New Democrat Coalition Endorses Immigration Reform Bills
Today, the New Democrat Coalition (NDC) endorsed two pieces of immigration reform legislation: H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act and H.R. 1603, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. These bills aim to promote justice and fairness for America’s Dreamers, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) holders and create stability and economic opportunity for immigrant workers and the United States’ agricultural sector.
H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act, is landmark legislation that provides permanent protections to the nation’s Dreamers, as well as to TPS and DED holders, allowing them to contribute fully to their local communities and the country while providing a pathway to citizenship.
H.R. 1603, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, makes meaningful reforms to the H-2A agricultural guestworker program and creates a first-of-its-kind, merit-based visa program specifically designed for the nation’s agricultural sector. These changes will help stabilize and preserve the American agricultural sector by ensuring farmers can meet their labor needs well into the future.
“I’m honored to serve as a Co-Chair of the New Dem Immigration Task Force, where my colleagues and I will work to advance pragmatic, innovative solutions to fix our broken immigration system,” said NDC Immigration Task Force Co-Chair Salud Carbajal (CA-24). “Today, we kicked things off with action and voted to endorse two crucial bills, the Dream and Promise Act and the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. These bills will provide vital protections for Dreamers and TPS holders who have spent most of their lives in America and will provide stability and economic opportunity to farmworkers and America’s agricultural sector. The Immigration Task Force will continue fighting for commonsense, bipartisan reforms to fix our broken immigration system.”
“Immigration is an issue where we can find bipartisan common ground, and New Dems are committed to build a fair and inclusive immigration system that reflects our values as a nation of immigrants and strengthens the American economy,” said NDC Immigration Task Force Co-Chair Greg Stanton (AZ-09). “That starts with protecting America’s Dreamers and essential immigrant workers. These two bills earned our endorsement because they do right by the immigrants who have called our country home for so long—and they're the right thing to do for our economy.
“The United States has not had comprehensive immigration reform since 1986 and the world has changed significantly since then. It’s time to pass bipartisan immigration reform that brings our system into the 21st century,” said NDC Freshman Leadership Representative Kathy Manning (NC-06).
“Congress has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to pass monumental legislation that would provide an earned pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented members of our community. The Dream and Promise Act and Farm Workforce Modernization Act will protect DACA recipients, TPS holders, and farmworkers who are integral members of our society, many of whom have been on the frontlines of this pandemic as essential workers,” said Maria Praeli, Government Relations Manager at FWD.us. “Without immediate action, millions of people like me could be ripped away from our communities and separated from our families. We have shown immeasurable bravery as we fight for the right to continue contributing to the only country that most of us have ever known. It's long past time for the law to recognize us as the Americans we are.”
Last Congress, New Dem Members unanimously supported H.R. 6, The American Dream and Promise Act, and nearly unanimously supported H.R. 5304, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, and both bills received bipartisan votes on the Floor. The NDC has been a strong proponent for immigration reform to create a modernized system that reflects American values and provides undocumented immigrants with a pathway to citizenship. The NDC’s endorsements advances the Fourth Pillar of the 100 Day Agenda: Restore American Global Leadership.
Watch the NDC Immigration Task Force's press conference here.
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