In 1997, Senator Feinstein spearheaded a bi-partisan effort in Congress to restore Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits to the nation's most vulnerable elderly and disabled legal immigrants. Senator Feinstein introduced legislation withSenator John Chafee (R-RI) in April of 1997 that would preserve SSI and food stamps for legal immigrants who were receiving such assistance before enactment of theWelfare Reform Bill.

On August 5, 1997, President Clinton signed the Balanced Budget Agreement into law which includes part of the Chafee-Feinstein legislation, restoring SSI benefits for those legal immigrants who were receiving those benefits prior to August 22, 1996 -- the date the Welfare Reform Bill was passed -- and providing benefits for those legal immigrants who were in the country prior to August 22, 1996 and become disabled in the future. Food stamps are not included.

Supplemental Security Income is the sole source of income for hundreds of thousands of elderly and disabled legal immigrants -- many of them refugees. People who came to this country legally, many of whom have no sponsor, no family, and no other sufficient means of support will have no where else to turn for help but to State and local general assistance programs.

Nationwide, an estimated 500,000 legal immigrants would have lost SSI benefits unless the Congress acted to restore those benefits. Nearly 40% of those legal immigrants live in California. The cuts would have been felt the hardest in California, New York, Florida, Texas, Illinois and Massachusetts where three-quarters of those affected by the ban are located.

For more information, visit the Social Security Admininstration's website.