The infamous bipartisan “Gang of 8” in the U.S. Senate will introduce a new bill today that not only compromises on border security, but also extends a pathway to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in America.
The bill, supported by Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Michael Bennet, D-Colo.; Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., would appropriate $4.5 billion towards border security measures. Those funds would be used to employee 3,500 more border patrol agents, plus increase surveillance systems, drone use and physical double-layered fencing on the border.
Meanwhile, illegal immigrants would find a new pathway towards U.S. citizenship, so long as applicants are free of any felony convictions, pay a $500 penalty fee, plus any back taxes owed.
A consortium of Houston-based organizations, the Houston Coalition for Commonsense Immigration Reform, issued a statement Monday expressing their support for the measure.
“The time has come for Congress to enact common-sense immigration reform. Texans from all political stripes have made it clear that our state needs immigration reform and we are going to hold Congress’s feet to the fire to deliver it,” said Carlos Duarte, State Director of Mi Familia Vota Texas.
Related Stories
