Judicial Watch Sues California to Stop Governor Newsom’s Initiative....

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Judicial Watch Sues California to Stop 
Governor Newsom’s Initiative to 
Provide $75 Million in Cash Benefits 
to Illegal Aliens

APRIL 30, 2020|JUDICIAL WATCH


(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced itfiled a lawsuit 
in the Superior Court of California County of Los Angeles on 
behalf of two California taxpayers, Robin Crest and Howard Myers, 
asking the court to stop the state from expending $75 million of 
taxpayer funds to provide direct cash assistance to unlawfully 
present aliens (Crest et al. v. Newsom et al. (No. 20STCV16321)). 
The lawsuit alleges California Governor Gavin Newsom overstepped 
his authority and violated federal law when, without affirmative state 
legislative approval, he took executive action to create the 
“Disaster Relief Assistance for Immigrants Project” and provide 
cash benefits to illegal aliens who otherwise are ineligible for state 
or federal insurance or other benefits due to their unlawful 
presence in the United States. 

On April 15, 2020, Governor Newsom announced his new 
executive initiative to provide direct assistance in the form of 
cash benefits to illegal aliens. The initiative, known as the 
“Disaster Relief Fund” or the 
“Disaster Relief Assistance for Immigrants Project,” 
would spend $75 million to provide direct cash payments to 
illegal aliens and cost an estimated additional $4.8 million to 
administer. Governor Newsom’s executive initiative would 
provide one-time cash benefits of $500 per adult / $1,000 
per household to 150,000 unlawfully present aliens in California. 
These benefits are not provided to U.S. citizens residing in the state.

Under federal immigration law, 8 U.S.C. § 1621(a), unlawfully 
present aliens generally are ineligible for State or local public 
benefits. Section 1621(d) requires a state legislature to enact 
a state law which affirmatively provides for such benefits for 
illegal aliens:

A State may provide that an alien who is not lawfully 
present in the United States is eligible for any State 
or local public benefit … only through the enactment 
of a State law … which affirmatively provides for 
such eligibility.

The lawsuit alleges that the California State Legislature has not 
enacted any law that affirmatively provides that unlawfully present 
aliens are eligible for the $75 million of cash public benefits 
announced by Newsom. 

The lawsuit seeks to enjoin California “from providing $75 million 
of taxpayer funds to unlawfully present aliens in violation of 
federal law and expending an estimated additional $4.8 million 
of taxpayer funds as well as additional taxpayer-financed 
resources on the administration of those payments.” 

“Governor Newsom has no legal authority on his own to spend 
state taxpayer money for cash payments to illegal aliens,” said 
Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The coronavirus challenge 
doesn’t give politicians a pass to violate the law. If California 
politicians want to give cash payments to illegal aliens, they 
must be accountable and transparent, and, as federal law 
requires, pass a law to do so.”