We are happy to report that TEN bills with positive impacts on immigrant rights and integration were filed for the new legislative session, including An Act Regarding Higher Education Opportunities for High School Graduates in the Commonwealth (formerly in-state tuition bill) by Rep. Wolf, Rep. Provost, and Sen. Chang-Diaz. (House Docket #2036, no bill number yet).
The deadline for co-sponsorships is 5:00pm on Friday, February 4th. We need YOUR help to gather as many co-sponsors as possible!
Please ask to your legislators to co-sponsor the bills listed below ASAP. To co-sponsor a bill, legislative staff can use the State House electronic co-sponsor system and enter for example: “Higher Education Opportunities.” Let us know which legislators you’ve talked to so we can inform the bill’s lead sponsors.
We need to increase co-sponsorships for these pro-immigrant bills:
The following is an excerpt from the State House News Service:
STATE CAPITOL BRIEFS – LUNCH EDITION – WEDNESDAY, DEC. 1, 2010 STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE
PATRICK LOBBIES BROWN, KERRY ON DREAM ACT
Gov. Deval Patrick, a supporter of in-state higher education tuition rates for eligible undocumented immigrants, has asked Sens. Scott Brown and John Kerry to support the DREAM Act, saying in a letter that he anticipated Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to bring it up for a vote this week. In a Nov. 24 letter to Brown and Kerry, Patrick said the act would establish a pathway for immigrant students to attain permanent residency if they came to the United States as children, are long-term residents, have good moral character, and attend an institution of higher learning or serve in the military for at least two years. "We have always been and will continue to be a nation that depends and thrives on the contributions of immigrants and refugees," Patrick wrote. "Our nation and our economy have been at their best when we have welcomed the ideas, work and commitment of our immigrants." Patrick said the DREAM Act would also authorize states to determine for themselves "whether educational benefits would be made available equally to all of the state's residents." Patrick wrote, "I believe that all immigrant young men and woman, who attend our high schools, earn their way into college, and commit to addressing their immigration status, should be afforded the same access to higher education as any other resident." On Nov. 16, Patrick told an audience gathered by the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition at Boston's Tremont Temple that he would implement all 131 recommendations in a year-old administration report on issues facing immigrants. The report includes controversial plans to provide in-state tuition rates and driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. House Minority Leader Brad Jones said in-state tuition plans had failed before and would again, calling it a "ridiculous idea" and "a slap in the face to all Massachusetts taxpayers who expect state government to be focusing on stimulating the economy and putting people back to work."
The DREAM has been deferred for more than a decade.
Now is the time to act.
The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Actis federal legislation that would provide qualified undocumented US high school students to earn legal residency by serving in U.S. Armed Forces or attend college for at least two years.
While Massachusetts continues to deliberate whether to allow undocumented graduates of its high schools to pay the in-state rate at public colleges and universities, several other states have sparked the debate around immigrants and higher education. Georgia banned undocumented students from its most popular public universities this year. Conversely, California’s supreme court recently ruled unanimously to protect its in-state tuition policy (which 10 other states including Texas already have).
Once again, instead of making progress on educating this group of youths, Washington faces a gridlocked Congress on the issue. TheMigration Policy Institute estimatesthat 2.1m people nationwide, almost one million of whom are under 18, would be eligible to apply for conditional legal status under the DREAM Act. After being introduced in the past ten years, the DREAM was tied to the fate of other bills, procedures, and politics. It will finally be voted on this week as a stand-alone bill.
The DREAM Act will not only incentivize education and military service, both of which are smart ways to prepare talented and engaged new citizens, but also develop an already-motivated group of students to contribute to our economy. Most importantly, the DREAM Act will offer these students, who are American in every sense except for their legal status, a chance to learn, serve and add to America’s rich tradition of welcoming all those who work hard.
The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the Massachusetts Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA) and do not represent the views of MIRA's member organizations.
