The US House of Representatives is discussing an Act, HR-2608, to provide, in the fiscal years from 2008 through to 2010, an extension of supplemental security income for elderly and disabled refugees among immigrants who have not yet obtained US nationality.

Representatives Jim McDermoot and Jerry Weller submitted the act to protect those who have not yet assumed US nationality due to the Department of Home Security’s slowness in processing the citizenship applications. Civil organisations and mass media in the Vietnamese community have encouraged Vietnamese voters to support the act.

In a vote last week in the House of Representatives, the allowance period was extended from seven to nine years from the fiscal years 2008 through to 2010.

In California, the allowance will be US$853 per month, excluding free health services and some other day-to-day services.

The Act was submitted to the Senate for approval and will be signed into law by the President.