GAO noted that: (1) in fiscal year (FY) 1995, about $1.1 billion in Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and Food Stamp benefits were provided to households with an illegal alien parent for the use of his or her citizen child;
(2) this amount accounted for about 3 percent of AFDC and 2 percent of Food Stamp benefit costs; (3) a vast majority of households receiving these benefits resided in a few states--85 percent of the AFDC households were in California, New York, Texas, and Arizona; (4) 81 percent of Food Stamp households were in California, Texas, and Arizona; (5) California households alone accounted for $720 million of the combined AFDC and Food Stamp caseloads;
(6) although illegal aliens also received Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Department of Housing and Urban Development housing assistance for their citizen children, data to develop estimates for these two programs were not available;
"Read this and weep"
It's even worse when Americans are affected personally by it. I know that many conservatives 'frown' on entitlement programs, so, But for the grace of God, I tell you......
In the county where I live, stopem, all of the government funds to assist DISABLED AMERICANS with housing have been depleted for the past few years and I am told, unless there is an increase in funding, will remain depleted for years to come.
I am a 49 year old DISABLED AMERICAN woman. I've been waiting for 3 years to be approved for SSI/SSD. Anchor Children of illegals are approved at birth. While I wait for SSI, there is no housing assistance left. The county I live in is the headquarters for FLOC (farm labor organizing committee) who employees 10,000 'migrant' farm workers and whose Mexican issued matricula consular ID card has been deemed acceptable 'legal' identification by the County. I suspect that since the men are the migrant laborers they are paid cash, pay no taxes, no paper trail. Meantime their families are getting a housing allowance, collecting food stamps, medicaid and prescriptions paid, SSI and cash assistance and qualify for a whole host of other programs.
A single person like me who's children are grown can get the medicaid, but the only other assistance we are given is about $30 a week for food and $100 in cash to pay for ALL other living expenses for the month.
The money that could be save by ending ALL benefits for these people should be more than enough to pay for the cost of building a wall.