U.S. Code » Title 8 » Chapter CHAPTER 14— RESTRICTING WELFARE AND PUBLIC BENEFITS FOR ALIENS › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER II— ELIGIBILITY FOR STATE AND LOCAL PUBLIC BENEFITS PROGRAMS

8 U.S.C. § 1624

Authority of States and political subdivisions of States to limit assistance to aliens and to distinguish among classes of aliens in providing general cash public assistance

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(a) In general

Subject to subsection (b) and notwithstanding any other provision of law, a State or political subdivision of a State is authorized to prohibit or otherwise limit or restrict the eligibility of aliens or classes of aliens for programs of general cash public assistance furnished under the law of the State or a political subdivision of a State.

(b) Limitation

The authority provided for under subsection (a) may be exercised only to the extent that any prohibitions, limitations, or restrictions imposed by a State or political subdivision of a State are not more restrictive than the prohibitions, limitations, or restrictions imposed under comparable Federal programs. For purposes of this section, attribution to an alien of a sponsor’s income and resources (as described in section 1631 of this title) for purposes of determining eligibility for, and the amount of, benefits shall be considered less restrictive than a prohibition of eligibility for such benefits.

(Pub. L. 104–208, div. C, title V, § 553, Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009–681.)Editorial NotesCodification

Section was enacted as part of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, and as part of the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act, 1997, and not as part of title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 which comprises this chapter.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 5 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2001–2026 · leading case: Doe v. Commissioner of Transitional Assistance
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Doe v. Commissioner of Transitional Assistance (2002) mass · cites it 5× “8 U.S.C. § 1624 . 3 8One of the stated purposes of the welfare reform act was to further the national immigration policy that “aliens within the Nation’s borders not depend on public resources to meet their needs, but rather rely on their own capabilities and the resources of…”
Finch v. Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority (2011) mass · cites it 2× “§ 1622 ); "a State is authorized to prohibit or otherwise limit or restrict the eligibility of aliens or classes of aliens for programs of general cash public assistance furnished under the law of the State" ( 8 U.S.C. § 1624 ); and "[a] State may provide that an alien who is…”
Ehrlich v. Perez (2006) md “Finally, as to the correct standard of review to be applied to the Article 24 challenge, Appellants assert that the Welfare Reform Act grants Maryland the ability to determine whether and to what extent it will use State funds to provide non- *711 emergency medical benefits to…”
Doe v. McIntire (2001) masssuperct · cites it 5× “” 8 U.S.C. §1624 (a) and (b). In short, under the 1996 Act, Massachusetts was barred from paying a penny of state money in cash assistance to aliens who were not qualified aliens.”
Ismael Perez v. Assistant Field Office Director, Krome North Service Processing Center (2026) ca11 “8 U.S.C. § 1624 . In both, the specific precedes “or otherwise” and a broader disjunctive series follows.”
— 8 U.S.C. § 1624(b) — 1 case
Ehrlich v. Perez (2006) md “Finally, as to the correct standard of review to be applied to the Article 24 challenge, Appellants assert that the Welfare Reform Act grants Maryland the ability to determine whether and to what extent it will use State funds to provide non- *711 emergency medical benefits to…”
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