California to Assist Illegal Immigrants Affected by Coronavirus
California will create a $125 million assistance fund for illegal immigrants who have lost work due to the coronavirus pandemic but can’t access traditional unemployment insurance, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday.
The program, the first of its kind since the recent economic slowdown began, will consist of $75 million from the state and another $50 million that Mr. Newsom said philanthropic partners have committed to raise.
It will benefit an estimated 150,000 people living in California without legal authorization. Beginning next month, the workers will be eligible for a one-time payment of $500 per adult, with a household cap of $1,000, the Democratic governor said. Undocumented people aren’t eligible for the stimulus payments the federal government recently began issuing.
The announcement comes as immigration advocates have said the downturn is most severely affecting workers in service and other industries that employ a disproportionate number of undocumented immigrants.
“Regardless of your status, documented or undocumented, there are people in need, and this is a state that steps up always to support those in need, regardless of status,” Mr. Newsom said.
The money will be dispersed through nonprofit organizations that work with immigrant communities throughout the state.
Among those who might be eligible is Dora Perez, an undocumented worker from Mexico, who lost her job washing dishes at a Santa Barbara café that closed last month due to the state’s shelter-in-place order. Since losing her work, Ms. Perez said she hasn’t been able to afford the $1,000-a-month rent on the studio apartment she shares with her 85-year-old aunt.
To get by, she said she is getting food from a food bank and has been doing housecleaning work But the money she has earned so far is only enough for a few basic items, such as her phone bill.
“We are a community who contributes to the economy of this country,” Ms. Perez said. “And we work hard at jobs that are some of the lowest paid.”
Mr. Newsom’s announcement adds to a variety of measures California has taken in recent years to help undocumented immigrants.
It currently is the only state to let adults under age 26 qualify for its Medicaid program, along with children.
Following President Trump’s election, California passed a sanctuary-state measure that limited local law enforcement’s cooperation with federal immigration authorities, enacted measures aimed at blocking the expansion of detention facilities and approved funding for deportation-defense attorneys.
Republicans and conservative advocates have opposed such measures in the past, but didn’t immediately respond to Mr. Newsom’s announcement Wednesday.
Immigrant advocates and some Democratic lawmakers have pushed for more asssistance, including allowing undocumented people to access the state’s earned income tax credit.
About 2 million immigrants live in California without legal authorization, of whom an estimated 1.5 million are workers, according to the Pew Research Center.
Photo: The fund announced by Gov. Gavin Newsom will benefit an estimated 150,000 people living in California without legal authorization - RICH PEDRONCELLI/ASSOCIATED PRESS
