Rubio to propose bill to cut aid to Cuban migrants

Rubio to propose bill to cut aid to Cuban migrants

On Thursday, Senator Marco Rubio announced plans to file legislation
that would stop Cuban immigrants from receiving U.S. refugee benefits
and then returning to Cuba.
Megan O'Matz and Sally KestinContact Reporters
Sun Sentinel

Rubio says he has a plan to curb abuses of Cuban refugee aid. Bill to be
introduced within days.

On the presidential campaign trail Thursday, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio said
he will introduce legislation within days to address unbridled abuses of
refugee aid to Cuban migrants.

Rubio joins other influential Cuban Americans in Congress calling for an
end to abuses documented in a Sun Sentinel investigation in October that
found welfare meant to help Cubans settle in America was instead funding
life on the island.

"You now have evidence of people coming to the U.S.," the Florida
Republican told reporters in New Hampshire, and "qualifying for Social
Security or other benefits and they're moving back to Cuba and they're
collecting the checks there."

"That's just outrageous," he said. "Those abuses need to be dealt with."

At a party earlier at the Bedford, N.H., home of a woman who runs a
conservative think tank, Rubio said: "I have a law that we are going to
introduce this week that shuts down this issue," according to NBC News.

Rubio's staff confirmed to the Sun Sentinel on Thursday that the senator
has been working on a bill and will release details next week.

The GOP presidential hopeful also reiterated that the U.S. needs to
"re-examine" the Cuban Adjustment Act, which for decades has given
Cubans a quick path to legal status and benefits in the U.S., whether
they entered the country with or without permission. No other immigrant
group has such easy access to the U.S. and its welfare programs.

The Sun Sentinel exposed widespread exploitation of the refugee aid to
Cubans in a three-part series, Easy Money, published in October. Rubio
echoed many of the investigation's findings as he discussed abuse of
Cubans' "special status" before a gathering of about 200 in New Hampshire.

"People are coming from Cuba in their 60s," he said. "They get Social
Security, even though they never worked here."

Others sign up for benefits and go back to Cuba.

"Their relatives are collecting their Social Security check, often
taking their cut, then wiring back the rest of the money," he said. "We
have people living in Cuba off Social Security benefits. They never
worked here. This is an outrageous abuse."

Rubio joins an increasing number of Cuban-Americans in Congress now
pushing to curb abuses of Cubans' unique status under U.S. law.

Last month U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo introduced legislation requiring
that Cuban immigrants prove they suffered political persecution in Cuba
in order to qualify for U.S. public assistance. The bill's prospects got
a significant boost this week when U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the
doyenne of the Cuban delegation, signed on as a cosponsor.

For decades, the delegation has fiercely protected laws giving Cubans
advantages over other immigrants. But the welfare abuses and recent
influx of Cubans coming to the U.S. for economic opportunity is shifting
their stance.

Rubio told reporters Thursday that he does not support the entrance into
the U.S. of some 8,000 Cuban migrants who have been stuck in Costa Rica
because of a border dispute and soon will make their way through Mexico
to Texas under an agreement struck by officials in Central America. Once
they reach American soil they will be admitted.

Cubans making the trek reportedly fear that their special immigration
status will end because of the rapprochement between the U.S. and Cuba.

Rubio said the surge in Cubans seeking to reach the U.S. year is
"becoming a real crisis."

He said Congress will have to reexamine the Cuban Adjustment Act and
"make changes to it based on new realities."

momatz@tribpub.com or 954-356-4518. skestin@tribpub.com or 954-356-4510.

Source: Marco Rubio to propose bill to cut aid to Cuban migrants - Sun
Sentinel -
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-rubio-bill-cuba-aid-20160107-story.html