Standing Up for All Families in Immigration Reform
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Dear Friend,
As a staunch proponent of comprehensive immigration reform, there are some important developments taking place in Washington right now that I want to share with you. Starting tomorrow, the Senate "Gang of Eight" bipartisan immigration bill will be reviewed in the Senate Judiciary Committee. This is the first of several hurdles that the legislation must pass through before becoming law and also the first chance to offer amendments.
I support the Senate's compromise legislation, but the bill is hardly perfect. I am extremely disappointed that the legislation fails to extend the same rights and considerations to same-sex families that we give to any other family in our immigration system. America was built on fairness and justice, and we must pass comprehensive immigration reform with these same values. In the House, I was proud to cosponsor the United American Families Act (UAFA), which gives same-sex couples equal consideration under the law, allowing permanent partners of same-sex couples to apply for a green card, just like any other couple. I am hopeful that UAFA will be included in the final version of the Senate immigration bill and will continue to be a vocal advocate for it here in the House.
I'm very proud to say that the "Gang of Eight's legislation includes the bipartisan Jobs Originating through Launching Travel (JOLT) Act, which I introduced with my colleague Rep. Joe Heck (R-NV) earlier this year. The measure updates America's visa travel protocol to increase opportunities for international tourists, create jobs, and drive valuable tourism dollars to cities across the country, including Chicago. A key provision would modernize the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to open the door to important diplomatic allies like Poland, who have been denied visa-free travel because of outdated policies.
The time to fix our broken immigration system is now. Not only is it the right thing to do, but comprehensive immigration reform makes economic sense. Legalizing our undocumented immigrant population will put all workers on a level playing field, exerting upward pressure on the wages of both American and immigrant workers. Bringing undocumented workers into our tax system will increase government revenues, grow our GDP, and benefit a range of industries. And creating a 21st century immigration system will stimulate jobs, enhance our global competitiveness, and help grow a highly skilled U.S. workforce.
In addition to my work in DC, I was back in the 5th District recently working to address local flooding issues and conducting a two-day educational Climate Tour to highlight the impact of climate change on our community. Click here to see photos from the Climate Tour and learn more about our local environment.
As always, it is an honor to serve you. My district staff is here to assist with any federal issue you might have, including passports, Medicare, veterans' benefits and more so please don't hesitate to contact our office if there's anything we can do for you. You can also connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Sincerely,
