The state formerly known as Golden State is currently under investigation, with the Department of Homeland Security pursuing it for a substantial program that prioritized illegal aliens over Americans by allocating welfare funds to illegal aliens who cannot access Social Security due to their illegal status.
In a statement, DHS highlighted that the California program providing such welfare is unlawful under the executive order of the Trump Administration, which prohibits the allocation of Social Security funds to illegal aliens, and consequently, it will be subjected to rigorous scrutiny by DHS.
The statement commenced by outlining the program and indicated that the investigation was initiated with a subpoena, stating, “Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Los Angeles Field Office issued a Title 8 subpoena to the State of California’s Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI). This program offers benefits to aliens who are ineligible for Social Security benefits due to their immigration status.”
Furthermore, the statement expressed suspicion that California has been unlawfully providing Social Security funds to illegal aliens. It stated, “The subpoena seeks all records from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services – which administers the state program – to ascertain whether ineligible illegal aliens received Supplemental Security Income (SSI) from the Social Security Administration, from January 2021 to the present.”
Subsequently, after acknowledging that it is subpoenaing a substantial amount of information from the California program regarding the recipients of Social Security funding, the statement elaborated on how President Trump has taken measures to prevent states like California from depleting Social Security by extending it to illegal aliens.
This section of the statement commenced by identifying the executive order that addressed the issue, stating, “On April 15, 2025, President Donald Trump signed the Memorandum Preventing Illegal Aliens from Obtaining Social Security Act Benefits to halt the encouragement of illegal immigration and safeguard taxpayer funds.”
Furthermore, it specified the agencies and departments engaged in combating the depletion of Social Security, stating, “The Memorandum instructs the Secretary of Homeland Security – in collaboration with the Secretaries of Labor and Health and Human Services, the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, and the Attorney General – to ensure that ineligible illegal aliens do not receive funds from Social Security programs and to prioritize civil or criminal enforcement against states or localities for potential breaches of Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA).”
Highlighting that President Biden exacerbated the issue of illegal immigrants draining Social Security, the DHS statement further remarked, “During the previous administration, over 2 million ineligible illegal aliens were issued a Social Security Number in fiscal year 2024 alone. Under President Trump’s guidance, the Department of Homeland Security will collaborate with its federal partners to fulfill his commitment to prioritize Americans and their tax dollars.”
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, representing her party, commented on the situation by asserting that California had prioritized illegal aliens over its own citizens, stating, “Radical left politicians in California favor illegal aliens over our own citizens, including by granting illegal aliens access to cash benefits.”
