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Business and Labor Announce Breakthrough on Immigration Reform
One of the most contentious issues that has stymied past immigration reform proposals is the divide between business and labor over how many and under what conditions the U.S. should admit new immigrants into our labor force. Also known as the “future flow” issue, the conflict lies in the tension between business’ desire to recruit foreign workers and labor’s desire to ensure workforce protections for those working in the U.S. Read More
Reaching the Six-Month Mark on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
The Department of Homeland Security has issued its latest data on the Obama Administration’s initiative that offers deferment from deportation and temporary work permits to young undocumented immigrants under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative. In the first six months of the program (August 15–February 14), 423,634 out of the roughly 936,933 immigrants between the ages of 15 and 30 who might immediately meet the requirements, have had their applications accepted for processing. In other words, approximately 45% of those potentially eligible for the program have applied in the first six months. In addition, since February, 199,460 individuals have been approved for DACA and will receive two-year temporary work permits. Read More
Putting the White House Immigration Reform Proposal into Perspective
Over the weekend, the press reported on a leaked draft of portions of the White House’s immigration proposal, and the coverage since then has been largely a frenzied discussion of whether the leak will kill Senate negotiations. There shouldn’t be much chance of that, given the immense pressure on the Senate to not only come up with a proposal, but actually draft legislation that can be debated and voted on this year. Now that at least some of the Administration’s ideas are out in the public eye, it’s useful to treat them as what they are: basic discussion points on what might be in an eventual bill. In the long run, the draft proposal may help to encourage the constructive conversation that the Administration has sought to have on reform. Read More
Can A Nation Have Too Many Smart People?
A February 8 op-ed in the New York Times entitled “America’s Genius Glut” argues that America already has too many high-tech workers, and thus does not need more scientists and engineers from abroad. It is a surprising claim that is at odds not only with the empirical evidence, but is out of touch with the dramatic shift in recent years towards a knowledge-based global economy. The United States is not actually suffering from a surplus of intelligent people, nor is it being economically drained by the presence of intelligent people who were born in other countries. In fact, the U.S. high-tech economy would not exist in its present form if not for the contributions of innovators and entrepreneurs from every corner of the globe. Despite arguments to the contrary, scientists and engineers who come to this country on H-1B visas are an integral part of that high-tech economy. Read More
House Republicans Show Uncertainty About Where the Party Stands On Immigration
For six hours on Tuesday, the Republican-controlled House Judiciary Committee tried to come to terms with a new landscape on immigration reform and where House Republicans will fit into the picture. Despite attempts by committee leadership to paint an earned path to citizenship as an extreme option and questions about whether citizenship was even necessary, there were signs of common ground, signaling opportunities for breaking the logjam on immigration in the House. Read More
Why Should We Support a Legalization Program for Unauthorized Immigrants?
As the immigration debate heats up in Congress, the central question for much of the American public will be whether or not to create a pathway to legal status for the 11 million unauthorized immigrants now living in the United States. In formulating an answer to that question, however, it is necessary to ask two others. First, exactly who are the unauthorized immigrants who would be attaining legal status? Secondly, what would the impact be on the U.S. economy were so many unauthorized immigrants to be legalized? The answer to the first question is relatively simple: unauthorized immigrants are just like everybody else; they are adults and children, mothers and fathers, homeowners and churchgoers. The short answer to the second question is that legalization would be a stimulus to the U.S. economy. Workers with legal status earn higher wages, and these extra earnings generate more tax revenue for federal, state, and local governments, as well as more consumer spending, which sustains more jobs in U.S. businesses. Read More
President Lays Out His Vision For Immigration Reform
After eight Republican and Democratic senators yesterday released their framework for comprehensive immigration reform, President Obama laid out his administration’s vision today of what he thinks should be included in the bill to overhaul the nation’s immigration system. He praised the bipartisan principles, which mirror the White House’s 2011 blueprint for immigration reform. “At this moment, it looks like there’s a genuine desire to get this done soon,” he said in his speech from Nevada. “And that’s very encouraging.” Read More
Will USCIS Develop Fair, Humane Travel Policies for DACA Recipients?
For many young immigrants who are now lawfully present under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative—which grants them the right to work and live in the United States for at least two years—the next question may be, when will they be able to travel outside of the United States? Depending on what guidance they reference, the answer could vary, adding confusion to what has been a reasonably straightforward implementation process. Read More
Immigrants Add Billions to the Arkansas Economy
A perennial question in the immigration debate is whether or not immigrants contribute more to the economy than they cost. That is, do they add more economically as workers, taxpayers, consumers, and entrepreneurs than they “consume” in public education, public healthcare, and public benefits? In some ways, this question is misleading. Education and healthcare are social investments that pay future dividends; they are not merely fiscal expenses. Nevertheless, it is a useful exercise to take the question at face value and do the math. The result, contrary to the convoluted arithmetic of anti-immigrant activists, is overwhelmingly positive. Immigrants add far more to the economy than they take away. And given the aging of the native-born population, the contributions of immigrants (and their children) will only increase over time. Read More
Illinois Legislature Votes to License all Drivers in the State
On Tuesday, the Illinois legislature passed a bill to allow state residents without legal status to obtain a three-year renewable driver’s license. The law will create tens if not hundreds of thousands of newly licensed drivers. The bill, which awaits the Governor’s promised signature, will make Illinois the third state after New Mexico and Washington to allow unauthorized immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses. (Utah allows undocumented immigrants to apply for driving privilege cards.) Read More
America's story is an immigrant story.
