California to Give Cash Payments to Immigrants Hurt by Virus

SACRAMENTO, CA (AP) — California will be the first state to give cash to immigrants living in the country undocumented who are hurt by the coronavirus, offering $500 apiece to 150,000 adults who were left out of the $2.2 trillion stimulus package approved by Congress.

Many Americans began receiving $1,200 checks from the federal government this week, and others who are unemployed are getting an additional $600 a week from the government that has ordered them to stay home and disrupted what had been a roaring economy.

But people living in the country illegally are not eligible for any of that money, and advocates have been pushing for states to fill in the gap. Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced he would spend $75 million of taxpayer money to create a Disaster Relief Fund for immigrants living in the country illegally.

“We feel a deep sense of gratitude for people that are in fear of deportations that are still addressing essential needs of tens of millions of Californians,” said Newsom, who noted 10% of the state’s workforce are immigrants living in the country illegally who paid more than $2.5 billion in state and local taxes last year.

Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove said Newsom should spend the money instead on food banks, equipment for students to continue their education online and local governments struggling with revenue losses.

“Instead of meeting these urgent needs, Governor Newsom has chosen to irresponsibly pursue a left-wing path and unilaterally secured $125 million for undocumented immigrants,” said Grove, who represents Bakersfield.

California has an estimated 2.2 million immigrants living in the country illegally, the most of any state, according to the Pew Research Center. State officials won’t decide who gets the money. Instead, the state will give the money to a network of regional nonprofits to find and vet potential recipients. Advocates say that’s key to making the plan work because immigrants are unlikely to contact the government for fear of deportation.

“You need to use organizations that have trusted relationships with these families,” said Jacqueline Martinez, CEO of the Latino Community Foundation.

A group of charities has committed to raising another $50 million for the fund from private donors, potentially offering benefits to another 100,000 people. But that money will have fewer limitations, meaning grants could be more than $500 or less, depending on the cost-of-living where a person lives.

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SACRAMENTO, CA (AP) — California dará pagos en efectivo a inmigrantes que viven ilegalmente en el país, anunció el gobernador Gavin Newsom, utilizando una combinación de dinero de los contribuyentes y contribuciones caritativas para dar a 150.000 adultos $500 cada uno durante el brote de coronavirus.

California tiene aproximadamente 2 millones de inmigrantes que viven en el país ilegalmente. No son elegibles para el paquete de estímulo de $2.2 billones aprobado por el Congreso el mes pasado, que otorga pagos en efectivo a la mayoría de los estadounidenses y aumenta los beneficios de desempleo en $600 por semana.

El gobernador de California Gavin Newsom anunció que asignará 75 millones de dólares del dinero de los contribuyentes para crear un Fondo de Ayuda para Catástrofes para los inmigrantes que viven sin autorización en el país.

“Sentimos una profunda gratitud con las personas que tienen miedo de ser deportadas y de todas formas atienden las necesidades esenciales de decenas de millones de californianos”, dijo el gobernador, quien resaltó que el 10% de la fuerza laboral del estado se compone de inmigrantes no autorizados para estar en el país y que pagaron más de 2.500 millones de dólares en impuestos locales y estatales el año pasado.

Newsom dijo que el dinero no se distribuirá con base en los ingresos. De hecho, el gobierno no lo distribuirá en absoluto, sino que lo entregará a una red de organizaciones sin fines de lucro regionales que son de confianza dentro de la comunidad de inmigrantes y tienen experiencia en apoyarlos.