The Trump administration announced on Monday that it is investigating a California program that has long provided cash assistance to some undocumented immigrants who are older or have disabilities but are not eligible for federal aid.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials in Los Angeles issued a subpoena to Los Angeles County requesting records that include the identities of people who applied for the state’s Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, the Department of Homeland Security announced.
The program for decades has provided subsistence-level benefits to impoverished residents 65 or older, as well as those who are blind or have a disability.
California officials said that the program, which has existed since 1998, is paid entirely by state funds because the federal government prohibits undocumented immigrants from receiving Supplemental Security Income benefits. Only certain immigrants qualify for the program, they noted, based on their standing with the federal government.
The announcement was the latest indication that President Trump intends to use his federal powers to confront Democratic-led states that offer their own benefits to undocumented immigrants.
“Radical left politicians in California prioritize illegal aliens over our own citizens,” Kristi Noem, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said in a statement.
“If you are an illegal immigrant, you should leave now,” she added. “The gravy train is over. While this subpoena focuses only on Los Angeles County — it is just the beginning.”
The Department of Homeland Security said on Monday that its investigation aims to determine if immigrants living in the country without legal status received federal Supplemental Security Income funds in the last four years. S.S.I. benefits are administered by the Social Security Administration but separate from Social Security payments that are based on one’s work history.
California’s Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants was created to help vulnerable residents who don’t qualify for S.S.I. because of their immigration status.
The state budget allocated $239.6 million for the program in the fiscal year that ends June 30, all from California’s general fund, according to the state’s Department of Finance. The program serves an average of 16,556 people each month across California. Los Angeles County’s budget for 2024-25 says that $115 million is being spent on the state-backed program there; that is up 29 percent since 2022 because more people are participating in the program.
Los Angeles County, the nation’s largest, is home to 9.8 million people, including an estimated 3.5 million immigrants, according to a University of Southern California report. As of 2021, an estimated 809,500 residents in the county were undocumented immigrants.
Laurel Rosenhall is a Sacramento-based reporter covering California politics and government for The Times.
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