The Honorable Jeff Piccola, Chairman

Senate State Government Committee

Senate Box 203015
173 Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg, PA 17120-3015

SUBJECT: Senate Bill 9

Dear Chairman Piccola:

Thank you for the invitation to submit written testimony to the Senate State Government Committee concerning Senate Bill 9.

Lutheran Advocacy Ministry in Pennsylvania (LAMPa) is a partnership ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and its agencies and institutions in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Its mission is to advocate in both public and private sectors of society on behalf of, and in partnership with, those persons who are denied justice, dignity, reconciliation, peace, and access to basic human rights, and who lack adequate representation and voice in the arenas of public policy.

Senate Bill 9, as introduced by Senator Scarnati on March 29, 2007, proposes to enact the Proof of Citizenship for Receipt of Public Benefits Act. We reject "enforcement only" legislation that criminalizes undocumented people and denies fair treatment for farm workers who provide our daily bread. Furthermore, we reject legislation that would do harm to needy individuals, including citizens and legal immigrants, due to the denial of public benefits.

As people of faith concerned with immigration reform, we support the rule of law and adherence to law and order. However, we must also seek to change the law if and when the law does not create a healthy existence. The status quo of exploitation, illegality, and human suffering is unacceptable and we can wait no longer for our elected leaders to develop a practical and humane solution that we, as a nation under God, have an obligation to realize. We therefore urge all elected officials to change your course, and provide leadership that builds consensus around a U.S. Congress enacted comprehensive, fair and humane immigration reform plan that is consistent with this nation’s values and our belief that all men, women and families are created equal in the eyes of God.

In the April 2006 statement, "Evangelical Lutherans Call for Fair and Just Immigration Reform," the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA Presiding Bishop, and Ralston H. Deffenbaugh, Jr., President, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, emphasize: "In difficult and threatening times, churches and all Christians have an obligation to stand with the word of God against those who use fear to deny fundamental human rights and dignity to the stranger in our midst….St. Paul calls us to ‘[W]elcome one another, just as Christ has welcomed you, to the glory of God’ (Romans 15:7). Our Lutheran tradition calls on us to uphold the Biblical mandate to welcome the stranger. The Bible teaches us "When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt (Leviticus 19:33-34)." In Matthew 25, Jesus himself identifies with aliens: ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me.’"

In setting forth principles for immigration reform we draw upon our Judeo-Christian tradition of faith and the principle that we should show compassion to newcomers in our midst. (Exodus 23; Matthew 25). These newcomers are integral to our communities and to America’s economic, cultural and political fabric. As a nation of immigrants grounded in the rule of law we must be humane and just to newcomers while assuring orderly migration.

Poverty/Hunger is one of LAMPa’s two top public policy priorities. Senate Bill 9 would affect people currently served by food assistance programs [i.e. WIC, Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP), State Food Purchase Program (SFPP), The Food Stamp Program (FSP), National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP)]. In addition, the identification requirement is highly restrictive and unnecessarily rigid and could not be met by many individuals needing food assistance and other vital human services without long delays and significant expense.

Analysis by our coalition/network partners (i.e. SB 9 Testimony of The Pennsylvania Hunger Action Center, October 16, 2007) and other human service organizations (i.e. Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger) concludes that Senate Bill 9 will do harm to needy individuals by erecting barriers to the utilization of food programs by people whom those programs are designed to serve, including citizens and legal immigrants. The victims of SB 9 will include many U.S. citizens and legally residing immigrants, especially the elderly, poor, disabled and rural residents, who currently lack government-issued ID cards. In addition to denial of public benefits to needy individuals, the identification and affidavit requirements would be perceived by agency staff and by the general public as eligibility requirements. Therefore, needy people who lack the forms of specified identification would not seek food assistance.

For example, SB 9 could harm food stamp recipients and low-income families who receive food from cupboards and soup kitchens. Requiring government-issued IDs creates an unreasonable hardship. It is reported that eighteen percent of senior citizens do not have a government-issued ID. Domestic violence experts remind us that victims often flee their abusers, leaving behind important documents. It is documented that one of four African American citizens does not have a government-issued ID.

In conclusion, the American migration story is one of our longest and richest traditions. Nearly all of us or our ancestors came to this country for family, work or freedom—to join relatives, to find a job, to seek a better life, to escape persecution or flee famine, to pursue the American dream. These are the same reasons today’s immigrants come. Lutherans recall their own migration story, including the World War II era when one in six of the world’s Lutherans was a refugee or displaced person. Let us stand together ready to work with our Congress and President Bush to pass a new, fair and humane comprehensive immigration reform law that welcomes immigrants for the common good. With a comprehensive approach to immigration reform, we can create a society that is stable, strong, and healthy.

In the meantime, let us resist "enforcement only" legislation that harms needy people. Senate Bill 9 would harm not only illegal immigrants, but individuals needing food assistance and other human services who are citizens and legal immigrants as well. Therefore, we encourage the Committee not to move this bill forward.

Thank you for your consideration.