The laws that affect the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) Program are:
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Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA)
IRCA required the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (now Department of Homeland Security (DHS), effective March 1, 2003) to establish a system for verifying the immigration status of non-citizen applicants for, and recipients of, certain types of federally funded benefits, and to make the system available to federal, state and local benefit issuing agencies and institutions that administer such benefits. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is the DHS agency responsible for administering the SAVE Program. The IRCA, as amended, mandates the following programs and overseeing agencies to participate in the verification of an applicant’s immigration status: the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) Program, the Medicaid Program, and certain Territorial Assistance Programs (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services); the Unemployment Compensation Program (U.S. Department of Labor); Title IV Educational Assistance Programs (U.S. Department of Education); and certain Housing Assistance Programs (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development).
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Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA)
PRWORA required that the Attorney General establish regulations and interim guidance for the verification of immigration status of persons applying for “federal public benefits.” The Department of Justice issued interim guidance in 1997. See “Interim Guidance on Verification of Citizenship, Qualified Alien Status and Eligibility Under Title IV of [PRWORA],” 62 Federal Register 6,344-02 (Nov. 17, 1997). This guidance is for any entity administering a non-exempt federal public benefit, other than non-profit charitable organizations, and is not limited to the agencies and programs specified in IRCA.
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Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA)
Passed by Congress in 1996, the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA), Pub. L. No. 104-208, requires that DHS-USCIS respond to inquiries from any federal, state, and local benefit-issuing agencies and licensing bureaus seeking to verify or determine the citizenship or immigration status of any individuals within the jurisdiction of the agency for any lawful purpose.
The Real ID Act of 2005, Pub. L.No.109-13 Stat. 231, passed by Congress in 2005 established certain minimum standards for the issuance of state-issued drivers' licenses and state-issued identification cards in order for those documents to be acceptable for official federal purposes as scheduled by the Act. Under the Act states must use the SAVE Program to verify the lawful status of every drivers' licenses and identification card applicant. Section 202(a) of the Act prohibits federal agencies from accepting for any official purpose drivers' licenses and identification cards issued by states not in compliance with the Act. The deadline for states to be REAL ID compliant is December 31, 2009.
