2008 Law to protect non-citizens in disasters – Public employees shall assist evacuees and other individuals in securing disaster-related assistance and services without eliciting any information or document that is not strictly necessary to determine eligibility under state and federal laws. Entities providing disaster-related services and assistance shall strive to ensure that all victims receive the assistance that they need and for which they are eligible. Nothing in this subdivision shall prevent public employees from taking reasonable steps to protect the health or safety of evacuees and other individuals during an emergency.
Individuals fleeing a disaster or coping with emergency circumstances commonly lose access to their personal documents and identification, and replacing them during a disaster or emergency can be burdensome, if not impossible, especially for vulnerable populations, such as low-income individuals, undocumented immigrants, seniors, or persons with disabilities.
