Legalization

H-1B Employees Should Not Face Arrest While Extension Pending

Released on Mon, Nov 08, 2010

Late last week, the Legal Action Center of the American Immigration Council (LAC), together with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), filed an amicus brief arguing that an H-1B employee should not face arrest, detention or deportation after his initial period of admission expires if a pending extension request remains under review. The brief, filed in federal district court in Connecticut, maintains that H-1B employers who follow the law should not lose valuable employees because of widespread delays at immigration processing centers."Both existing law and common sense dictate that the government cannot sit on an employer's H-1B extension request and then arrest the employee due to its own processing delays," said Melissa Crow, director of the Legal Action Center.

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California's Immigrants, Latinos, and Asians are a Political and Economic Powerhouse

Released on Wed, Feb 25, 2009

California's $42 billion deficit has led to a lot of misplaced blame on the immigrant, Latino, and Asian communities that comprise the state's economic backbone. Yet immigrant, Latino, and Asian workers and entrepreneurs are integral to rebuilding California's economy and tax base. The state may be facing hard economic times, but the California dream is anything but dead—immigrants and their families are part of the very engine that keeps California's future alive.

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Va., Md. place in top 10 for naturalizations

Published on Thu, Aug 20, 2009

Virginia and Maryland were two of the most popular states last year for foreign nationals who wanted to become U.S. citizens.

Published in the Washington Examiner

American Immigration Council Hails Decision Enjoining Enforcement of Arizona’s SB 1070

Released on Tue, Apr 12, 2011

Washington, D.C - The American Immigration Council applauds yesterday’s decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upholding a preliminary injunction against the key provisions of Arizona’s SB 1070. As the court correctly recognized, Arizona’s misguided attempt to drive immigrants from the state interferes with the federal government’s exclusive authority to enforce immigration law, has negatively impacted U.S. foreign relations, and reflects the dangers of allowing states to enact a patchwork of conflicting regulations. The Ninth Circuit also rightly rejected Arizona’s claim that state police have “inherent authority” to enforce federal immigration laws and held that Congress intended state officers to “aid in immigration enforcement only under the close supervision of the Attorney General.” Read more...

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2007 Annual Benefit: American Heritage Awards

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Colorado Latino lobby day underlines lopsided nature of immigration debate

Published on Thu, Mar 03, 2011

DENVER– When hundreds of Coloradans flocked to the capitol here Monday for the state’s fifth-annual Latino Advocacy Day, it was a rare recent instance in the state and around the country where support for policies that embrace immigration, U.S. Latino communities and the rights of undocumented residents stole the spotlight from support for policies that set deporting “illegals” and establishing border security as top priorities.

Attendees rallied on the west steps of the capitol and then fanned into lawmaker chambers to talk about the issues that matter most to them this legislative session. Top of the list was opposition to the Arizona-style immigration laws introduced this year, which have mostly failed to gain traction, and support for a bill that would offer in-state college tuition to undocumented students.

“I came here today because I know how much what goes on in this building can affect my life, my family’s life and my friends’ lives,” event speaker Cecelia Rodriguez told the Colorado Independent. “The most pressing and necessary bill we can pass is SB 126, the Colorado ASSET bill, which would make it possible for more graduating [high school] seniors in Colorado to attend colleges here.”

The ASSET bill is the work of Pueblo Democratic Senator Angela Giron, who received a hero’s welcome Monday as she moved through the capitol halls toward a committee room. The crowd cheered and Giron waved and then posed briefly for snapshots with supporters.

A young woman named Laura from Durango came to see Republican Ellen Roberts, her district representative. Laura said she came to relate her experience as an undocumented Colorado high school graduate who now attends university in New Mexico, where she and all undocumented Colorado residents can pay in-state tuition.Read more...

Published in the Colorado Independent

Litigation Clearinghouse Newsletter Vol. 3, No. 12

This issue covers a recent FOIA lawsuit seeking information about stipulated removal; a Seventh Circuit case holding that the waiver of a right to a removal hearing under the Visa Waiver Program must be knowing and voluntary; a Ninth Circuit decision finding that DHS may not unilaterally block a motion to reopen to adjust status by opposing the motion; and the Supreme Court's decision to grant certiorari to examine the standard for granting stays of removal at the courts of appeals.

Published On: Tuesday, November 25, 2008 | Download File

In Arizona, Illegal Immigrants Pay Taxes, Too

Published on Fri, Apr 22, 2011

In honor of Tax Day, the Immigration Policy Center posted a reminder that often gets ignored in the illegal immigration debate, especially those who accuse illegal immigrants of mooching off the system from public schools to hospitals.

Using a methodology from the nonpartisan Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) and information from the Pew Hispanic Center figures on each state's illegal immigration population using numbers from the 2010 Census, the ITEP came up with an estimate on state-specific tax payments.

Yes, immigrants pay taxes, too:

There were an estimated 11.2 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. as of 2010. Pew has also estimated the unauthorized population for each state. Pew has found that unauthorized immigrants are likely to be less educated than native-born U.S. citizens and legal immigrants, and they tend to work in low-wage jobs. Thus the average family income of the unauthorized population is lower than the average family income for U.S. citizens or legal immigrants. The average income of a household headed by an unauthorized immigrant is estimated to be $36,000; 10 percent of which goes towards remittances to family members in countries of origin.

According to the report, Arizona is in the top 10 of state receiving the most revenue from households headed by illegal immigrants. In 2010, Arizona's illegal immigrants paid $38 million in personal income taxes $45 million in property taxes and $348 million in sales taxes:

Sales tax is automatic, so it is assumed that unauthorized residents would pay sales tax at similar rates to U.S. citizens and legal immigrants with similar income levels.

Similar to sales tax, property taxes are hard to avoid, and unauthorized immigrants are assumed to pay the same property taxes as others with the same income level. ITEP assumes that most unauthorized immigrants are renters, and only calculates the taxes paid by renters.Read more...

Published in the Tucson Weekly