29 NOV 2022
ICYMI: Business Leaders Highlight Dreamers’ Contributions to Economy and Innovation, Urge Congress to Pass Permanent Protections for Dreamers During the Lame Duck
Business Roundtable: “America is at its strongest, most innovative and most competitive when immigrants are welcomed.”
WASHINGTON, DC – Over the past month, community and business leaders on both sides of the aisle have urged Congress to begin to address our broken immigration system with a legislative fix for DACA during the lame duck session. The urgency comes after the Fifth Circuit court declared the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program unlawful, bringing the courts one step closer to ending the program indefinitely. The end of DACA will have dire and insurmountable ripple effects across communities and local economies, with an average of 1,000 Dreamers losing their jobs each week. This month, business leaders and economic experts from across the country have publicly stepped forward, calling on Congress to pass legislation to protect Dreamers, underscoring the fundamental contributions of DACA-recipients to local economies.
In case you missed it:
Dallas Morning News | Congress must act on DACA or Texas stands to lose thousands of jobs
“More broadly, federal immigration policy has failed to keep up with today’s labor demands. There are currently 11.2 million jobs open in the U.S. with only half as many workers available to fill them. With appropriate policy changes that expand opportunities for immigrants to have certainty in their personal and professional lives, we could put more workers on the job and create a robust recovery along with it. Failing to do so could lead to the U.S. sacrificing its position as the world’s largest economy by 2030 and leaving the reserves of vital programs, such as Social Security, depleted by 2034…
Texas needs legal immigrants. Our leaders in Congress must find a permanent solution for “Dreamers” before the repercussions of inaction imperil our economy. We will continue working with our members, communities and elected officials until the job is done.”
Texas Tribune | Texas Business Leaders Roundtable
“[Congressman] Castro gathered San Antonio business leaders and others for a virtual press conference to urge Congress to use the post-election period to pass legislation that provides permanent relief to DACA recipients, also known as Dreamers.
“Today, [Dreamers are] small-business owners, teachers, veterans and essential workers. They are small-business owners who kept our economy running during the pandemic, and they are doctors and nurses who saved American lives and continue to do so,” Castro said.
He was joined by Richard Perez, president and CEO of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce; Dawn Larios, executive director of the Texas Restaurant Association West Region; Teresa Niño, vice president for university relations at the University of Texas at San Antonio; and Giovanni Castillo, a DACA recipient and San Antonio small-business owner who came to the U.S. as a child 20 years ago.
Castro called on the state’s senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, to “make good” on claims the two have made about supporting relief for DACA recipients and said he welcomed the participation of the senators, along with other Republicans in the House and Senate.”
The Economist | Congress should act now to protect Dreamers
“The lame-duck session is America’s best chance to honour its obligation to child immigrants…
Mr Obama’s initiative allowed “childhood arrivals” who had grown up among Americans to emerge from the shadows to pursue higher education and get permits to work. “You’re taking this group of people who would otherwise be working illegally as waiters and housekeepers and making them engineers and accountants,” says Ike Brannon, an economist with the Jack Kemp Foundation who has studied the economic effects of daca. “It’s a pure increase in human capital.” A study he co-authored in 2019 found that eliminating daca would cost its recipients $120bn and the federal government $72bn in tax revenue. “Those losses would come without any offsetting gains,” the paper drily concluded.
New Report by TheDream.US and Golden Doors Scholars
A new report by TheDream.US and Golden Doors Scholars found that “their graduates have a 94 percent workforce participation rate, compared to the 84 percent rate for college graduates nationally.” According to The Hill, the report surveyed 1,400 graduates from 140 colleges and universities throughout the country who took part in two major scholarship programs financed by the organizations. The findings underscored how Dreamers are overwhelmingly employed in high-demand sectors, such as the health and medical field, and contribute strongly to local economies.
“Microsoft, Apple, Meta and dozens of other Fortune 500 companies launched an ad campaign Thursday to push Congress to pass a new law that would secure the fate of migrants known as “Dreamers,” part of a last-ditch effort to save the protections as federal courts seem likely to end the executive order that has protected them since 2012…
The ad, running in The Wall Street Journal, The Dallas Morning News and The Charlotte Observer, warns congressional leaders that ending DACA would hurt the economy…
Apple CEO Tim Cook said: ‘Dreamers are an essential part of the fabric of our nation. They make our communities stronger, they make our companies more innovative, and they deserve a right to live in America with dignity. I stand with the bipartisan majority of Americans who agree that granting permanent protections for Dreamers is the right thing to do. It’s time for Congress to act.’”
Business Roundtable Urges Congress to Act Without Delay to Pass Bipartisan Permanent DACA Solution
“America is at its strongest, most innovative and most competitive when immigrants are welcomed. Dreamers—who came to the United States as children and have known only the United States as home—have lived under uncertainty and threat of removal for too long. We urge Congress to act without delay to pass a bipartisan permanent solution.”
My RGV News | Dreamers good for businesses
“Aside from being vital members and future members of our workforce, the DACA-eligible population in our state pays $963.4 million in taxes annually and has a total spending power of more than $3 billion.
Texas truly relies on immigrants of all ages and skill levels to allow us to be the flourishing state we are today, with globally revered industries and capable workers keeping us on top — they are one reason we are ranked as the Best State for Business.
Dreamers deserve security and peace of mind. They should be able to continue to work without the fear of deportation.”
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The Immigration Hub is a national organization dedicated to advancing fair and just immigration policies through strategic leadership, innovative communications strategies, legislative advocacy and collaborative partnerships.