Immigration Policy Center

What the Drop in Illegal Residency Means for Immigration Reform

Published on Fri, Sep 03, 2010

But Mary Giovagnoli, director of the more liberal Immigration Policy Institute, sees the Pew study as extra motivation to pass comprehensive immigration reform, including a legalization program for those already in the country. "I think it overall provides us with a healthy reality check on the fact that despite the claims that the country's being overrun and that all of these problems are the result of illegal immigrants, the amount of illegal immigration is, in proportion to the overall population and even in terms of overall numbers, declining," she says. "We need to seize upon that and build a smart immigration overhaul where now, with these statistics in play, we can figure out how to get it right."

The number of illegal immigrants has historically vacillated alongside the country's economic fortunes, Giovagnoli points out. "One of the overall best ways to ensure that we don't have continued loops of illegal immigration is to ensure that we have a combination of improvements to our permanent legal system and to our guest worker programs," she says. "We know that enforcement alone can't handle the situation."

Published in the Atlantic Monthly

Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill Introduced in the Senate

Menendez-Leahy Bill Another Step Forward

Released on Thu, Sep 30, 2010

Washington D.C. - On Wednesday, Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced S.B. 3932, The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2010. The bill takes a broad approach to solving the wide range of problems that plague our broken immigration system. It offers proposals on border, interior, and worksite enforcement, on legalization, and on future flows of immigration. Now the Senate and House both have a vehicle (Congressman Luis Gutierrez previously introduced a CIR bill in the House last December) for generating a serious discussion on immigration reform in the coming weeks. These bills are a direct response to the overwhelming public demand for solutions to our broken immigration system. Both political parties have acknowledged that this broken system is no longer sustainable, and is disrupting America's businesses, families, and long-term economic recovery.

"It is hard to turn ideas into legislation and legislation into good law, but Senators Menendez and Leahy have injected new life into the immigration reform debate," said Mary Giovagnoli, Director of the Immigration Policy Center. "At a time when every social issue we care about bumps up against immigration - healthcare, national security, and the economy - this bill is a step in the right direction. However, attention now turns to the rest of the Senate and House - where there are serious comprehensive proposals which lawmakers can react to and build upon - and the question remains; will they embrace this challenge or kick it down the road once again?"

The Immigration Policy Center has prepared a summary of the The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2010 which can be accessed at:Read more...

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DREAM Delayed in the Senate

Released on Tue, Sep 21, 2010

Washington D.C. - Today, the Senate voted 56 to 43 against proceeding to the Defense Authorization Act. This procedural vote, which basically followed party lines, ends consideration of critical social issues that affect the military and were to be offered as amendments to the bill. Among the amendments not considered is the DREAM Act, an immigration bill that would provide legal status to young people who graduate from high school and pursue college or military service.

The following is a statement from Mary Giovagnoli, Director of the Immigration Policy Center:

"The political gridlock that has immobilized the Senate has resulted once again in a lost opportunity for the American people. By refusing to allow the Defense Authorization Act to proceed, America will not see, at this time, an up or down vote on the DREAM Act, which would have been a first legislative step in resolving our immigration crisis. The Senators who voted "no" today are ignoring unequivocal evidence that the DREAM Act is good for military readiness, the American workforce and the U.S. economy.

The energy and enthusiasm of thousands of young people who have poured themselves into promoting the DREAM Act has not been wasted, however. Because of their efforts, more people today understand the importance of DREAM to our economy, our military, and the future of our country than ever before."

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For more information contact Wendy Sefsaf at [email protected] or 202-507-7524.

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Democrats Reach Out to Hispanics on Immigration Bill

Published on Thu, Sep 16, 2010

Latinos are now one-quarter of Nevada’s population and nearly 12 percent of voters, according to the Immigration Policy Center, a research group in Washington. Their strong turnout in 2008 swung the state for Mr. Obama. While Ms. Angle has not focused on Latinos, Senator Reid has been running Spanish-language ads and attending rallies, declaring his commitment to the immigration overhaul.

Published in the New York Times

DREAM Act Coming to the Senate Floor

Senator Reid to Attach Act to Defense Authorization Bill

Released on Wed, Sep 15, 2010

Washington, D.C. - Yesterday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced that he would attach the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act to the Department of Defense authorization bill expected to come before the Senate as early as next week. The vote will be an important test of whether Congress can transcend partisan politics and work together on crafting solutions to the broken immigration system that both Democrats and Republicans acknowledge is in desperate need of reform. That the proposal will be considered as an amendment to the Defense Authorization bill is appropriate, given the Department of Defense's support for DREAM Act as a way to improve military readiness.

First introduced in 2001, the DREAM Act would address the plight of young immigrants who have been raised in the U.S. and managed to succeed despite the challenges of being brought to the U.S. without proper documentation. The proposal would offer a path to legal status to those who have graduated from high-school, have stayed out of trouble and plan to attend college or serve in the U.S. military for at least two years.

Each year, approximately 65,000 undocumented students graduate from high school, many at the top of their classes, but cannot go to college, join the military, work, or otherwise pursue their dreams. They belong to the 1.5 generation - any (first generation) immigrants brought to the United States at a young age who were largely raised in this country and therefore share much in common with second generation Americans. These students are culturally American, growing up here and often having little attachment to their country of birth. They tend to be bicultural and fluent in English.
Read more...

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Is immigration an Ohio problem? Numbers say no

Published on Mon, Aug 30, 2010

The Immigration Policy Center, which is on the opposite end of the immigration debate from the federation, argues that their inclusion as a cost of illegal immigration is misleading.

"They are U.S. citizens and denying them education, health care, financial assistance, etc.. would put them at a disadvantage compared to other U.S. citizens," spokeswoman Michele Waslin wrote in an e-mail. "In financial terms, it could probably cost the state much more in the long run to have a population of poorly educated, unhealthy citizens."

Published in the Lancaster Eagle Gazette

Why We Should Applaud ICE's Immigration Initiative

Published on Mon, Aug 30, 2010

As Mary Giovagnoli writes on the Immigration Policy Institute's Immigration Impact blog, 17,000 out of the close to 400,000 people deported in 2009, is not exactly a significant number. Still, I want to argue that these types of small tweaks to the immigration system are crucial to obtaining larger reforms down the road.

Published in the The Huffington Post

Prospects Remain Grim for Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Published on Mon, Aug 30, 2010

The best bet for reforming the immigration system this year lies with smaller bills, and immigrants rights groups have attempted to push for these measures instead. If this happens, the future of comprehensive immigration reform is still unclear, according to Mary Giovagnoli, director of Immigration Policy Center.

“We don’t have a good measure anymore of what will happen once we get something discreet like the DREAM Act passed,” she says. “But when the sky doesn’t fall in and if people still get re-elected after supporting DREAM, it may show members of Congress that leaning into the immigration issue and voting for comprehensive immigration reform could help them politically.”

Published in the The Washington Independent

Swatting babies with the Constitution doesn't improve immigration system

Published on Sat, Aug 21, 2010

Texas Solicitor General James Ho wrote an analysis for the Immigration Policy Center (posted on immigrationpolicy.org) looking at the Senate debate when the amendment was passed, as well as applicable Supreme Court rulings, and concluded that "birthright is protected no less for children of undocumented persons than for descendants of Mayflower passengers."

Published in the Texas Star Telegram

'Dangerous drugs' tops criminal deportations list

Published on Thu, Aug 19, 2010

Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Richard Rocha said immigrants who are counted as criminals have been convicted of crimes or have a record of a conviction for a crime. But immigration advocates are skeptical of the definition because ICE enforcement includes detaining people before they've been convicted, its definition of crimes includes misdemeanors and minor traffic offenses and its definition of a criminal immigrant has been inconsistent, said Michele Waslin, a senior policy analyst at the Immigration Policy Center.

Published in the Associated Press