Cities all over the country are welcoming migrants in unprecedented numbers. New York City has welcomed more than any other: almost 120,000 as of late September. These migrants are driven by violence, political instability, and economic desperation, much of which has its roots in a long history of U.S. interventionism in their regions.
I believe strongly that the federal government should do more to support New York and all other cities that are welcoming these migrants, including additional funding and policy reforms. To help generate broad support for these proposals, I was proud to recently co-lead a congressional delegation of my colleagues from Texas, Illinois, California, and New Jersey to New York City to witness firsthand our city’s vast interagency response to supporting new migrant arrivals.
Our congressional delegation was impressed by the comprehensive services provided to migrants by the city and other local providers. These services included children being immediately enrolled in public schools, families given vaccines, experienced immigration attorneys assisting with paperwork, and English language and OSHA classes being made available.
Of course, the city can’t continue to offer this dignified standard of care without federal support. The Biden administration has heard our call on this. Just two weeks ago, they expanded access to Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Venezuelans, which will make it easier for those migrants to get work permits and get out of the shelters. The administration has also ensured support for Ukrainians in the U.S., who desperately need additional aid. However, more remains to be done, and I am calling on the Biden-Harris administration to strongly consider the following slate of executive actions.
Cities need funding and as much federal reimbursement assistance as possible to continue providing essential services to migrants, and I am urging the use of Title 32 of the U.S. Code, or another funding mechanism, to reimburse cities for the costs associated with the deployment of the National Guard to assist with providing humanitarian non-enforcement aid to immigrant arrivals. The administration should leave no stone unturned when it comes to issuing additional funding.
Swiftly rescind the current 150-day regulatory waiting period for asylum applicants between the time they submit their applications for asylum and apply for work authorization in the U.S. Rather than forcing asylum seekers to wait 150 days, asylum seekers should have the option to submit their applications for both asylum and work authorization at the same time.
Waive the current $410 work authorization application fee for parolees. By automatically waiving this fee for eligible parolees, the Biden administration would eliminate an important hurdle to work authorization for those who deserve it most.
Redesignate recently arrived immigrants from beleaguered nations like El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Nepal, Cameroon, Somalia, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Mauritania, South Sudan, and others for TPS. The administration recently reauthorized hundreds of thousands of recently arrived Venezuelan nationals in the U.S. for TPS, yet hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants in the United States from countries that are still experiencing unprecedented political instability, violence and economic collapse, remain in limbo.
Establish an interagency task force aimed at expeditiously processing asylum and work authorization requests, supporting service organizations responding to the migrant crisis, and transitioning individuals to permanent affordable housing. I strongly encourage the administration to convene an interagency task force consisting of USCIS, FEMA, and HUD to identify ways to expedite work authorization, clear the current asylum processing backlog, and move migrants out of city- and state-run shelters and into affordable housing to reduce the current strain on municipalities.
Allow families stuck in provisional waiver backlogs to apply for work permits. The administration should, first, “parole-in-place” the 135,000 on humanitarian grounds who are already harmed by the backlog through no fault of their own to allow applicants to apply for work authorization and to complete their green card applications without leaving the United States. Second, the administration should update the employment authorization regulations to allow provisional waiver applicants to apply for work permits just like the way those seeking to adjust status within the United States are able to do so.
Continue to ensure that current Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) adjudications run smoothly. The Biden-Harris administration must continue to reduce all applicable DACA-related employment authorization backlogs, keep DACA application fees affordable, and address all emerging barriers to current DACA holders’ ability to renew their status before a likely SCOTUS decision.
Every day, we bear witness to the positive impacts that immigrant families, and especially asylum seekers, have brought to our cities. They have brought their culture, skills, and resilience to our communities, enriching our nation’s diversity and democracy. They have also directly assisted with our nation’s post-pandemic economic recovery by filling a number of jobs in key industries that continue to experience work shortages. Immigrants contribute more than $492 billion in taxes and account for over 18% of our workforce. Immigrants make our country stronger. Yet, they continue to face many challenges and hardships.
Despite what Republicans want you to believe, migrants are not criminals. Studies show that undocumented immigrants remain two and a half times less likely to be arrested for violent felonies than U.S. citizens. In particular, a 2022 study by the CATO Institute revealed that immigrants are 10 times less likely than U.S. citizens to smuggle fentanyl and other illicit drugs across the U.S. border.
We must not allow xenophobic sentiments to continue to fan the flames of division on immigration issues in our nation. Instead, both Congress and the administration must be united in our efforts to address this crisis. While Congress works to finally pass long-awaited immigration reform and provide solace to immigrant communities and the cities that are welcoming them, these recommendations for executive action represent real, tangible solutions that the administration can take today to address the ongoing migration crisis.
Immigrant families come to this nation to work to support their families and grow our economy—it is time for us to let them.
