California close to approving $150K loans for illegal immigrants to help purchase homes
Lawmakers in California could soon make the Golden State the first in the country to make undocumented immigrants eligible for up to $150,000 in state-supported home loans.
The Democratic supermajority in the California state legislature is likely to pass a measure this week that would make undocumented immigrants eligible for the "California Dream for All" loan program, a state-funded program that provides 20% in down payment assistance up to $150,000, according to a report for Politico.
Participants in the program must be first-time homebuyers, and at least one must be a first-generation homebuyer, while income levels must be below certain limits depending on the county where the recipient lives.
The measure comes amid the backdrop of a national election in which immigration has taken center stage, the report notes, with the Trump campaign attempting to tie Vice President Kamala Harris to Biden administration border policies that have proven unpopular with voters.
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been one of President Biden’s and now Harris’ top surrogates on the campaign trail, has not said whether he will sign the bill into law if it clears the legislature before the Aug. 31 deadline.
Reached for comment by Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Newsom said the governor "doesn't typically comment on pending legislation."
"If the bill reaches his desk, the Governor will evaluate it on its merits," the spokesperson added.
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Meanwhile, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told Politico the bill is "fundamentally unfair but typical Democrat policy."
However, Democratic lawmakers in the state have defended the legislation, arguing that it is simply designed to give undocumented state residents the same benefits afforded to everyone else in the state.
"It isn’t given out willy nilly to just anybody," Democratic Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes said during a June hearing on the bill.
Democratic Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula, who authored the bill, has argued that it still requires applicants to meet federal requirements, including needing a taxpayer identification or Social Security number to apply for a loan.
At issue, according to Arambula, is a federal law preventing undocumented immigrants from receiving state benefits without a specific state law outlining their eligibility.
"We simply wanted to be as inclusive as possible within our policies so that all who are paying taxes here in our state were able to qualify," Arambula told POLITICO. "Without the intentional law that we are introducing, we felt that there were complexities and questions that many in the immigrant community would have."
When asked by Fox News Digital if the explanation changed the Trump campaign's stance on the legislation, Leavitt simply responded, "no."