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House Passes Legislation to Extend SSI Benefits For Elderly and Disabled Refugees

By voice vote, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed legislation (H.R. 2608) today introduced by Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) and Rep. Jerry Weller (R-IL) to extend Supplemental Social Security (SSI) benefits for disabled and elderly refugees who are legally residing in the U.S.

"Refugees fleeing persecution, injustice and even threat of death sometimes arrive in America with only the clothes on their back, and this program has provided a few hundred dollars a month for bare essentials," McDermott said. "In recent years, this modest safety net has been taken away from approximately 7,000 elderly and disabled refuges through no fault of their own, and this legislation would extend SSI benefits for an additional two years."

According to McDermott, refugees must live in the U.S. legally for five years before they can apply for U.S. citizenship, but the SSI benefits terminate in seven years. A variety of factors impede completing the citizenship process within the seven year limit, including lengthy background checks put in place after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

"Even the President acknowledges we have a problem, and the legislation Rep. Weller and I introduced would solve the problem by extending SSI benefits to qualified elderly and disabled refugees for another two years," McDermott said.

The money to pay for the extension would come from money returned to the U.S. Treasury from individuals falsely claiming unemployment benefits.

Maximum monthly SSI benefits equal $623 for an individual or $934 for a couple, neither of which reaches the federal poverty line.

McDermott said without action, another 4,500 elderly and disabled refugees will lose the SSI benefit this year and thousands more will lose the benefit in subsequent years. Read more at house.gov