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Arkansas, August 23, 2024 (The Arkansas Advocate) – A legislative subcommittee approved an emergency rule Thursday to comply with a new U.S. federal law that expands certain public assistance program benefits to immigrants from the Marshall Islands.
Arkansas is home to the largest Marshallese population in the United States, according to estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau.
The emergency rule filed Thursday by the Department of Human Services to the Arkansas Legislative Council’s Executive Subcommittee updates the eligibility provisions in the DHS Division of County Operations (DCO) rules to comply with the 2024 Omnibus Appropriations Act.
The bill, signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 9, amends the renegotiated Compact of Free Association (COFA) to expand eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) to citizens of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau.
COFA allows the United States to establish military bases in these Pacific island nations in exchange for sponsorship and economic aid. Immigrants from these freely associated states can live and work in the United States as legal nonimmigrants.
According to documents filed with the committee, the emergency rule is needed because Pacific Islander communities have some of the highest poverty rates in Arkansas and “the public health, safety and welfare of the state are in imminent danger.”
More than 32 percent of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in the state live below the poverty line, according to census data from the American Community Survey.
“We just received guidance from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, and we’ve been asked repeatedly by some Marshallese people about this, so we’re bringing it to you as an emergency rule so you can implement it,” said Janet Mann, DHS Under Secretary for Programs and state Medicaid director.
The committee quickly approved the rule without discussion among its members, and co-chairman Rep. Jeff Wardlaw, R-Ky., said it will take effect Friday after the Arkansas Legislative Session adjourns.
A permanent rule will be issued and take effect Dec. 1, according to documents filed by the Department of Homeland Security.
A report released last year by Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families and the Arkansas Marshallese Coalition recommended granting SNAP eligibility to Marshallese immigrants through legislation such as the Compact Impact Fairness Act to address food insecurity in that community.
The Compact Impact Fairness Act, co-sponsored by Arkansas Rep. Steve Womack and Sen. John Boozman, proposes allowing COFA immigrants to qualify for most safety net programs, including SNAP. The bill’s language was included in the revised compact with the Marshall Islands reached last October.
Compensation for past nuclear weapons testing by the United States, which conducted 67 nuclear weapons tests in and around the Marshall Islands between 1946 and 1958, including the largest bomb ever detonated by the United States, has been a sticking point in COFA negotiations and has delayed the renewal process.
The original agreement signed with the Republic of the Marshall Islands went into effect in 1986, and economic assistance began in 1987. The Republic of the Marshall Islands signed the agreement to renew the agreement assistance in 2003, and Congress passed legislation to amend the agreement and extend the economic assistance for 20 years.
But 20 years ago, Marshallese immigrants lost access to programs like Medicaid and SNAP because a 1996 welfare reform law, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, did not take into account their unique immigration status. Congress restored Medicaid in 2020, and the 2024 Consolidated Appropriations Act amended the 1996 law to restore SNAP eligibility.
Under the updated agreement, COFA citizens will not have a waiting period and will be eligible for benefits immediately as long as they meet all other SNAP requirements, according to guidance released by the USDA in July.
COFA citizens who applied for SNAP benefits on or after March 9, 2024, and were denied before USDA issued the guidance, can reapply or request a fair hearing within 90 days of the date of the denial. If officials determine that the household was eligible for SNAP at the time of application, the state agency should issue retroactive benefits from the date of application, according to the guidance.
USDA is also encouraging state agencies to track down COFA citizens who have been denied SNAP benefits since March and encourage them to reapply or request a fair hearing… PACNEWS
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