Labor Dept Warns States About Illegal Migrants Receiving Unemployment Benefits, Threatens Loss Of Federal Funds

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) warned governors across the U.S. and overseas territories to prevent illegal migrants from claiming unemployment benefits or risk losing federal grants.

“[I]t is critical that we ensure American taxpayer dollars do not go towards encouraging or rewarding illegal immigration to the United States,” Lori Chavez-DeRemer, United States Secretary of Labor, wrote in a letter dated April 24 to each governor.

Chavez-DeRemer reminded the governors that employment authorization was a prerequisite to securing employment.

“Unemployment benefits are not a handout for those in our country illegally,” Chavez-DeRemer said.

Compliance with the directive, Chavez-DeRemer wrote, would be in line with President Donald Trump’s presidential memorandum aimed at preventing illegal migrants from receiving social security benefits and his executive order aimed at preventing taxpayer dollars from incentivizing illegal immigration into the country.

She urged them to use the Department of Homeland Security’s immigration database to vet claimants. The database “is a critical tool in the toolbox in ensuring that illegal immigrants do not access our nation’s unemployment benefits,” she wrote.

States that would not comply with “their existing legal obligations regarding immigrant access to unemployment benefits” risked losing their “Title III UI [Unemployment Insurance] administrative grant,” according to Chavez-DeRemer.

Title III of the Social Security Act, administered by the DOL, provides states with federal grants to support their administration of unemployment benefits to qualified individuals.

Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom — a recipient of Chavez-DeRemer’s letter — vetoed a Democrat-authored bill seeking to amend the state’s labor laws so that “unemployed workers who are ineligible for unemployment insurance due to their immigration status” could receive UI-like financial aid.

Newsom vetoed the bill back in September 2024, according to Reuters. Weeks before, he vetoed another bill that would have seen illegal immigrants buy homes using state-backed loans, Politico reported. He also killed another bill that would have allowed undocumented college students to get jobs on their campuses across the state, according to the outlet CalMatters. (RELATED: Washington State Bill Paves The Way For More Non-Citizen Voting, Critics Say)

Democratic Washington State Sen. Rebecca Saldaña introduced a bill January that would “[c]reate a wage replacement program” for illegal immigrants in Washington State. The bill had a public hearing in the state’s Senate Committee on Ways & Means February 26 and “awaits further action,” according to Saldaña.