There is a house bill that is pending before the Texas State legislature, HB 28, relating to the eligibility of persons born in Texas whose parents are illegal aliens to receive State benefits. The targets of this bill are children born to the illegal alien while in this country
The bill is so offensive on so many levels that it is difficult to know where to begin. The HB28 denies benefits such as housing, food stamps, employment, unemployment and retirement benefits,and specifically prohibits health care and education in any public institution, from Pre-K through university. These children are United States citizens.
The bill is specific about who will be denied state benefits.
Sec. 2352.002. APPLICABILITY. This chapter applies only to an individual: (1)who is born in this state on or after the effective date of this chapter; and (2) whose parents are illegal aliens at the time the individual is born.
I found out about this bill when it was printed in an Immunization newsletter for the public health nurses. As I was reading through the list of benefits to be prohibited to US citizens born to illegal aliens, I saw:
(5) health care or public assistance health benefits;
As a public health nurse, I am alarmed that anyone would want to curtail preventive health care. One reason that governments provide free or very inexpensive immunizations to everyone is because we do not want a reservoir of people susceptible to communicable diseases such as rubella, pertussis, mumps, polio etc. It is in the best interest of the whole community to eliminate vaccine preventable disease. If we do not provide basic preventive care, not only will the unvaccinated children be at risk to acquire dangerous, communicable disease, but they will be a source of disease for everyone.
The same rational goes for TB control, free STD clinics, free HIV screenings etc. This is a core public health activity. To deny prevention and treatment of communicable diseases to millions in our midst will harm the health of all of us. Do we really want people with untreated tuberculosis and syphillis living side by side with us?
Prenatal care is another area that we as a society have decided that we are better off making sure that babies are born healthy rather than premature or sick. It is cheaper to provide prenatal care to an indigent woman than it is to support her baby in NICU and special ed classes in the future. If we do not provide prenatal care to undocumented women, we will have legions of sicker babies who are our own citizens to care for later. Why would we want to do that?
This bill as written does nothing to "fix immigration", but it does a lot to endanger all of us, not just the immigrant.
How about this benefit that the bill proposes to eliminate
(8) instruction in primary or secondary education
Again, we have already decided as a nation that it is cheaper to educate children than it is to have them grow up illiterate. These children are American citizens, and will almost certainly live most of their life in the United States. The most important thing we can do as a nation is to educate them, and mold them into good citizens.
I don't see how this HB can be constitutional. When I read the constitution, I don't see how you can single out children born in this country for second class status.
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
There are many implications of such legislation that need to be discussed before this law is enacted. Again, this bill does nothing to change the status of these kids from legal to illegal, it only penalizes families and threatens their health and welfare. It also would place a horrendous burden on health care workers to try and ascertain the status of parents before providing basic health care to children. And school administrators. If enacted, all parents should have to provide their own birth certificates or passports before enrolling their kids in school.
HB 28 is authored by Representative Leo Berman, along with Joe Crabb, Debbie Riddle, and Wayne Christian. The status of the bill at this time is introduced
Please call your Texas State Representative and let him or her know how you feel about this introduced legislation. Please tell them that this is unconstitutional and open to a challenge for "equal protection under the law", and does nothing to secure our borders, fix immigration or promote fairness. The bill will add to our public health burden and create many more problems for society than it would solve.