By: Truan, Ellis, Shapleigh S.C.R. No. 19 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 1-2 Reconciliation Act of 1996, better known as the Welfare Reform Law, 1-3 denies Medicaid benefits, access to Supplemental Security Income, 1-4 and food stamps to noncitizens who are legal residents of the 1-5 United States, with certain exemptions; and 1-6 WHEREAS, Currently there are 37,300 legal immigrants residing 1-7 in Texas projected to lose Medicaid benefits due to welfare reform; 1-8 removal of these benefits will result in a direct economic loss to 1-9 the state of approximately $95 million and a negative indirect 1-10 economic impact of approximately $195 million; and 1-11 WHEREAS, There are 38,450 legal immigrants residing in Texas 1-12 projected to lose Supplemental Security Income; this change will 1-13 result in a direct economic loss of $130 million to Texas and an 1-14 indirect economic impact of $390 million; and 1-15 WHEREAS, There are a total of 141,000 legal immigrants 1-16 residing in Texas who are projected to lose their food stamp 1-17 benefits; the loss of food stamp benefits to those individuals will 1-18 result in a direct economic loss of some $122 million and an 1-19 indirect impact that could be as much as $366 million; and 1-20 WHEREAS, A conservative estimate of the total negative 1-21 indirect economic impact these losses will have on the State of 1-22 Texas is approximately $1 billion; now, therefore, be it 1-23 RESOLVED, That the 75th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-1 hereby acknowledge the direct economic loss faced by legal 2-2 immigrants due to the changes enacted by federal welfare reform; 2-3 and, be it further 2-4 RESOLVED, That the 75th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-5 hereby acknowledge the economic loss and the economic impact 2-6 suffered by the State of Texas due to the loss of Medicaid, 2-7 Supplemental Security Income, and food stamp benefits by legal 2-8 immigrants residing within the borders of this state; and, be it 2-9 further 2-10 RESOLVED, That the 75th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-11 hereby respectfully request the United States Congress to amend 2-12 federal law to encourage citizenship of legal immigrants, to 2-13 encourage schools and institutions of higher education to teach and 2-14 offer citizenship courses, to provide enhanced citizenship 2-15 training, to grant citizenship to descendants and parents of 2-16 persons who served two or more years in the United States armed 2-17 services, and to provide a waiver of citizenship requirements for 2-18 the elderly and disabled who have been in the country for 10 years 2-19 or more; and, be it further 2-20 RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official 2-21 copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to 2-22 the speaker of the house of representatives and president of the 2-23 senate of the United States Congress, and to all members of the 2-24 Texas delegation to the congress with the request that it be 2-25 entered officially into the Congressional Record as a memorial to 3-1 the Congress of the United States of America.