Undocumented Immigration
Colorado Digs Itself Into a Fiscal Hole in the Name of Immigration Enforcement
At a time when state budget deficits are growing larger, you might think that state governments would avoid imposing costly, unfunded mandates on themselves. Yet that is exactly what states are doing when they pass laws that transform their police officers into proxy immigration agents. As officers spend more of their scarce resources and time rounding up people whom they suspect of being unauthorized immigrants, costs mount not only for the police force, but for jails and courts as well. More often than not, these costs are being needlessly incurred in order to lock up people who are in no way a threat to public safety. Read More
Lawsuit Uncovers USCIS’ Double Standards in H-1B Program
For the past several years, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) H-1B visa review and processing procedures have caused confusion and concern among U.S. businesses that turn to highly-skilled temporary foreign workers in specialty occupations to operate successfully. In newly-uncovered documents, it appears that instead of supporting small businesses that attempt to hire highly-skilled foreign workers, in many cases, USCIS discourages their success by subjecting them to a near presumption of fraud. Read More
A Much-Needed Spotlight on Families Ripped Apart by Deportations
On December 12, dozens of children delivered thousands of letters to Capitol Hill, calling upon lawmakers to stop the senseless division of families that is caused by the deportation of mothers and fathers who are not a threat to anyone. The event was part of “A Wish for the Holidays,” a campaign with a simple but powerful message: “Every day, families across the country are separated by deportations and immigrant detentions. 5.5 million children live with the fear that a parent could be deported, and these policies threaten the fabric of all of our communities. It just isn’t right.” Read More
Guidance on ICE Detainers Sends Ripples Through California
Every year, local law enforcement agencies receive thousands of requests from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to keep individuals in custody—even after they are entitled to release—while federal officers determine whether to initiate removal proceedings. Last Tuesday, California Attorney General Kamala Harris issued simple but groundbreaking guidance to all law enforcement agencies in the state, clarifying that they have no legal obligation to honor so-called immigration “detainers.” Although Harris’ guidance was consistent with existing policies in numerous California counties, it has prompted other state law enforcement officials to publicly reconsider their willingness to cooperate with ICE. Read More
Immigrant Friends and Foes Debate the Definition of “Comprehensive Immigration Reform”
Nearly everyone agrees that an immigration reform bill of some sort will be introduced in Congress in the near future given the pivotal role that Latinos and immigrants played in getting President Obama reelected. But no one knows yet just how “comprehensive” that bill will be, meaning which groups of immigrants will be included and which will be excluded. For immigrant-rights advocates, a truly comprehensive bill would create a pathway to legal status for the 11 million unauthorized immigrants now living in the country. For anti-immigrant activists, the definition of “comprehensive” is, not surprisingly, a bit less comprehensive. In fact, their redefinition of the concept is often so tortured as to be meaningless. Read More
The U.S. Economy Still Needs High-Skilled Immigrant Workers
With the U.S. economy in the midst of a prolonged slump, it’s hard to believe that a labor shortage exists anywhere in the country. But that is precisely the case when it comes to the high-tech industries which depend upon highly skilled scientists and engineers. The United States has long faced a dilemma in this respect: the U.S. educational system is not producing high-tech professionals in numbers that are sufficient to meet labor demand. That is one reason so many U.S. scientists and engineers are immigrants. And it is one of the reasons that even more U.S. scientists and engineers would be immigrants if not for the arbitrary limits imposed by the U.S. immigration system. For the sake of the U.S. economy’s recovery and long-term competitiveness, lawmakers should revise the antiquated rules that currently govern how many and which high-tech professionals from abroad are allowed to work in the United States. Read More
America: Start-Up Nation of Immigrants
AOL co-founder Steve Case brought an important message to the National Strategy Session on Immigration in Washington, D.C. this week: America is a start-up nation. Over the last 200 years, America has built the most dynamic economy in the world through the hard work and innovation of its entrepreneurs. Read More
Bibles, Badges, Business and Bush + DREAMers Make Immigration Reform Demands Known
While some thought the immigration reform talk immediately after the election was just chatter, a series of convenings and speeches this week demonstrate that the topic of broad immigration reform is on plenty of tables. From DREAMers to President Bush, the call for reform goes on. Read More
Will the Third Time Be the Charm for the TRUST Act in California?
For the third time in three years, lawmakers in California will seek passage of the TRUST Act, a so-called “anti-Arizona” bill that would limit the ability of local authorities to honor requests from immigration authorities to continue detaining individuals on behalf of the federal government. Although Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a similar version of the bill in September, supporters hope the third time for the bill will be the charm. Read More
Using Administrative Tools to Improve Immigration Court
Even as the push for legislative reform to our immigration system begins anew, it’s important that every tool to fix our outdated immigration system be employed, including administrative reform. While rarely discussed, attention must be paid to immigration court reform. Immigration courts lack many of the hallmarks of due process that Americans have come to expect, including the right to appointed counsel if you cannot afford one, independent judges, and a discovery process where the government must turn over the evidence it has regarding the person’s deportability. While true immigration reform should include overhauling the immigration courts, there is much that can be done to improve their processes immediately through administrative action. Read More
All gifts are matched dollar for dollar
No one should face the immigration system alone
