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State Compacts Reframe Approach to Immigration, But Will Legislators Listen?
Rather than allow immigration restrictionists to define how their state deals with immigration, business leaders, elected officials, community activists and faith groups in Utah and Indiana have taken an important step in reframing their state’s approach by signing “state compacts”—declarations of principles to guide the state’s immigration discussion. And they’re not the only folks standing […]
Read MoreSome States “Just Say No” to Harmful Immigration Enforcement Laws
If Arizona had its own television show, the warning “don’t try this at home” would appear after every commercial break. (Cut to tumbleweeds and Arizona businesses pulling their pockets inside out) This week, some states—like Virginia, South Dakota and New Hampshire—actually heeded that warning and rejected a host of enforcement measures targeting undocumented immigrants. States […]
Read MoreRepublicans Attempt to Change Outgoing Message on Immigration, Again
This week, the conflicting messaging on immigration from Republican politicians is particularly hard to follow. Voters can “press one” for Senator Lindsay Graham’s message that immigration reform is reality if we just pass a border bill; “press two” for Senator Orrin Hatch’s message that Utah voters want to welcome immigrants by stopping them from coming; […]
Read MoreWhat’s in Your Wallet? Fiscal Notes Give States Pause Over Enforcement Laws
As states continue to crowd the immigration enforcement debate with rhetoric and white noise, other states are getting down to brass tacks. On Monday, Utah’s Legislative Fiscal Analysts office hung an $11 million price tag around HB 70, Utah’s immigration law requiring local law enforcement to check the citizenship status of those they suspect are […]
Read MoreMandatory E-Verify is Not All It’s Cracked Up to Be
Today, the House Immigration Subcommittee held a hearing on the E-Verify system, a tool to help employers electronically verify that their employees have permission to work in the United States. Although E-Verify remains largely voluntary—except for federal contractors, employers in certain states that have made it mandatory, and a few other exceptions—some members of Congress […]
Read MoreThe Aftermath of the Ellensburg, WA Immigration Raid and Lessons from Past ICE Enforcement Efforts
BY JUAN PEDROZA, THE URBAN INSTITUTE* On Thursday morning, January 20, ICE agents descended on mobile homes in the Ellensburg area, east of Seattle, WA. Federal agents drove in with 11 search warrants and a helicopter search light, making simultaneous arrests at 22 different locations. The coordinated effort followed an investigation involving eight federal, county, […]
Read MoreFederal Court Upholds Immigrants’ Right To Reopen Cases From Outside the U.S.
Washington, D.C. – Today, a federal appellate court chastised the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) for preventing noncitizens from reopening their cases from outside the United States. This important ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit repudiates the government’s view that immigration judges and the BIA lack “jurisdiction” over such cases. […]
Read MoreSenator Cornyn, Republicans Continue to Stammer on Immigration Reform
Senator John Cornyn (R-TX). Photo by musicFIRSTcoalition. The official Republican response to the State of the Union address may have been delivered by Congressman Paul Ryan (R-WI), but the immigration response came from Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn who fired off an editorial questioning the President’s commitment to border security and immigration reform. While the […]
Read MorePresident Obama’s Plans for Winning the Future include Immigration Reform
Washington, D.C. – Last night in his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama called on Republicans and Democrats to work together to “win the future” by taking on challenges that have been decades in the making—challenges like updating our current immigration laws to meet the needs of the country. The President outlined an […]
Read MoreHouse Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement
Washington D.C. – Today, the newly named House Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement held its first hearing of the new session entitled, “ICE Worksite Enforcement – Up to the Job?” The name change seems to be a signal that Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith and Subcommittee Chairman Elton Gallegly will focus on enforcement, rather […]
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