Illegal immigration continues to be a pressing concern for lawmakers, and Florida Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R) is now touting a victory for her bipartisan Dignity Act. The bill, which proposes to fix all aspects of the United States’ “broken” immigration system, has received over 30 Cosponsors.
The bill, which is spearheaded by Rep. Salazar and Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar (D), would address several problems that have pitted Republicans and Democrats against each other in recent years. Namely, it would address securing the border, halting illegal immigration, ending catch and release, and the lawmakers argue that it would provide a practical solution for people that are undocumented while “modernizing” the legal immigration system.
The Dignity Act emerged from an effort to offer solutions to problems that both lawmakers feel Congress is not properly addressing. According to a press release from Rep. Salazar’s office, “in a divided government, partisan solutions cannot become law, and failure to act only ensures we will maintain the status quo – which is unacceptable.”
In a statement, Rep. Salazar commented on the purpose of the bill, calling the Dignity Act “the ONLY viable border security and immigration bill in Congress right now.” She further called on member of Congress to support the bill, which would “end the immigration crisis and restore law and order once and for all.”
Reps. Salazar and Escobar claim that the Dignity Act will grow the economy, and a recent report conducted by the Bipartisan Policy Center found that one of the Dignity Act’s provisions would reform the green card processing system and add $3.9 trillion to the United States’ GDP over the course of 10 years.
Recently, Reps. Salazar and Michigan Rep. Hillary Scholten (D) took part in an interview with Fox News, discussing the Dignity Act.
The bill has received support from the likes of Florida Reps. Darren Soto (D) and Mario Diaz-Balart (R) and Texas Rep. Colin Allred (D) among others.
