[20200727]LSB10526_PRWORA和关怀法案：“尽管”条款的潜在效力是什么？.pdf

CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i PRWORA and the CARES Act: Whats the Prospective Power of a “Notwithstanding” Clause? July 27, 2020 Which categories of non-U.S. nationals (aliens) are eligible for the student financial aid, unemployment compensation, and other benefits authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act? Particularly in the case of student financial aid, the question has produced debate and controversy. The CARES Act itself is mostly silent about alien eligibility. The legal debate centers upon a provision from the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996, which renders many aliens ineligible for federal public benefits. PRWORA says that its restriction applies “notwithstanding any other provision of law.” What power does that phrase have to limit eligibility for the benefits created 24 years later in the CARES Act? CARES Act Background The list of federally funded benefits that the CARES Act created in response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is long. Major examples include the one-time recovery rebate (providing a max