Law & Principles

Speaker Hilbert’s bill to bar illegals from welfare clears first hurdle

February 4, 2026

Ray Carter

Legislation that would implement new safeguards to ensure welfare benefits in Oklahoma are provided only to legal U.S. citizens has easily advanced from a state House committee.

“That is something that I have heard resoundingly from my constituents and folks around the state is that welfare recipients should be American citizens,” said House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow. “I don’t think that is a controversial thing.”

House Bill 4422, by Hilbert, requires the Oklahoma Department of Human Services to verify the immigration status of applicants for certain welfare programs, including the food-stamp program, using the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Systematic Alien Verification of Entitlements (SAVE) system. The legislation would not allow an individual to receive benefits unless citizenship is determined.

The bill applies to benefits provided through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, better known as the “food stamp” program) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

If it is determined that an applicant is not lawfully in the country, officials at the Oklahoma Department of Human Services must notify the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office, which must review the case and then notify the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) if an applicant’s legal status in the United States is unverifiable.

After a brief description of the legislation, HB 4422 passed the House Children, Youth and Family Services Committee on a 7-1 vote that broke along party lines with Republicans in support. The bill next proceeds to the House Health and Human Services Oversight Committee.