State and Local Initiatives
They say all politics is local, right? While most of the debate about immigration focuses on congressional action (or inaction), local communities across the country are the ones who feel the value of immigration most tangibly. Now active in more than 50 communities – more than 80 percent of which are in conservative states – the NAE State & Local team works with policymakers, business, and civic leaders to promote policies and programs that help create jobs and drive economic growth. You can explore more of our work on the state and local level here.
Successful Arizona Businesswoman to Congress: ‘Take Off the Political Jerseys and Support Comprehensive Immigration Reform’
Master communication and marketing guru Lisa Urias understands the tremendous economic impact of immigration on her home state. “We have a benefit being a border state, and that benefit is tremendous,” says the CEO of Urias Communications, a company that grosses roughly $6 million annually. “We have almost… Read More
Immigration Policies ‘Work Against the Small Businesses,’ Says Head of Major South Carolina Restaurant Group
Steve Carb is the head of SERG Restaurant Group on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, which employs more than 800 hospitality workers annually. During the summer peak season, he manages to staff his 10 restaurants with help from locals and college students. But once school starts in the fall,… Read More
This Indian Immigrant Restaurant Owner Is Bringing Cultural Diversity—and Great Cuisine– to Central California
Falguni Patel is a modern-day pioneer of the Wild West. She and her husband are Indian immigrants who recently started Bombay Indian Food and Chai House in the San Joaquin Valley city of Hanford, where she says the majority of the 55,000 residents are not familiar with Indian… Read More
Republican Party Official: Immigrants Should be Allowed to ‘Come Out of the Shadows’ to Contribute Their Best to America
Linda Lee Tarver says she and her nine siblings were raised by “very fiscally and socially conservative Christian people,” and Tarver — now the president of the Republican Women’s Federation of Michigan — says her faith remains the foundation for her political beliefs, including when it comes to… Read More
This Immigrant is Bringing Billions in Investments and Tens of Thousands of Jobs to Michigan
There aren’t many people who can claim to have created as many jobs as Birgit Klohs, the German-born CEO of Grand Rapids economic development organization The Right Place. Since Klohs took the reins 29 years ago, The Right Place has brought $4.7 billion in new investment and created 40,000 new… Read More
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Chairman Explains Why Immigrant Entrepreneurs Help New Jersey Make $10 Billion Each Year
Last year, Carlos Medina, the president of Robinson Aerial Surveys and the chairman of the 2,500-member Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey, was part of a trade delegation to Cuba. While there, he took the opportunity to stroll along the Havana waterfront, and see the house, a stone’s… Read More
Why Republican Governor Rick Snyder Calls Immigrants “Job Generators”
When Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan meets people, he likes to ask them to name five things that made America great. Almost always, he says, they wind up talking about the contributions made by immigrants. “I challenge anyone not to put immigration on that list,” he says. Certainly, he says,… Read More
This Syrian-Born Doctor is Helping to Alleviate Nevada’s Physician Shortage
It took the University of Nevada School of Medicine in Las Vegas three years to fill a job opening for a pediatric gastroenterologist. This is hardly a surprise given the nationwide shortage of physicians with a pediatric subspecialty, a shortage that means families often have to wait months… Read More
Immigrant Entrepreneur Wants to Bring 500 Jobs to Tennessee, Needs Immigration Reform to Do It
When Darius Mir opened his company Made in America (MIA) Seating in Union City, Tenn. two years ago, he pledged to create 500 jobs for Tennessee’s 8th Congressional district in five years. Despite earning a projected $50 million in group sales this year alone, the U.S. immigration system may actually… Read More
South Korean Immigrant Making His Mark on Education, Business in Maine
South Korean immigrant Tae Chong spends his days helping to grow Maine’s economy. And he does this, specifically, by helping his fellow immigrants. Chong is a business adviser at Coastal Enterprises Inc., a nonprofit specializing in economic development with 11 offices across the state. There, he works in a program… Read More
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