Chapter 7 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2016 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following section:-

Section 63. (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the secretary of administration and finance shall direct all state agencies under the control of the governor or a secretary that are responsible for the issuance of public benefits or licensure to register for the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements Program, hereinafter referred to as SAVE. The secretary shall further instruct said agencies and departments to use SAVE to verify whether applicants for a public benefit or license, whose documentation is not available or is questionable, are qualified for benefit eligibility purposes. The registration for SAVE pursuant to this section shall be incorporated into a uniform system for said state agencies to determine common eligibility standards for applicants.

(b) The secretary of administration and finance shall, on or before June 30, 2021, provide a written report to the senate and house committees on ways and means and the clerks of the senate and house of representatives detailing the steps taken to enroll in and implement SAVE. If a state agency that is required to register for SAVE pursuant to subsection (a) has failed to do so prior to June 30, 2021, the secretary shall include in the report the specific reasons that the agency has been unable to register for SAVE and a 6 month action plan with any legislative recommendations or requests for appropriations to effectuate its registration for SAVE.