How did the adopted amendments stack up against FCNL’s concerns about the bill? Some of the key positive amendments adopted by the committee include:

The committee also adopted some amendments that FCNL has concerns about, including Grassley 1, which applies the border security provisions of the bill to the entire Southern U.S. border, instead of only “high-risk” border sectors.

The bill as amended is now expected to come to the Senate floor sometime in early June, after the Memorial Day recess. A bipartisan group of Representatives could introduce their own comprehensive bill in the next few weeks, paving the way for a conference committee between the two houses to work on reconciling their respective bills.

FCNL sends monthly email updates on immigration, with ways you can make a difference – click here to sign up.

A bipartisan group of eight senators has introduced a comprehensive immigration reform bill, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 (S. 744). The bill is 844 pages long, and covers three general topics: border security, fixing the legal immigration system, and addressing the status of 11 million people in the U.S. without authorization. The Senate Judiciary Committee will begin considering amendments to the bill on May 7, and will continue with “mark-up” sessions every Tuesday and Thursday through the month of May. The bill could come to the Senate floor as soon as early June, after the Memorial Day recess.

Many provisions in the bill are very positive; some will cause greater problems. Here is a summary of the bill and concerns that FCNL is raising about some sections.

April 26, 2013

The Honorable Michael Bennet
United States Senate
458 Russell Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Richard J. Durbin
United States Senate
711 Hart Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Jeff Flake
United States Senate
B85 Russell Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Lindsey Graham
United States Senate
290 Russell Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable John McCain
United States Senate
241 Russell Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Robert Menendez
United States Senate
528 Hart Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Marco Rubio
United States Senate
317 Hart Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Charles E. Schumer
United States Senate
419 Hart Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senators Bennet, Durbin, Flake, Graham, Menendez, McCain, Rubio, and Schumer:

We, the undersigned national, state, and local humanitarian, human rights, faith-based, and refugee-serving organizations, thank you for the inclusion of improvements to immigration law protecting refugees, asylum seekers, and stateless people in S. 744. We hope Congress follows your lead to ensure that comprehensive immigration reform upholds the United States’ proud history and tradition of protecting and welcoming victims of persecution and torture.

We welcome and strongly support the inclusion of provisions in the Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act that seek to improve our laws, increase efficiency, and protect refugees, asylum seekers and stateless people:

We strongly support these key reforms to improve the lives of asylum seekers, refugees, and U.S. communities that welcome them and will work to ensure their ultimate enactment into law. These changes would not only help improve efficiencies in current immigration processes but would also ensure that America remains a humanitarian leader throughout the world and fulfills its obligations to those seeking a safe haven and new life.

Sincerely,

National
8th Day Center for Justice
Adorers of the Blood of Christ
Adrian Dominican Sisters
Advocacy for Justice and Peace Committee of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia
Agudath Israel of America
Alliance of Baptists
American Baptist Home Mission Societies
American Civil Liberties Union
American Immigration Lawyers Association
Americans for Immigrant Justice, formerly Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center
American Jewish Committee
Amnesty International USA
Arab American Institute
Asian American Justice Center, member of Asian American Center for Advancing Justice
Asylum Access
B'nai B'rith International
Catholic Charities USA
Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network
CCCAS
Center for Gender & Refugee Studies
Center for Victims of Torture
CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers
Christian Community Development Association
Christian Reformed Church in North America, Office of Social Justice
Church World Service
Congregation of St. Joseph
Conservatives for Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CfCIR)
Detention Watch Network
Ethiopian Community Development Council, Inc.
Franciscan Action Network
Friends Committee on National Legislation
GetEQUAL
HIAS
Human Rights First
Immigration Equality
International Rescue Committee
Iraqi Refugee Assistance Project
Jesuit Conference of the United States
Jesuit Refugee Service/USA
Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Jewish Family & Career Services
Jewish Family Services
Kentucky Refugee Ministries
Kurdish Human Rights Watch
Leadership Conference of Women Religious
Liberty Counsel Action
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
Magen Tzedek
NaLEC
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF)
National Center for Transgender Equality
National Council of Jewish Women
National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA)
National Immigrant Justice Center
National Immigration Forum
National Immigration Law Center
National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health
National Latino Evangelical Coalition (NALEC)
NETWORK A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby
Office of Immigration Issues, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
One Horizon Institute
Open Society Policy Center
ORAM - Organization for Refuge, Asylum & Migration
Physicians for Human Rights
Precious Blood Sisters
Rabbinical Assembly
Refugees International
School Sisters of Notre Dame Atlantic Midwest Province
Sinsinawa Dominicans
Sisters of Mercy
Sisters of Providence
Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia
Sisters of St. Joseph
Sisters of the Holy Cross
Sojourners
Southeast Asia Resource Action Center
Stateless Person Representation Project
Tahirih Justice Center
The Episcopal Church
The United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries
Torture Abolition and Survivor Support Coalition (TASSC International)
Transgender Law Center
U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants
Union for Reform Judaism
Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
United Church of Christ
United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
USCRI
Women's Refugee Commission
World Relief

State/Local
Alabama
Greater Birmingham Ministries
Jesuit Social Research Institute
Alaska
Catholic Social Services
Arizona
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest
Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson, Arizona
Arkansas
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
California
Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice, Los Angeles
CLUE Orange County
Fresno Interdenominational Refugee Ministries (FIRM, Inc.)
International Institute of Los Angeles
International institute of the Bay Area
Jewish Family & Children's Services of the East Bay
Jewish Family Services of Silicon Valley
Second Harvest Food Bank
Colorado
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Connecticut
International Institute of Connecticut
Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater New Haven
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
Lutheran Social Services of New England
Delaware
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
District of Columbia
Advocates for Survivors of Torture and Trauma
Jewish Social Service Agency
Florida
Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice Inc.
Catholic Charities of NWFL
Florida-Bahamas Synod, ELCA
Florida Council of Churches & ELCA
Gulf Coast Jewish Family & Community Services
Hope Community Center
Jesuit Social Research Institute
Lutheran Church of Our Saviour
Lutheran Services Florida, Inc.
Refugee Immigration Project, JALA
UNO Federation Community Services
Georgia
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Refugee Resettlement and Immigration Services of Atlanta
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Idaho
Lutheran Community Services Northwest
Illinois
HIAS-Chicago
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Interfaith Committee for Detained Immigrants
Jewish Child and Family Services
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
Project IRENE
RefugeeOne
Indiana
First Unitarian Church of Louisville, KY
Iowa
Catholic Charities and Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement of Iowa
Center for Active Nonviolence & Peacemaking
Kansas
Episcopal Wichita Area Refugee Ministry
Jewish Vocational Service
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Kentucky
First Unitarian Church of Louisville, KY
International Center of Kentucky
Kentucky Refugee Ministries
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Louisiana
Jesuit Social Research Institute
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Maine
Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project (ILAP)
Lutheran Social Services of New England
Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition
Maryland
Advocates for Survivors of Torture and Trauma
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
St. Matthew Detention Ministry
Massachusetts
Boston Center for Refugee Health & Human Rights at Boston Medical Center
Boston University Civil Litigation Program
Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Boston
Guatemala Solidarity Boston
International Institute of New England
Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
Lutheran Social Services of New England
Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition
Political Asylum Immigration Representation Project
Michigan
Jewish Family Service of Metropolitan Detroit
Lutheran Social Services of Michigan
Lutheran Social Services of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan
St. Vincent Catholic Charities
University of Detroit Mercy, Immigration Law Clinic
Minnesota
Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota
Jewish Community Action
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota
Minnesota Council of Churches
Sisters of St. Francis
Mississippi
Jesuit Social Research Institute
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Missouri
Archdiocese of St. Louis, Office of Hispanic Ministry
Catholic Charities of Central and Northern Missouri
Gospel Justice Committee
Jewish Vocational Service
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Refugee & Immigration Services, Catholic Charities of Central and Northern Missouri
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Montana
Montana Immigrant Justice Alliance
Montanans Support Immigration Reform
Nebraska
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
New Hampshire
International Institute of New England
Lutheran Social Services of New England
Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition
NH Sisters of Mercy
New Jersey
First Friends of NJ & NY Corp.
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
The Reformed Church of Highland Park
New Mexico
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
New York
Catholic Family Center
First Friends of NJ & NY Corp.
Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition
InterFaith Works Center for New Americans
Jews for Racial & Economic Justice
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
North Carolina
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina
Lutheran Services Carolinas
NC-Immigrant Rights Project
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Ohio
American Jewish Committee Cincinnati Region
Catholic Charities of SW Ohio
Community Refugee & Immigration Services
International Institute of Akron
International Services of Cleveland
Nottingham UMC
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Oklahoma
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Oregon
Catholic Charities of Oregon
Lutheran Community Services Northwest
Pennsylvania
Catholic Charities Immigration and Refugee Services
Catholic Charities Counseling and Adoption Services
Catholic Social Services
Community Legal Services
HIAS Pennsylvania
Jewish Family & Children's Service
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
Lutheran Children and Family Service
Nationalities Service Center
Sisters of Saint Joseph of Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia
Rhode Island
Dioceses of Providence
Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition
South Carolina
Lutheran Services Carolinas
NC- Immigrant Rights Project
South Dakota
Lutheran Social Services of South Dakota
Tennessee
Bridge Refugee Services
Catholic Charities of Tennessee
Catholic Public Policy Commission of Tennessee
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas South Central Community
Texas
Diocesan Migrant & Refugee Services, Inc.
Human Rights Initiative of North Texas
Jesuit Social Research Institute
Justice and Peace Center, a Ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph-Concordia
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
Refugee Services of Texas
St. John's United Methodist Women
Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission
Vermont
Lutheran Social Services of New England
Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition
Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program
Virginia
Jewish Social Service Agency
Washington
Jewish Family Service
Lutheran Community Services Northwest
Northwest Immigrant Rights Project
OneAmerica
Tacoma Community House
Wisconsin
Leadership Team of the Felician Sisters of North America
Lutheran Social Services of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan
WISDOM

CC:
Senator Patrick Leahy, Chair, Senate Committee on the Judiciary
Senator Charles Grassley, Ranking Member, Senate Committee on the Judiciary

The bi-partisan group produced an 800-page bill, S. 744, that addresses many of the complexities of the current U.S. immigration system: how to bring in the right number of workers, how to protect those workers’ rights, how to keep families together, how to resettle refugees, how to improve the bureaucracy that manages the legal immigration system, what to do about the 11 million people who are already in the U.S. without permission and, alas, how to increase “border security.”

FCNL is delighted to see a bill. Without a bill, there is nothing to talk about in Congress – nothing to advocate for or against. On first review, we see many provisions that align with the principles we’ve lobbied for over the past several years (which you can read here) such as:

We also see an unnecessary expansion and militarization of enforcement at the border, considering that border crossings are now at a 40-year low, and a mandatory “e-verify” program that would involve every employer and every employee (immigrant and native alike) in a potentially error-riddled immigration enforcement requirement. FCNL's detailed analysis is available here.

If you would like to receive news of developments in the immigration debate, please sign up for our email list, “Make a Difference on Immigration Reform." We will provide updates and resources to help you participate in a strong, nationwide move for fair, practical, and compassionate immigration reform.

The work of this bipartisan group represents a good conversation about reform, focusing on fixing some of the practical problems of our immigration system. At FCNL, we look forward to working on the specifics of legislation once a bill has been released.

Read FCNL’s Principles for Immigration Reform here.

Immigrants helped build this country and welcoming immigrants is the right thing to do

The United States is proud of its immigrant heritage. For many of us, our grandparents or great grandparents came here seeking opportunity, and we should recognize a reflection of that heritage in the immigrants who come to the U.S. now to improve their lives and take care of their families. We need to integrate immigrants as full participants in our communities and contributors to our economy, and we need a legal immigration system that welcomes and adjusts to the right flow of immigrants each year.

The current immigration system is broken and no one is happy with it; we need real solutions. Law-abiding employers are out-competed by those who are willing to pay immigrants below minimum wage, families and communities are being torn apart by indiscriminate arrests, workers aren’t getting fair treatment, and the federal government keeps throwing billions of dollars at ineffective enforcement policies. We need a system that works for everyone.

Immigrants should be able to seek citizenship

A reformed immigration system should include a pathway to eventual citizenship for all who enter the country legally on immigrant visas. It is not in the interest of the United States as a democracy to design a structure that recognizes something less than citizenship for some of its permanent residents.

Meanwhile, the nation needs a solution for the 11 million undocumented immigrants currently in the U.S., without legal status. These immigrants came here to work, to be with their families, or to escape conditions in their home countries, but the broken immigration system left them with no practical way to come here legally. They pay taxes for public benefits they cannot claim. They cannot report employers who abuse them or pay them less than legally required (or not at all). They are living in the shadows, with no way to regularize their status. We need practical solutions. By providing a way for them to work toward citizenship, federal, state, and local governments can regulate employment and focus scarce resources on other pressing issues.

Families should be kept together

They form the basis for strong communities, and help to ensure the success of the next generation. The current immigration system separates thousands of families. Backlogs at the government’s visa processing agency and the limited numbers of visas force people to choose between extended separations from loved ones and coming here illegally, as many do. Reforming the family visa system will allow families to stay together throughout the legal process and reduce the pressure for family members to immigrate illegally.

Creating orderly legal avenues for immigration will make the system easier to regulate, and cut down on illegal immigration

Once a rational employment-based and family-based immigration system is established, immigrants will be able to enter the country legally, and the need for heightened enforcement measures will diminish. Some sectors in the U.S. economy rely on immigrant workers—of various skill levels. The federal government should establish a mechanism to determine each year the need for additional workers from outside the U.S. These legal avenues should be designed to avoid undercutting wages and job opportunities for people already in the U.S., and should allow new immigrants to bring their families with them. People who enter on temporary work visas should be able to change employers while they are in the U.S. and should have the opportunity to seek permanent residence status or eventual citizenship.

Enforcing employment laws will improve working conditions for everyone

All workers should be treated fairly and equally. If existing employment and labor laws are actively enforced, then employers will be more likely to abide by wage and safety standards. If immigrants are confident of their legal immigration status, then they can report abusive employers and help to improve working conditions for all.

Federal immigration law should be enforced directly by federal authorities

Many state and local governments are participating in federal immigration enforcement programs, diverting their local law enforcement agencies from their core tasks. When they are seen in their local communities as immigration enforcers, local police lose their effectiveness in crime prevention and apprehension of actual criminal suspects. These federal programs also create incentives to detain as many immigrants as possible, contrary to the announced federal policy of focusing only on those who pose a danger to the community or national security.

Immigration is constitutionally a federal matter, to be enforced by federal authorities. Layers of state and local laws only confuse an already overly-complex system, deny civil rights to citizens and non-citizens, and frustrate efforts to find common-sense solutions to fix our broken immigration system.

For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink;
I was a stranger and you welcomed me. Matthew 25:35

As people of faith guided by the spiritual values of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), our work on immigration is led by the call for right relationships among people and between individuals and God. We believe that respect for human and civil rights is essential to safeguarding the integrity of our society and the inherent dignity of all human beings. We recognize that governments have an indispensable role in upholding these rights and citizens have the responsibility to make governments more responsive, open, and accountable.

Therefore, we call for humane comprehensive immigration reform. We have seen the degeneration of the U.S. immigration system over the last three decades. Overly punitive laws in tandem with increased enforcement and an inefficient bureaucracy have led to systemic violations of rights: indiscriminate raids, detention without due process, worker exploitation, and families separated for years or even decades.

Humane immigration reform would restore integrity to the U.S. tradition of welcoming immigrants and provide real solutions to a broken immigration system. We believe that fundamental and comprehensive reform of U.S. immigration policy is needed in order to:

To meet these principles, the following six elements should be included in comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

One. Improve the Legal Immigration System

Recognizing the importance of immigrant labor in the U.S. economy, we call for an expansion of legal avenues for workers - of all skill levels - to migrate to the United States in a safe and orderly manner. These new legal avenues must protect immigrant workers’ rights, including the ability to bring their families with them, to change their place of employment, and to apply for lawful permanent status and eventual citizenship. Such avenues must be designed to meet the legitimate needs of the economy without undercutting workers already in the United States.

Family visas should not be placed in competition with employment visas. Recognizing the critical role of family in the development of healthy individuals and communities, immigration policies should make reunification of spouses, parents, children, and siblings a top priority, and should include families headed by same-gender couples. Reform of the family immigration system should retain family preference categories at adequate levels, augment per-country caps, remove bars to reentry and adjustment of status for those seeking to reunite with family, and eliminate lengthy visa backlogs by recapturing immigrant visas lost to bureaucratic delays and rolling them over to the next fiscal year. Spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents should be reclassified as immediate relatives to ensure that these individuals are reunited as quickly as possible.

Immigration policies should support communities with high concentrations of immigrants and facilitate integration of immigrants into the community. The U.S. immigration system should ensure that communities are able to welcome immigrants by providing federal support to state and local governments and organizations to provide multi-lingual and civics education, outreach, and naturalization assistance. The immigration system should ensure that all immigrants, regardless of status, have access to social services such as health care and education.

Two. Protect Refugees, Asylum Seekers, and Other Displaced Persons

Immigration policies should support openness to refugees and those seeking asylum. We live in an increasingly interconnected and globalized world, and our planet is undergoing potentially dramatic climate changes that threaten to displace millions of people. Refugee and asylum policy should support those displaced by conflict, oppression, environmental change, natural disaster, and economic destitution.

Three. Establish an Equitable Path to Permanent Legal Residency and Citizenship

Immigration reform must create a reasonable and inclusive path for undocumented immigrants, multi-status families, refugees, and asylees to regularize their status and earn eventual citizenship. Such a program must be workable and not hindered by overly punitive criteria, such as mandating that immigrants leave the country or pay exorbitant fees, or by making the process conditional upon the implementation of enforcement measures. The clearance of the existing visa backlog should be expedited.

Four. Protect the Rights of All Workers

Immigration policies should coordinate with labor, health and safety laws to ensure that all people can work with dignity. Laws governing wages, hours, health, and safety should be strictly enforced, the ability to organize protected, and remedies to redress workplace grievances made available to all workers, regardless of immigration status. Abiding by strict labor and employment laws would remove the economic incentive for employers to hire undocumented and temporary labor, practices that can be used to undercut wages, job security, and working conditions for those already in the United States. Immigration policies should augment the Department of Labor’s ability to enforce labor laws, not hinder it by creating a climate of fear that employers can use to exploit immigrant workers. Indiscriminate home and workplace raids should be eliminated and employer audits should be the primary workplace enforcement mechanism.

Five. Protect Due Process Rights and Reform Detention Policies

All persons, regardless of immigrant status, should be afforded due process protection. Due process protection for immigrants includes the end of mandatory detention and expedited removal, access to legal counsel and law libraries, access to legal orientation programs, access to translation and interpretation services, independent judicial review of individual circumstances before removal, and the ability to challenge detention before an independent judicial body in a timely manner.

Detention policies should be reformed to uphold human and civil rights. Crossing the border without legal permission, or overstaying a visa, is an infraction – not a crime. The vast majority of individuals detained and deported each year are not charged with any kind of violent crime.

Immigration enforcement should incorporate a presumption against detention. Alternatives to detention should be implemented nationwide and individualized assessments should guide determinations of the necessity and appropriateness of detention. In particular, vulnerable populations such as asylum-seekers, torture survivors, victims of human trafficking, children, sole guardians and caregivers, pregnant women, individuals with significant medical needs, mentally ill individuals, lawful permanent residents, and LGBT individuals should be released from custody or provided with a non-custodial alternative to detention.

For those who are detained, binding detention standards should be developed to ensure access to basic rights, such as adequate access to medical and mental health care, access to telephones, access to religious services, access to recreation, and contact visits with families. Detention standards should also protect detainees from sexual abuse, overcrowding, unnecessary restraints, and arbitrary transfer. Immigration detainees held under administrative detention should be kept separate from individuals in criminal custody. An independent oversight agency should be established to investigate, evaluate, and report on compliance. Detainees should have the ability to make confidential complaints directly to this agency.

Six. Align the Immigration System with Humanitarian Values

Immigration enforcement must be realigned with humanitarian values. The militarization of the border, including the construction of physical and virtual fences, does not effectively stem undocumented migration. On the contrary, such policies have desecrated sacred religious sites of native peoples, violated numerous environmental laws and protections, and encouraged human and civil rights abuses. Border communities, including tribal governments, should be directly involved in the decision-making processes regarding border enforcement policies.

Federal immigration laws should be enforced by federal authorities. ICE ACCESS programs implemented by state and local law enforcement agencies, including the fundamentally flawed 287(g) and Secure Communities programs, allow for racial profiling while distracting officers from their primary task of promoting the safety and security of communities. Such programs should not be a part of a reformed U.S. immigration system.

We need real solutions for our broken immigration system, and the good news is that Congress is working to bring legislation out this month. A bipartisan group of 8 senators is crafting a bill right now that will be a blueprint for overhauling the U.S. immigration system. Please contact your senators today, before this legislation is finalized, and urge them to support immigration reform that:

• Provides a path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants already here. Many of these immigrants are taxpayers working hard to support their families and contribute to their communities.
• Keeps families together. Families should not be separated because of long bureaucratic delays in processing visa applications or by arbitrary and outdated restrictions on the number of applications from certain countries.

Please ask your senators to support humane immigration reform. For more information, please see our talking points on immigration reform.

The problems with the current immigration system are well-documented. Undocumented immigrants are living in the shadows, law-abiding employers are out-competed by those who are willing to pay below minimum wage, families and communities are being torn apart by indiscriminate arrests, workers aren't getting fair treatment, and the federal government keeps throwing billions of dollars at ineffective enforcement policies.

The news of two days ago that business and labor groups have come together to agree on a framework for immigration reform is a promising sign that Congress is likely to advance comprehensive immigration reform in the next few weeks. Please contact your senators today to assure that it is truly fair and comprehensive. And if you'd like to stay up-to-date on immigration issues, I encourage you to sign up for our monthly immigration update list.

Sincerely,

Diane Randall
Executive Secretary




Find out more:

• See talking points for what we're looking for in immigration legislation.
• See our principles for immigration reform.
• Sign up for monthly updates on immigration.

Latest immigration update:

Friends Committee on National Legislation statement for the Congressional Record
Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing
Monday, March 18, 2013

The Friends Committee on National Legislation, founded in 1943, is guided by the spiritual values of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Our work on immigration is led by the call for right relationships among people and between individuals and God. We believe that respect for human and civil rights is essential to safeguarding the integrity of our society and the inherent dignity of all human beings. We recognize that governments have an indispensable role in upholding these rights and citizens have the responsibility to make governments more responsive, open, and accountable.

Therefore, we call for humane comprehensive immigration reform. We have seen the degeneration of the U.S. immigration system over the last three decades. Overly punitive laws, in tandem with increased enforcement and an inefficient bureaucracy, have led to systemic violations of rights: indiscriminate raids, detention without due process, worker exploitation, and families separated for years or even decades. Humane immigration reform would restore integrity to the U.S. tradition of welcoming immigrants and provide real solutions to a broken immigration system. We believe that fundamental and comprehensive reform of U.S. immigration policy is needed in order to:

Recognizing the critical role of family in the development of healthy individuals and communities, FCNL believes that immigration policies should make reunification of spouses, parents, children, and siblings a top priority, and should include families headed by same-sex couples as well as opposite-sex couples. Reform of the family immigration system should retain family preference categories at adequate levels, augment per-country caps, remove bars to reentry and adjustment of status for those seeking to reunite with family, and eliminate lengthy visa backlogs by recapturing immigrant visas lost to bureaucratic delays and rolling them over to the next fiscal year. Family visas should not be placed in competition with employment visas. Spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents should be reclassified as immediate relatives to ensure that these individuals are reunited as quickly as possible.

FCNL welcomes the Bipartisan Framework for Comprehensive Immigration Reform released on January 28 by eight U.S. Senators. We congratulate the authors of the Framework, who reached across party lines to acknowledge the need to fix our broken immigration system, and to propose some practical solutions.

However, we are concerned at the news that the Senate bipartisan group is considering cutting family visa categories for siblings and adult married children of U.S. citizens. Cutting family visa categories increases pressures for illegal immigration, exacerbating the problems of the country’s broken immigration system. Evidence indicates that many of the undocumented immigrants in the U.S. came here to be reunited with their families, but had no legal means to immigrate. Congress will not fix the broken system by dividing families and reducing legal avenues for family migration. We look forward to working with Congress and members of the committee on the details of reform legislation.

March 15, 2013

Dear Senator,

We write to express our concern at the news that the Senate bipartisan group working on immigration reform legislation is considering cutting family visa categories for siblings and adult married children of U.S. citizens. We urge you to keep these visa categories in your bill proposal.

Support for families is a national value – one that unites us all. It is our belief at FCNL that family networks strengthen communities and our country as a whole.

Families play a crucial role in the development of healthy individuals and communities, aiding in the integration of new immigrants, and contributing to the local and national economy. Families provide resources and help incorporate newcomers into the social and economic fabric of the country. It is important to recognize that some of the most celebrated innovators did not come to the U.S. solely on employment-based visas: the founders of eBay, Intel, Yahoo, and Google, for example, came on family visas, nurtured by the connections in their family networks. Reducing the number of family visas in order to create more employment-based visas will hurt, rather than help, U.S. communities and the economy.

Cutting family visa categories also increases pressures for illegal immigration, exacerbating the problems of the country’s broken immigration system. Evidence indicates that many of the undocumented immigrants in the U.S. came here to be reunited with their families, but had no legal means to immigrate. Congress will not fix the broken system by dividing families and reducing legal avenues for family migration.

Sincerely,

Diane Randall

Executive Secretary

Friends Committee on National Legislation statement for the Congressional Record
House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security Hearing
Thursday, March 14, 2013

The Friends Committee on National Legislation, founded in 1943, is guided by the spiritual values of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Our work on immigration is led by the call for right relationships among people and between individuals and God. We believe that respect for human and civil rights is essential to safeguarding the integrity of our society and the inherent dignity of all human beings. We recognize that governments have an indispensable role in upholding these rights and citizens have the responsibility to make governments more responsive, open, and accountable.

Therefore, we call for humane comprehensive immigration reform. We have seen the degeneration of the U.S. immigration system over the last three decades. Overly punitive laws, in tandem with increased enforcement and an inefficient bureaucracy, have led to systemic violations of rights: indiscriminate raids, detention without due process, worker exploitation, and families separated for years or even decades. Humane immigration reform would restore integrity to the U.S. tradition of welcoming immigrants and provide real solutions to a broken immigration system. We believe that fundamental and comprehensive reform of U.S. immigration policy is needed in order to:

Evidence indicates that border enforcement has been substantially addressed. The U.S. invests more in immigration enforcement by the Department of Homeland Security than in all other federal law enforcement agencies combined. The militarization of the border, including the construction of physical and virtual fences, does not effectively stem undocumented migration, yet such policies have desecrated religious sites that are sacred to Native Americans, violated numerous environmental laws and protections, and induced human and civil rights abuses affecting citizens as well as potential immigrants. A functioning and humane legal immigration system will integrate immigrants into U.S. society, reduce pressure on the border, and allow federal agencies to focus on actual national security concerns as well as the illegal trafficking of drugs, arms, and persons across maritime and land borders.

FCNL is also concerned about the civil liberties implications of employer-based enforcement mechanisms – particularly a mandatory E-Verify system that will undoubtedly catch citizens, especially those with foreign sounding names – in their nets. Employer-based enforcement systems that focus on individuals would reach much more widely than other approaches (such as the vigorous enforcement of wage, hour and safety laws). If they are included in reform legislation, they must be balanced by protections of privacy, due process, and fundamental fairness.

Finally, we believe that federal immigration laws should be enforced by federal authorities. ICE ACCESS programs implemented by state and local law enforcement agencies, including the fundamentally flawed 287(g) and Secure Communities programs, create an atmosphere that subtly encourages racial profiling, and interfere with local officers’ primary task of promoting the safety and security of communities. Such programs should not be a part of a reformed U.S. immigration system.

We believe that the U.S. government is capable of designing and implementing an equitable and humane immigration system that meets the needs of this nation and demonstrates U.S. leadership in compassion, fairness, and human rights.

Friends Committee on National Legislation statement for the Congressional Record
House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security Hearing
Thursday, March 14, 2013

The Friends Committee on National Legislation, founded in 1943, is guided by the spiritual values of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Our work on immigration is led by the call for right relationships among people and between individuals and God. We believe that respect for human and civil rights is essential to safeguarding the integrity of our society and the inherent dignity of all human beings. We recognize that governments have an indispensable role in upholding these rights and citizens have the responsibility to make governments more responsive, open, and accountable.

Therefore, we call for humane comprehensive immigration reform. We have seen the degeneration of the U.S. immigration system over the last three decades. Overly punitive laws, in tandem with increased enforcement and an inefficient bureaucracy, have led to systemic violations of rights: indiscriminate raids, detention without due process, worker exploitation, and families separated for years or even decades. Humane immigration reform would restore integrity to the U.S. tradition of welcoming immigrants and provide real solutions to a broken immigration system. We believe that fundamental and comprehensive reform of U.S. immigration policy is needed in order to:

Recognizing the critical role of family in the development of healthy individuals and communities, FCNL believes that immigration policies should make reunification of spouses, parents, children, and siblings a top priority, and should include families headed by same-sex couples as well as opposite-sex couples. Reform of the family immigration system should retain family preference categories at adequate levels, augment per-country caps, remove bars to reentry and adjustment of status for those seeking to reunite with family, and eliminate lengthy visa backlogs by recapturing immigrant visas lost to bureaucratic delays and rolling them over to the next fiscal year. Family visas should not be placed in competition with employment visas. Spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents should be reclassified as immediate relatives to ensure that these individuals are reunited as quickly as possible.

FCNL welcomes the Bipartisan Framework for Comprehensive Immigration Reform released on January 28 by eight U.S. Senators. We congratulate the authors of the Framework, who reached across party lines to acknowledge the need to fix our broken immigration system, and to propose some practical solutions. We support the recommended improvements in the processing of family visas that would help keep families together by reducing backlogs, and we look forward to working with Congress and members of the subcommittee on the details of reform legislation.

What’s already happened: People from across the political spectrum agree that the current immigration system is broken. A bipartisan group of eight senators has released a framework for comprehensive immigration reform. President Obama has made steps toward a more humane immigration policy through executive orders that granted temporary relief from deportation for DREAMers and made it easier to keep families together.

The next few weeks: We’re working with the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) to mobilize support for immigration reform. The IIC holds a monthly conference call and webinar for grassroots advocates, the information for which FCNL sends out as part of its monthly email about immigration reform. Sign up here to receive these emails.

Looking ahead: Representative Luis Gutierrez (IL) and Senator Chuck Schumer (NY) have both stated that immigration reform will be top priorities in the coming Congress, and the New York Times indicates that President Obama will work on a comprehensive reform package as a major part of his second-term agenda. We're hearing on Capitol Hill that the Senate plans to have a reform bill by mid-April.

Background and Resources for Immigration Advocacy

The Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC), a coalition of 35 national faith-based organizations, calls on the Obama Administration to seize the moment to champion legislative reform of our broken immigration system, and to promote immigrant integration and reduce harmful enforcement practices through administrative actions.

For more than a decade, the IIC has been working with hundreds of congregations, service providers, and faith leaders across the country to educate communities, oppose anti-immigrant legislation, and work toward humane immigration reform. In the past four years alone, the IIC network has organized more than a thousand prayer vigils, community forums, and rallies across the country in support of immigrants’ rights. As a diverse coalition, we see this as an opportunity to raise a wide array of concerns and issues that should be considered as the President and Congress move forward with fixing our nation’s broken immigration system.

CHAMPION LEGISLATIVE PRINCIPLES

The IIC calls on the Administration to use all its resources, contacts, and the political capital necessary to ensure that Congress enacts legislation to:

Address the Causes of Migration

People of faith have witnessed firsthand the suffering caused by extreme poverty, violent conflict, political and religious persecution, and environmental destruction that prompt individuals to leave their homes in search of a better life. U.S. foreign policy must seek smart, effective ways to help reshape financial systems that unduly burden vulnerable populations – including U.S. trade policies, international financial institutions, and local economies in sending countries – toward models that support those in need.

Our faiths compel us to seek to reduce the need for people to leave their homes in order to provide for their families. Rather than current policies which undermine sustainable livelihoods in sending countries, we should invest in environmentally sustainable economic development that preserves and defends the basic human rights of all people. These policies will provide alternatives to unauthorized immigration and reduce the need for costly border enforcement, detention, and deportation.

Create a Process for Undocumented Immigrants to Earn Citizenship

Any meaningful reform of our immigration system must include a fair and generous process that allows undocumented immigrants and their families to earn lawful permanent residency with a pathway to citizenship. The workability of such a program should not be hindered by overly punitive criteria, such as mandating that immigrants leave the country or pay exorbitant fees, or by making the process conditional upon the implementation of enforcement measures. We urge the Administration to oppose legislation that would curtail the nature of citizenship or restrict access to public benefits and child tax credits.

Keep Families Together

Families are the basic unit of strong communities. Today, thousands of families are separated by our broken immigration system and should be reunited. Backlogs at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the limited number of visas force family members to choose between being separated for extended periods of time or illegally entering the country. A fair immigration system must improve and strengthen the family immigration process by recapturing visas lost to bureaucratic delay to reduce the current backlog; reclassifying spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents as immediate relatives; raising the per country visa limits from seven to fifteen percent of total admissions to reduce long wait times for certain nationalities; eliminating unlawful presence bars for the spouse, child, or parent of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents; admitting surviving family members of deceased family petitioners; and eliminating the cap on the total number of family-based visas available.

Enact the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act

The faith community sees the DREAM Act as vital in fixing the broken immigration system. The DREAM Act has had many iterations, and the IIC calls on Congress to enact robust and inclusive legislation that would provide a pathway to citizenship for individuals brought to the United States at age 16 or younger, are currently no older than 35 years of age, and who have graduated from high school, earned a GED in the U.S, or are currently in school. In addition to college and military service criteria, the IIC urges legislators to include volunteer service as a method by which DREAMers can maintain legal status and earn citizenship. DACA recipients should automatically qualify for any legalization process, and their time with DACA status should count toward any conditional status period under the DREAM Act.

Protect Workers’ Rights, Including Agricultural Workers

There is a clear need to expand legal avenues for workers to migrate to the United States in a safe, authorized, and orderly manner. It is vital that these workers’ rights are fully protected, including the right to bring their families with them, travel as needed, change their place of employment, and apply for lawful permanent residency and eventually citizenship.

Enactment of AgJobs (the Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits and Security Act) would provide a legal, stable labor force by offering undocumented farmworkers the chance to earn legal status by meeting stringent work requirements and legal obligations. AgJobs would revise the H-2A agricultural guest-worker program to help employers fill critical agricultural positions that have been difficult to fill, sustaining agricultural industries while also protecting workers’ rights.

As currently structured, the electronic employment verification (E-verify) program has proven detrimental to migrants, employers, and citizen employees. It leads to increased discrimination and unfair hiring and firing practices. For these reasons, and because we believe all workers benefit from the enforcement of health, safety, wage, and hour laws, as well as the right to peacefully organize, the IIC is opposed to the mandatory expansion of the E-verify program.

Place Humanitarian Values at the Center of Enforcement Policies

Enforcement policies must be made to be consistent with humanitarian values and with the need to treat all individuals with respect, while allowing the United States to identify and prevent the entry of persons who commit dangerous crimes. Over the past twenty years, the federal government has dramatically increased border fence and other infrastructure construction, border patrol presence, immigration detention, and the deportation of immigrants, without regard to cost or effectiveness. Over $10 billion of taxpayers’ money has been spent on border security. It is now time to reform the broken immigration system. To truly decrease unauthorized immigration, the United States should improve access to a fair and humane legal immigration system, increasing and improving the efficiency of ports of entry, expanding visa availability, and eliminating application backlogs.

Border security has also proven to be environmentally irresponsible on many levels. It threatens already endangered species and damages public lands and interferes with business and land owners who operate and live along the border. We have also witnessed the desecration of sacred sites and the violation of religious freedom, as well as the unnecessary anguish of community members whose loved ones have suffered or died seeking entry into the United States. Above all else, enforcement policies must treat all individuals with respect and dignity. Citizens and migrants alike have the right to a fair and humane legal immigration system that respects the dignity of all persons, prioritizes the cohesiveness of families and communities, recognizes the economic contributions of immigrants, and upholds our moral obligations to provide refuge and welcome for the sojourner.

Protect Refugees and Migrant Survivors of Violence

The IIC encourages the Administration and Congress to make life-changing improvements to the U.S. refugee resettlement program that would help refugees integrate in their new homes in the United States. Refugees have fled persecution in their home countries due to their race, nationality, religion, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group, and the United States has a rich tradition of welcoming refugees and helping them begin new lives. Bills such as the Refugee Protection Act, Domestic Refugee Resettlement and Modernization Act, and Strengthening Refugee Resettlement Act include positive reforms that would not only help refugees, but provide important resources to the communities that welcome them.

The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) has a long history of uniting lawmakers with the common purpose of protecting survivors of domestic violence. Congress has consistently recognized the vulnerability of non-citizen survivors of violence by enacting provisions in VAWA that enhance safety for survivors and their children and provide tools for law enforcement to investigate and prosecute crimes. In 2012, the House of Representatives passed a VAWA reauthorization bill that would undermine years of protections for immigrant victims and would actually make immigrants more vulnerable, endangering many lives. The IIC applauds the Administration's strong opposition to H.R. 4970 and urges that any reauthorization of VAWA maintain and improve protections for migrant survivors, not weaken them.

PROMOTE COMMUNITY SAFETY, IMMIGRANT INTEGRATION, AND FAMILY UNITY THROUGH ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION

The IIC calls on the administration to ensure that its policies and practices protect the dignity and rights of all people, and asks that it:

End Secure Communities and 287(g) Agreements

The Secure Communities (S-Comm) program purports to identify and remove the most dangerous criminal offenders; however, tens of thousands of hardworking families have been caught up in this dragnet deportation system. We call for an end to S-Comm because when local law enforcement administers federal immigration procedures the safety of our communities is compromised.

In accordance with the position of U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Justice, immigration must be enforced by federal officials, and not by local law enforcement. This collaboration between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and local police compromises community policing efforts and causes victims and witnesses to fear reporting crimes, which jeopardizes community safety. States and localities should not be required to participate in immigration enforcement programs, including the forwarding of fingerprints and other biometric information to DHS, which erode trust and cooperation between immigrant communities and law enforcement. Immigrant communities and law enforcement have warned that this makes immigrant communities vulnerable to being the targets of hate crimes. Laws that encourage racial profiling and discrimination in employment, housing, and other services lead to more widespread discrimination and profiling, feed xenophobia, and send an undeniable message to immigrant communities that they are not welcome.

We support the Administration’s decision to scale back the 287(g) program, but call for an end to the program. Like S-Comm, 287(g) erodes trust between local law enforcement and the immigrant community. We applaud the DHS decision to rescind the 287g program in both Maricopa County and Alamance County in response to documentation of discriminatory policing. We urge the administration to end the entire 287(g) program and to rescind all current 287(g) agreements.

Increase Opposition to Anti-Immigrant State Policies

We applaud the Department of Justice for recognizing that Arizona’s SB 1070 and similar legislation in South Carolina, Georgia, Utah, Indiana and Alabama are pre-empted by federal immigration law and therefore unconstitutional. We remain concerned, however, about racial profiling as “papers please” provisions are implemented. We urge the Administration to continue to aggressively challenge the constitutionality of anti-immigrant state laws and practices.

DHS’s decision to not collaborate with Arizona or Alabama in the enforcement of SB 1070 or HB 56 has been an important policy stance. However, implementation of DHS guidance has been inconsistent. We urge DHS, including ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), to consistently refuse to collaborate in the deportation of individuals identified through these unconstitutional anti-immigrant state laws.

In addition, the IIC urges the Administration to promote pro-immigrant state policies that are not federally preempted, such as California’s TRUST Act, which are consistent with the administration’s stated policies.

Utilize Prosecutorial Discretion and Restore Due Process

While the IIC was encouraged by the case-by-case review process of prosecutorial discretion, we are disappointed with its implementation. Prosecutorial discretion has been favorably exercised in less than 19 percent of 300,000 cases reviewed over the last year. The IIC urges the Administration to more broadly and consistently utilize prosecutorial discretion to keep families together and preserve communities.

While the decision to limit workplace raids is a step in the right direction, ICE has conducted I-9 Audits at the same time as a labor dispute, potentially infringing on the labor rights established in the National Labor Relations Act. We applaud the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with DHS and the Department of Labor (DOL), but urge ICE and DHS to honor and implement the MOU with DOL fully and consistently.

Expand Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

The IIC celebrates the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy announced June 15th by the Administration. We recognize that this is an impermanent solution, and we continue to call for the DREAM Act to be enacted. We also urge the Administration to consider a similar process for the family members of DACA recipients and other undocumented immigrants who are not enforcement priorities.

The IIC was extremely disappointed to see the Administration exclude DACA recipients from reforms made under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The Department of Health and Human Services’ July 2010 definition of “lawfully present” for the purposes of eligibility under the ACA included individuals granted deferred action. We urge the Administration to include DACA recipients in ACA implementation. In addition, the IIC encourages the Administration to clarify that DACA recipients should not be restricted by state policies or practices from receiving drivers’ licenses or access to higher education.

Finalize the Proposed Rule on Provisional Unlawful Presence Waivers

The IIC applauds the Administration’s announcement of a proposed rule change to allow immediate relatives of U.S. citizens to apply for unlawful presence waivers in the United States before returning to their home countries for final visa processing. We encourage USCIS to swiftly adopt this rule to make it easier for thousands of families to remain together. We also encourage the Administration to expand eligibility criteria to immediate relatives of Lawful Permanent Residents and other priority relatives of U.S. citizens and expand and consistently apply the definition of “extreme hardship.”

Reform Immigration Detention and Prioritize Alternatives to Detention

The IIC urges the administration to reexamine and fundamentally overhaul the immigration detention system. Many non-citizens held in ICE detention are refugees, asylum seekers, and survivors of torture or human trafficking. The IIC encourages the Administration to expedite the release of individuals who pose no risk to the community and expand the use of community-based alternatives to detention, which are more humane and cost effective. We call on ICE to use detention only when an individual poses a risk of flight or a threat to the community that cannot be managed, and to expand more cost-effective alternatives to detention programs. For individuals who must be held in custody, ICE standards must ensure safety, dignity, and fairness and must be enforceable.

We urge the Administration to fully implement the 2011 ICE Performance-Based Detention Standards as soon as possible at all facilities that detain immigrants, and to terminate contractual relationships with facilities that refuse to integrate these new standards. The IIC likewise recommends that the Administration review and integrate proposed Civil Immigration Detention Standards adopted by the American Bar Association’s General Assembly in August of 2012 in an effort to guide the Administration’s transition to a civil immigration detention system and away from the current punitive penal model.

Prioritize Funding to Promote Immigrant Integration

The IIC calls for a faithful budget that will find savings by reducing funding for immigration detention, SComm, the employment verification program as it currently stands, and similar enforcement programs that separate families and create fear in communities, and to redirect those resources to spending for welcoming initiatives, translation services, citizenship programs, visa adjudications, tax credits, education regarding anti-human trafficking efforts, refugee protection and resettlement, community-based alternatives to detention, the Legal Orientation Program for immigrant detainees, and direct services for immigrants, including healthcare coverage for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients.

See PDF Version for the complete list of signers

The Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC), a coalition of 35 national faith-based organizations, calls on the 113th Congress to reform of our broken immigration system. For more than a decade, the IIC has been working with hundreds of congregations, service providers, and faith leaders across the country to educate communities, oppose anti-immigrant legislation, and work toward humane immigration reform. In the past four years alone, the IIC network has organized more than a thousand prayer vigils, community forums, and rallies across the country in support of immigrants’ rights. As a diverse coalition, we see this as an opportunity to raise issues that should be considered as Congress moves forward with fixing our nation’s broken immigration system. The IIC calls on Congress to enact legislation that will:

Address the Causes of Migration

People of faith have witnessed firsthand the suffering caused by extreme poverty, violent conflict, political and religious persecution, and environmental destruction that prompt individuals to leave their homes in search of a better life. U.S. foreign policy must seek smart, effective ways to help reshape financial systems that unduly burden vulnerable populations – including U.S. trade policies, international financial institutions, and local economies in sending countries – toward models that support those in need.

Our faiths compel us to seek to reduce the need for people to leave their homes in order to provide for their families. Rather than current policies which undermine sustainable livelihoods in sending countries, we should invest in environmentally sustainable economic development that preserves and defends the basic human rights of all people. These policies will provide alternatives to unauthorized immigration and reduce the need for costly border enforcement, detention, and deportation.

Create a Process for Undocumented Immigrants to Earn Citizenship

Any meaningful reform of our immigration system must include a fair and generous process that allows undocumented immigrants and their families to earn lawful permanent residency with a pathway to citizenship. The workability of such a program should not be hindered by overly punitive criteria, such as mandating that immigrants leave the country or pay exorbitant fees, or by making the process conditional upon the implementation of enforcement measures. We urge members of Congress to oppose legislation that would curtail the nature of citizenship or restrict access to public benefits and child tax credits.

Keep Families Together

Families are the basic unit of strong communities. Today, thousands of families are separated by our broken immigration system and should be reunited. Backlogs at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the limited number of visas force family members to choose between being separated for extended periods of time or illegally entering the country. A fair immigration system must improve and strengthen the family immigration process by recapturing visas lost to bureaucratic delay to reduce the current backlog; reclassifying spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents as immediate relatives; raising the per country visa limits from seven to fifteen percent of total admissions to reduce long wait times for certain nationalities; eliminating unlawful presence bars for the spouse, child, or parent of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents; admitting surviving family members of deceased family petitioners; and eliminating the cap on the total number of family-based visas available.

Enact the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act

The faith community sees the DREAM Act as vital in fixing the broken immigration system. The DREAM Act has had many iterations, and the IIC calls on Congress to enact robust and inclusive legislation that would provide a pathway to citizenship for individuals brought to the United States at age 16 or younger, are currently no older than 35 years of age, and who have graduated from high school, earned a GED in the U.S, or are currently in school. In addition to college and military service criteria, the IIC urges legislators to include volunteer service as a method by which DREAMers can maintain legal status and earn citizenship. DACA recipients should automatically qualify for any legalization process, and their time with DACA status should count toward any conditional status period under the DREAM Act.

Protect Workers’ Rights, Including Agricultural Workers

There is a clear need to expand legal avenues for workers to migrate to the United States in a safe, authorized, and orderly manner. It is vital that these workers’ rights are fully protected, including the right to bring their families with them, travel as needed, change their place of employment, and apply for lawful permanent residency and eventually citizenship.

Enactment of AgJobs (the Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits and Security Act) would provide a legal, stable labor force by offering undocumented farmworkers the chance to earn legal status by meeting stringent work requirements and legal obligations. AgJobs would revise the H-2A agricultural guest-worker program to help employers fill critical agricultural positions that have been difficult to fill, sustaining agricultural industries while also protecting workers’ rights.

As currently structured, the electronic employment verification (E-verify) program has proven detrimental to migrants, employers, and citizen employees. It leads to increased discrimination and unfair hiring and firing practices. For these reasons, and because we believe all workers benefit from the enforcement of health, safety, wage, and hour laws, as well as the right to peacefully organize, the IIC is opposed to the mandatory expansion of the E-verify program.

Place Humanitarian Values at the Center of Enforcement Policies

Enforcement policies must be made to be consistent with humanitarian values and with the need to treat all individuals with respect, while allowing the United States to identify and prevent the entry of persons who commit dangerous crimes. Over the past twenty years, the federal government has dramatically increased border fence and other infrastructure construction, border patrol presence, immigration detention, and the deportation of immigrants, without regard to cost or effectiveness. Over $10 billion of taxpayers’ money has been spent on border security. It is now time to reform the broken immigration system. To truly decrease unauthorized immigration, the United States should improve access to a fair and humane legal immigration system, increasing and improving the efficiency of ports of entry, expanding visa availability, and eliminating application backlogs.

Border security has also proven to be environmentally irresponsible on many levels. It threatens already endangered species and damages public lands and interferes with business and land owners who operate and live along the border. We have also witnessed the desecration of sacred sites and the violation of religious freedom, as well as the unnecessary anguish of community members whose loved ones have suffered or died seeking entry into the United States. Above all else, enforcement policies must treat all individuals with respect and dignity. Citizens and migrants alike have the right to a fair and humane legal immigration system that respects the dignity of all persons, prioritizes the cohesiveness of families and communities, recognizes the economic contributions of immigrants, and upholds our moral obligations to provide refuge and welcome for the sojourner.

Protect Refugees and Migrant Survivors of Violence

The IIC encourages Congress to make life-changing improvements to the U.S. refugee resettlement program that would help refugees integrate in their new homes in the United States. Refugees have fled persecution in their home countries due to their race, nationality, religion, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group, and the United States has a rich tradition of welcoming refugees and helping them begin new lives. Bills such as the Refugee Protection Act, Domestic Refugee Resettlement and Modernization Act, and Strengthening Refugee Resettlement Act include positive reforms that would not only help refugees, but provide important resources to the communities that welcome them.

The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) has a long history of uniting lawmakers with the common purpose of protecting survivors of domestic violence. Congress has consistently recognized the vulnerability of non-citizen survivors of violence by enacting provisions in VAWA that enhance safety for survivors and their children and provide tools for law enforcement to investigate and prosecute crimes. In 2012, the House of Representatives passed a VAWA reauthorization bill that would undermine years of protections for immigrant victims and would actually make immigrants more vulnerable, endangering many lives. The IIC urges that any reauthorization of VAWA maintain and improve protections for migrant survivors, not weaken them.

See PDF Version for the complete list of signers

Yesterday, a bipartisan group of eight senators released a framework for an immigration reform proposal. Today the president is speaking on immigration reform.

Both the objectives and the atmosphere of this emerging debate feel very different from previous attempts to reform the immigration system.

Various industries in the U.S. need more workers; communities need strong families. Families need each other. Everybody needs jobs. The future of the nation relies on an educated and committed citizenry. These concerns and values can merge in a fair and humane renovation of our immigration laws and programs.

The bipartisan framework starts out by acknowledging that our immigration system is broken. The proposal goes on to describe a range of “fixes” for the system based not so much on fear of strangers (a prominent feature of some previous proposals) as on a need for practical solutions.

The framework presents a mixture of positive features that FCNL is likely to support, and some provisions that raise questions and concerns for people who are seeking a fair and humane immigration system.

The answers are all going to be in the details, when an actual bill is introduced.

Positive Features in the Bi-Partisan Senate Framework

Concerns as We Go Forward

In her 2010 testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Secretary Janet Napolitano summed it up:

"Every marker, every milepost that has been laid down by the Congress in terms of number of agents, deployment of technology, construction of fencing and the like has either already been completed or is within a hair's breadth of being completed. And one of the questions I think we need to talk about is whether securing the border is ever going to be reached… in the sense of the Congress, or whether that goalpost is just going to keep moving."

We look forward to seeing the details – and to the opportunity to support the good parts and persuade the Senate away from the parts that don’t actually fix our broken system.

Read the senators’ proposal here.

The new rule allows these immigrants to apply for the waiver of the ban before they leave the U.S. to return to their country of origin. Thus, much of the uncertainty about their return is removed, making it easier to decide whether to leave. They must also pay a $585 application fee for the waiver.

The new rule demonstrates the President’s commitment to addressing the broken immigration system. Leaders in Congress have made a similar commitment. FCNL believes that Congress should make family unity an important feature of its work on humane immigration reform. Family unity helps new immigrants to form bonds in their communities, which benefits everyone. The family unity waivers are a small but significant step toward fixing an immigration system that often keeps families apart.

Read FCNL’s Statement of Principles on Immigration Reform: http://fcnl.org/issues/immigration/FCNL_Statement_of_Principles_on_Immigration_Reform_2013.pdf

The Honorable Kathleen Sebelius
Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services
Hubert H. Humphrey Building
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, DC 20201

Dear Secretary Sebelius,

On behalf of the undersigned faith-based organizations committed to welcoming the stranger and humane reform of our immigration system, we write to you today to express our dismay at the exclusion of individuals receiving relief through Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) from coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). We remain supportive of DACA and the opportunity it offers immigrant youth known as “DREAMers,” but we ask you to reconsider this decision. Other groups who are currently offered deferred action qualify for affordable health care under the aforementioned health care programs. We believe that excluding these DREAMERs from coverage undercuts the spirit of both the DACA and ACA programs and establishes a dangerous precedent.

Under this exclusion, children as young as 15, pregnant women, and children with severe disabilities or chronic illness would be forced to seek treatment in emergency rooms or through other “safety-net” services at increased costs to their health and their local communities. While the ACA does not extend coverage to individuals unless they are “lawfully present in the United States,” we believe the relief offered to DACA recipients should allow them access to the benefits of the Affordable Care Act. Those who are legally permitted to work in this country under DACA should not be excluded by a narrow interpretation of the ACA. A broader interpretation would be consistent with the ACA’s goals of expanding coverage and reducing overall health care costs, and ensure that DACA recipients remain healthy, productive individuals as they seek to make the most of the education and employment opportunities offered under deferred action.

The decision to exclude DACA recipients from obtaining health care sets a troubling precedent. Opponents of DACA have already demonstrated their willingness to deny services to DREAMers, whether they are trying to obtain a driver’s license or receive tuition breaks available to other students in their home state. We believe that these policies are discriminatory and that youth granted DACA relief should not be singled out from individuals granted deferred action through other avenues. We hope you will use this opportunity to affirm that the intent of the DACA program was to fully embrace immigrant youth as valued members of our society.

We urge you to reconsider the decision to exclude those granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals from access to affordable healthcare. We remain supportive of the DACA program and committed to working with the Administration to ensure that the DACA process is fair, transparent, and accomplishes its goals. We look forward to continuing to partner with the Administration and Congress to enact just and humane immigration policies and a permanent path to status for our undocumented brothers and sisters.

Sincerely,

African American Ministers In Action

American Friends Service Committee

American Jewish Committee (AJC)

Church World Service, Immigration and Refugee Program

Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach

Disciples Home Missions, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Disciples Justice Action Network

The Episcopal Church

Franciscan Action Network

Friends Committee on National Legislation

Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society

Leadership Conference of Women Religious

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service

Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Washington Office

NETWORK, a National Catholic Social Justice Lobby

Sisters of Mercy Institute Justice Team

Union for Reform Judaism

Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations

United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society

Women of Reform Judaism

Cc:

Sally Howard, Chief of Staff to Secretary Sebelius

Valarie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President of the United States

Cecelia Muñoz, Director, White House Domestic Policy Council

Alejandro Mayorkas, Dorector, USCIS

Rebecca Carson, Chief of Staff to Director Mayorkas

Jon Carson, Director of the Office of Public Engagement, White House

Felicia Escobar, Senior Policy Director for Immigration, White House DPC

Tyler Moran, Deputy Policy Director for Immigration, White House, DPC

Julie Rodriguez, Associate Director of Public Engagement, White House

Cindy Mann, Director, Center for Medicaid and State Operations

Jeanne Lambrew, Deputy Assistant to the President for Health Policy

Liz Fowler, Special Assistant to the President for Healthcare and Economic Policy