read the release.

In June, Obama announced his Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy. The policy change could stop deportations for more than 1 million young illegal immigrants who would have qualified for the failed DREAM Act, formally the Development, Relief and Education of Alien Minors Act, which Obama has supported in the past.
“Gov. Bryant is concerned that Mississippi taxpayers could be unduly burdened if state agencies erroneously issue public benefits to a person simply because he or she was granted ‘deferred action’ status by President Obama,” read the press release. “Being granted such status does not confer legal rights to a person and does not entitle that person to receive public benefits. Mississippi law prohibits issuing public benefits to a person who is not lawfully present in the state or country.”
Bryant isn’t the only governor to weigh in on immigration. Today’s order comes one week after Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer’s executive order that prohibits her state from issuing driver’s licenses and other public benefits to immigrants who qualify to work under the new policy.
“Illegal immigration has real consequences for Mississippi, as it puts additional burdens on our already stretched budget,” Bryant said. “This executive order will help ensure that public benefits go to only those persons who are lawfully eligible.”
The Obama administration plan is to stop deporting many illegal immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. To be eligible, immigrants must prove they arrived in the United States before they turned 16, are 30 or younger, have been living here at least five years and are in school or graduated or served in the military. They also cannot have been convicted of certain crimes or otherwise pose a safety threat.
Under guidelines that the administration announced Tuesday, proof of identity and eligibility could include a passport or birth certificate, school transcripts, medical and financial records and military service records.
The U.S. Department of Human Services said that in some instances, multiple sworn affidavits, signed by a third party under penalty of perjury, also could be used. Anyone found to have committed fraud will be referred to federal immigration agents, the department said.



The Associated Press contributed to this report.






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I glad this is being done. The South has got to realize that they will end up like CA or New Mexico if they don't control the illegal immigration problem.