Immigration
Cortez Masto says reconciliation bill ‘is our opportunity’ for immigration reform
Immigration reforms, including a path to citizenship, should be included in the sweeping agenda Democrats are about to consider in a reconciliation bill that will circumvent a Republican filibuster, Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and several other Senate Democrats told President Joe Biden Thursday. Cortez Masto was among a group of Congressional Hispanic Caucus members […]
DACA ruling scrambles Dreamers’ plans — yet again
Following a favorable Supreme Court ruling last year, undocumented immigrants rushed to apply for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program, which protects from deportation people who arrived in the United States as minors. They were met with monthslong agency delays and backlogs, all happening amid a pandemic. And now their applications are indefinitely […]
Labor organizers seek deferred action to stem abuse of undocumented workers
Employers often take advantage of the dysfunctional immigration system in the U.S. to intimidate undocumented workers who try to obtain better working conditions, say labor organizers, but organizers are now looking to use deferred action protections to protect workers in labor disputes. “The immigrant workforce being exploited has pretty much been a part of 70 […]
Threats to DACA still loom after 9 years, say Dreamers
Nearly a decade after a temporary program was established to shield young undocumented immigrants from deportation, Senate Democrats are eyeing legislative action that would provide a permanent solution. This week marks nine years since the creation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, an Obama-era policy that provides deportation relief and work permits to […]
Up to 100 new immigration judges would be added under budget request
The Biden administration on Friday released a budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year that would increase the number of immigration judges and allocate millions in funding to clear backlogs of hearings and asylum requests. The administration is grappling with an influx of asylum seekers at the Southern border after inheriting a gutted immigration system […]
Amodei votes to protect immigrant farmworkers, but not Dreamers
Nevada Rep. Mark Amodei was among 30 House Republicans voting with all the Democrats Thursday on a bill to give legal status to undocumented agricultural workers. However, earlier in the day Amodei was not among the nine Republicans voting with Democrats to provide a pathway to citizenship to immigrants protected under the Deferred Action for […]
New attempt in Congress to help Dreamers runs into familiar obstacles
WASHINGTON — Legislation creating a path to citizenship for undocumented people brought to the U.S. as children faces a new border crisis and old partisan objections, diminishing the chances it will become law despite full Democratic control of Congress and the White House. On Thursday, the U.S. House is poised to pass the American Dream […]
Nevada among 16 states asking federal court to mess with Texas AG
Last month, Texas sued the Biden administration in federal court over its decision to pause most deportations for 100 days. Now Nevada Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford is joining a coalition of 16 attorneys general to ask the court to reject Texas’s request to halt the moratorium while the case moves through the courts. Texas […]
Cortez Masto, Rosen sign on to TPS bill with path to permanent residency
Nevada Democratic Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen have joined several colleagues in support of a bill that would render migrants fleeing war or natural disaster eligible to apply for permanent residency in the U.S. The Safe Environment from Countries Under Repression and in Emergency (SECURE) Act was first introduced in the Senate in […]
Groups want Biden to end ICE’s for-profit detention contracts
When President Biden announced in late January he would be phasing out federal contracts for private prisons, immigration advocates couldn’t help but notice the action didn’t include U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers. The executive orders Biden laid out Jan. 26, which were designed to tackle racial disparities, end the Justice Department’s use of […]
New immigration initiatives always bring out the scammers, coalition warns
Immigration advocates are anticipating a fight against scams and unethical lawyers who might try to defraud unsuspecting immigrants as the hope of immigration reform grows. President Joe Biden recently announced a 100-day moratorium on deportations as well as plans for an immigration reform bill that would lay out a path for nearly 11 million undocumented […]
Biden immigration overhaul would open a door to citizenship
The immigration reform bill President Joe Biden is sending to Congress would lay out a path for nearly 11 million undocumented people to obtain citizenship within eight years. Immigration has been one of the toughest issues for Congress to tackle, and the legislation’s fate is unclear in a House in which Democrats wield narrower control […]