BILL NUMBER: SB 1139INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Senator Lara FEBRUARY 18, 2016 An act to add Section 128371 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to health professionals. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1139, as introduced, Lara. Health professionals: undocumented immigrants: scholarships, loans, and loan repayment. Existing law requires the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development to establish a nonprofit public benefit corporation known as the Health Professions Education Foundation to perform various duties with respect to implementing health professions scholarship and loan programs. This bill would prohibit specified programs within the foundation, including programs which are funded by the continuously appropriated Health Professions Education Fund, the Medically Underserved Account for Physicians, and the Mental Health Services Fund, from denying an application based on the citizenship status or immigration status of the applicant. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 128371 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read: 128371. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that it is in the best interest of the State of California to provide persons who are not lawfully present in the United States with the state benefits provided by the Health Professions Education Foundation Programs, and therefore, enacts this section pursuant to subsection (d) of Section 1621 of Title 8 of the United States Code. (b) A program within the Health Professions Education Foundation shall not deny an application based on the citizenship status or immigration status of the applicant. (c) For any program within the Health Professions Education Foundation, when mandatory disclosure of a social security number is required, an applicant shall provide his or her social security number, if one has been issued, or an individual tax identification number that has been or will be submitted. (d) This section shall apply to all of the following: (1) Programs supported through the Health Professions Education Fund pursuant to Section 128355. (2) The Registered Nurse Education Fund created pursuant to Section 128400. (3) The Mental Health Practitioner Education Fund created pursuant to Section 128458. (4) The Vocational Nurse Education Fund created pursuant to Section 128500. (5) The Medically Underserved Account for Physicians created pursuant to Section 128555. (6) The Steven M. Thompson Medical School Scholarship Account created pursuant to 128580. (7) Loan forgiveness and scholarship programs created pursuant to Section 5820 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.