WASHINGTON D.C. — Florida Congresswoman Maria Salazar is leading a new push for immigration reform in Washington.
The Miami Republican announced the Dignity Act on Tuesday. The bill is aimed at granting legal status to undocumented migrants who have been in the country for at least five years.
Under the bill, migrants without a criminal record would pay $7,000 over seven years to receive work authorization and protection from deportation. Those enrolled could renew their legal status if they remain in good standing. The legislation does not offer a path to citizenship and migrants would not be eligible for social programs like Medicare. However, Salazar said it will allow millions of people already working across the country to contribute to their communities and build a life in the United States.
“We are trying to bring them out of the shadows and have them go work in peace, go work, pay taxes,” Salazar said at a press conference announcing the bill.
The bill also aims to strengthen border security and expand the E-Verify system, which allows employers to confirm he legal status of workers, to all U.S. companies. It would also provide more protection for so-called “Dreamers,” who were brought into the country as children.
Salazar and democratic Cosponsor Rep. Veronica Escobar of Texas have secured a bipartisan group of 20 cosponsors for the reforms.
Escobar, who stood alongside Salazar to announce the bill on Capitol Hill, said the bill delivers long-overdue reforms to the immigrations system.
“This will help millions and millions of people who are a critical component of the American economy,” Escobar said. “There has never been a more urgent need for congress to act.”
Supporters, including New York Republican Congressman Mike Lawler, argue the reforms are necessary to support broad sectors of the U.S. economy in dire need of workers, including construction and agriculture. Lawler said without these changes, the nation would be facing down what he called an “economic calamity.”
The bill comes as the Trump administration carries out an aggressive immigration enforcement and deportation strategy, which has included ICE arrests at farms and worksites in communities across the country.
White House Border Czar Tom Homan has said multiple times in recent weeks that there will be no amnesty given to undocumented migrants based on their work in critical jobs. Salazar emphasized that is not the aim of the bill.
“We are talking about dignity, not amnesty,” Salazar said. “”Yes, they broke the law. But someone gave them a job because they needed those workers."
In her announcement, Salazar briefly addressed President Trump directly, imploring him to embrace the reforms.
“Sir, I believe you could be for immigration what Lincoln was for slavery and what Regan was for communism,” she said. “You are a businessman who understands our economy needs reliable workers in areas where other Americans don’t participate.”
Salazar said she has been in touch with Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, who will have a major say in whether or not the bill has a chance of moving through congress.
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