Asian American Federation Applauds New York City and State Lawsuits to Block Public Charge Rule
Nearly 9 in 10 Asian children in New York live with an immigrant parent, putting families at risk of losing benefits their children are entitled to
New York, NY — The Asian American Federation (AAF) applauds the legal actions by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and a broader coalition of cities and counties, including New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Santa Clara County and King County, and the multistate suit led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, to block a new federal public charge rule set to take effect this Friday, September 18.
The Asian American Federation previously warned of the chilling effect and negative consequences the proposed policy change will have on Asian and immigrant New Yorkers. The new rule would broaden the grounds for disqualification of immigrants applying for green cards to include their use of public benefits; factors like their age, health, education, and so on; and even their family members’ use of public benefits.
During the first Trump administration’s attempt in 2019 to make similar changes to public charge rule, Asian non-citizens in New York disenrolled from SNAP benefits at eight times the rate of Asian citizens. One in four Asian New Yorkers are non-citizens and nine in 10 Asian children live with at least one immigrant parent, meaning that thousands of Asian families are once again grappling with the fear and uncertainty that accessing the benefits they are legally entitled to could put them at risk of being denied a green card or of being deported.
The 2019 public charge rule change was stopped thanks to an injunction obtained by the Office of the New York State Attorney General. Today, the Asian American Federation stands with Attorney General James and Mayor Mamdani as they lead the lawsuits to ensure that New Yorkers can access food, medical care, housing, and all the support they need to survive.
As of Monday, September 14, and while the legal challenges are pending, the changes to the public charge rule are still set to take effect on Friday. The Asian American Federation has translated information sheets on the rule and who may be impacted in 13 Asian languages, including Arabic, Bangla, Burmese, Khmer, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Hindi, Japanese, Karen, Korean, Nepali, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
The Asian American Federation continues to strongly urge community members to seek qualified legal support before making any decisions about their public benefits enrollment, green card applications, or travel. New Yorkers can call Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs’ hotline at (800) 354-0365 or by calling 311 and saying “Immigration Legal”, or the New York State Office of New Americans Hotline at (800) 566-7636 for free, confidential support in your language.
The Trump administration’s public charge rule punishes working immigrant families in New York who already face systemic intimidation and high costs of living,” said Catherine Chen, CEO of the Asian American Federation. “Even before this announcement, fear of this administration’s unlawful and arbitrary policies drove Asian families away from food pantries and medical care. Without a legal challenge, this rule will cause deeper hardship. That is why we support Attorney General Letitia James, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and the broader coalition suing to block this cruel policy.