[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 102 (Wednesday, July 17, 2013)]
[House]
[Pages H4579-H4585]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION REFORM
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 3, 2013, the gentleman from California (Mr. Cardenas) is
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
Mr. CARDENAS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to talk about comprehensive
immigration reform, but from a slightly different standpoint from many
of my colleagues who frequently occupy this Chamber with their
perspectives.
Madam Speaker, we all know why we need comprehensive immigration
reform, why we need to fix this system rather than depending on small,
one-off solutions. Our system is broken, and we have to fix the entire
immigration system now.
Our farms do not have stable workforces; our borders are not
adequately protected; far too many high-tech companies are short the
workers they need to continue to innovate; our schools attract the best
and the brightest from around the world, but we can't keep sending them
back after we educate them.
We know what needs to be fixed and why. What will happen once we fix
the problems? Very simply, our economy will skyrocket.
Report after report, study after study says the same thing--the
successful implementation of comprehensive immigration reform will cut
the deficit, create manufacturing jobs and job opportunities
nationwide, and create more than 100,000 American jobs every year for
the next 10 years. We will see $832 billion being pumped into our
economy over the next 10 years. As producers and consumers in this
great Nation, undocumented immigrants grow the economic pie by at least
$30 billion as we speak. Legalization would triple that number with
various studies pointing to a $1 trillion impact on our gross domestic
product right here in the United States over the next 10 years.
Madam Speaker, I am joined by many of my freshman class. This past
election, voters sent us to Washington to solve problems like our
broken immigration system, and that's what we want to do. It's time to
make immigration reform a reality, and it's absolutely time to let
people know what that reality really means for their own pocketbooks--
those of both American citizens and immigrants. That's what we're going
to talk about tonight.
Madam Speaker, for those watching at home, they can get in on one of
the conversations by tweeting us at #CIRmeansjobs. If our constituents
have questions, we will answer them.
With that, I look forward to an interesting and enlightening
discussion tonight.
I would like to start off by talking with my colleague from
California, Congressman Swalwell. One thing I would like to ask this
gentleman is whether he thinks comprehensive immigration reform will
help not only create more job opportunities but also expand our
Nation's workforce.
Mr. SWALWELL of California. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the
gentleman from California, Congressman Cardenas, for leading on this
issue and for bringing together the freshman class on an issue that is
important not just in California but across the country--the question
about comprehensive immigration reform and whether it means jobs.
We know that it's the right thing to do to welcome the 11 million
undocumented immigrants into our country and to put them on a pathway
to citizenship. We also know that it's good for our economy, and I am
happy to be here today to talk about this. Everyone agrees right now
that our immigration system is broken. It must be reformed, not in a
piecemeal manner, but comprehensively to meet the needs of the 21st
century.
I represent a very diverse area, which includes the cities of
Hayward, Union City, Fremont, Castro Valley, and San Lorenzo,
California, among other cities. In those cities are some of the 11
million undocumented individuals. These are hardworking folks who come
here for the same reason that our ancestors came--to make life better
for themselves, their families, and their children. We should welcome
that. We should embrace that they are choosing to come here to America
rather than to go to other countries. It's a very good thing.
Tragically, right now, these undocumented workers are in the shadows,
putting them at risk for exploitation
[[Page H4580]]
and allowing for the unscrupulous employer to drive down wages for
everyone. It's time to bring them into the open, to provide them
legalized status, and to allow them to earn citizenship.
We also need to reform our legal immigration process. For example, we
need to stop forcing people who come here and study in America--in our
classrooms and in our colleges--and become skilled workers in the U.S.
to leave the country just when they want to stay and contribute. Not
only is making these changes the morally right thing to do; but as my
colleagues have been saying and will say tonight, it adds up for our
economy.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office analyzed the bipartisan
Senate bill and found it would increase our GDP by 5.4 percent in 2033,
or $1.4 trillion. It's not just the CBO. A paper published in 2012 by
the Cato Institute found that comprehensive immigration reform would
raise wages, increase consumption, create jobs, and generate additional
revenue. It calculated a smaller benefit than did the CBO, but it's at
least $1.5 trillion in extra GDP over 10 years.
Comprehensive immigration reform is not only the morally right thing
to do; it's the economically correct thing to do to get America's
economy moving again, and I am honored to stand with my colleagues
today to push for this needed reform.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Swalwell.
Next, we will hear from Congressman Ruiz from California.
Mr. RUIZ. Thank you, Congressman Cardenas, for your remarks and for
hosting this Special Order today to discuss the economic benefits of
immigration reform. This is an issue that is very important to my
district and to our great Nation.
Madam Speaker, Democrats and Republicans recognize that our current
immigration system is broken and that the passage of the bipartisan
Senate immigration bill a few weeks ago sends a strong message that the
time for comprehensive reform is now.
Passing a commonsense, comprehensive immigration reform bill will
lead to an economic boon in our country. Nonpartisan, independent
studies have shown that comprehensive immigration reform will reduce
the deficit by nearly $850 billion over the next 20 years and will
reduce our Federal debt. Passing comprehensive immigration reform is
being fiscally responsible. It will also increase economic growth and
will strengthen our economy by expanding our labor force, increasing
investment, and increasing overall productivity. It will also provide a
significant boost to our tourism and agriculture sectors--two of the
top industries in my district in southern California, which is the 36th
Congressional District in the Coachella Valley and the Palm Springs
area.
Comprehensive immigration reform means more jobs and more opportunity
for people in my district and across the country--but only if we act.
There is too much at stake if we do not take action to fix our broken
immigration system. It is time for Congress to put partisanship aside
and work together to pass a meaningful comprehensive immigration bill
now.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Ruiz from California.
One of the things I'd like to make sure that we understand is that
some people believe that the low-skilled jobs that some immigrants take
in this country are jobs that are taken away from Americans. Ask any
farmer around the country, especially the members of the biggest farms
in the country. Some crops have gone unpicked, which means that that
affects the pocketbooks of every American when those crops don't make
it to our kitchen tables. It's really important for us to understand
that many of the jobs that are taken by some immigrants to this country
are jobs that U.S. workers just will not take. I think it's very
important for us to understand that, and there is a diversity of jobs
that we will cover over the next hour.
With that, I yield to Congressman Gallego from Texas.
Mr. GALLEGO. Thank you. I, too, want to thank my colleague,
Congressman Cardenas of California, as well as the other members of our
freshman class, for this important time to talk about an issue that is
critical to the border.
Madam Speaker, the 23rd Congressional District in Texas, which I have
the privilege of representing, runs some 800 miles along the Texas-
Mexico border. It encompasses 29 counties, which are bigger than 29
States, and 10 of the counties that I represent are along the Texas-
Mexico border.
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It includes five ports of entry: Eagle Pass, Del Rio, Presidio,
Fabens, and Zaragoza-Ysleta in El Paso. No other congressional district
in the country shares a larger border with Mexico.
The impact of the immigration debate, it's a tremendous impact not
only on the 23rd District, but truly in all of Texas.
There are many reasons to pass comprehensive immigration reform, but
one of the best reasons is simple, straightforward economics. Let's
take a look at the numbers.
According to a 2006 report by the comptroller of public accounts in
Texas, ``the absence of the estimated 1.4 million undocumented
immigrants in Texas in fiscal year 2005 would have been a loss to the
gross State product of $17.7 billion.''
Recently, I asked our current comptroller to update that study so
that all of the Members of Congress from Texas would have updated
information during a very important policy debate. Sadly, she denied my
request. But a more recent study from the Immigration Policy Center
noted that, if all unauthorized immigrants were removed from Texas, the
State would lose $69.3 billion in economic activity, $30.8 billion in
gross State product, and approximately 403,000 jobs, even accounting
for adequate market adjustment time.
Economically, here's what comprehensive immigration reform means for
Texas:
It means that deficits decrease, while GDP, productivity, investment,
and employment all increase;
If the unauthorized immigrants in Texas were allowed to earn a path
towards legalization, total wages in Texas would go up by about $9.7
billion, tax revenue in Texas would increase by $4.1 billion, and
nearly 200,000 jobs would be created;
For every unauthorized person required to be legalized in Texas, more
than $1,000 would be added to the gross State product in 2014, and that
number would increase to more than $4,400 by the year 2020.
Let's talk about the CBO score, because according to the nonpartisan
CBO report to which the comptroller of Texas referred my office, that
study notes that our country will save almost a trillion dollars over
the next two decades with comprehensive immigration reform, more than
10 million people will now pay billions of dollars in income and
payroll taxes during the first decade alone, and we reduce the Federal
deficit by $197 billion at the same time that we add $200 billion to
the Social Security trust fund.
In Texas, all of the key players are standing behind immigration
reform. The chambers of commerce, the Texas Farm Bureau, the labor
communities, the faith communities, and, frankly, public opinion.
They're all singing from the very same hymnbook.
Usually you hear the phrase that we should ``run government more like
a business.'' A business doesn't make decisions on the basis of
emotion. A business makes decisions on the basis of economics.
Economically, comprehensive immigration reform makes perfect sense.
Our Nation becomes stronger as more people pledge allegiance to our
flag and commit fully to this Nation and our economy.
The time is now. The right thing to do, if you care about the Texas
economy and you want it to grow and grow and grow, you want to support
comprehensive immigration reform.
With that, I thank my colleagues.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Gallego.
It's very important for us to understand that this is an issue of
diversity. And it's not just diversity of people from all over the
country, but diversity of economics for the United States of America.
It's no secret that we are the innovative capital of the world, but
more and more every single day, every single year, we are depending
more and more
[[Page H4581]]
and more on technical people coming to our country to fill those
technical jobs that are fueling hundreds, if not millions, of jobs in
this country and creating tremendous economic benefit for our country.
It's really important for us to understand that.
I now yield to Congresswoman Titus from Nevada to speak to those
issues and others.
Ms. TITUS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California for
yielding me time, and I also thank him for organizing this Special
Order.
We've heard a lot on this floor and in the press and from our
constituents about the moral, the social, the political reasons for us
to enact comprehensive immigration reform, but we haven't done enough
talking about the economic aspects, so this is a good opportunity do
that.
I'm very pleased to say that, in the Senate version of the
comprehensive immigration reform bill, there is a provision that has to
do with increasing H-1B visas. Those visas will bring with them
increased jobs, which, of course, support the economy.
A second part of that provision is also something that I've been
urging my colleagues on the House side who are working on the
comprehensive immigration reform bill to include, and that provision
would use the revenue from these high-skilled H-1B visas to promote
STEM education at minority-serving colleges and universities. You can
just look at this chart and see how many new jobs will be created both
in 2013 and 2014 by the increase in the number of these visas that
would be allowed.
If we increase the number of visas, we're also going to increase the
amount of funds that come from companies that are willing to pay to
bring people from outside the country here for these STEM jobs. I say
let's use those funds both to create scholarships for low-income
minority students who are pursuing STEM degrees and also to provide
funding for American colleges and universities that serve those
minority students. We want our new citizens to also be well-prepared
citizens.
There are colleges and universities all across the country, including
several in the First District of Nevada, that are working hard to
attract students to the STEM fields. Earlier this year, the College of
Southern Nevada hosted approximately 3,000 K through 12 Nevada students
at their annual science and technology expo to get local students from
all backgrounds, including our minority communities, excited about
careers in STEM fields before they enter college. Then in January, the
University of Nevada, Las Vegas hosted a STEM summit to feature STEM
research and to get students involved in presenting that research and
their work in the STEM fields.
These are significant and important efforts to promote STEM, but our
colleges and universities need our help to expand and improve their
STEM outreach and training. By increasing access to STEM education, we
can help American and immigrant students gain the knowledge and skills
they need in the sciences, technology, math, and engineering so they
can compete for the jobs of tomorrow.
This is particularly critical for minority students, who are
significantly underrepresented in these fields. According to the U.S.
Census Bureau, in the 2009 American Community Survey, only 12 percent
of STEM workers in this country are African American or Hispanic. We
can and should be doing better, because a strong STEM workforce is
important to American innovation and competitiveness.
So science and technology companies that are paying our government
through the H-1B visa program to bring foreign workers to the United
States to fill these STEM jobs should be making a contribution. Why not
use these funds that they're paying to train Americans to have the
skills to fill these jobs in the future? Providing scholarships to STEM
students and granting funding to colleges and universities that serve
minority communities to improve STEM programs would strengthen our
educational system. It would help our economy and also our position as
a global leader in science and technology.
So I would urge the Republican leadership to immediately take up the
mantle of reform, make it law, and include these provisions for these
high-tech visas, using the funding for the visas then to train our own
students, many in minority communities, including the children of those
immigrants that we are working to help, for the jobs of the future.
Fixing our broken immigration system is not just a moral imperative,
but, as we are all discussing tonight, it's an economic necessity.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congresswoman Titus.
It's really important for us to understand and recognize the
diversity of people who are speaking on this issue today, but the one
common theme is the fact that economically this is the right thing to
do. There are many other reasons why we need to fix our broken
immigration system, but the number one benefit to every American
citizen in this country is going to be economic growth for every corner
of our country.
With that, I invite to the podium Congresswoman Sinema from Arizona.
Ms. SINEMA. Thank you, Congressman Cardenas, for being a leader on
this issue and for inviting me to speak today.
Madam Speaker, Arizona is Ground Zero for the Federal Government's
failure to address our immigration crisis with a comprehensive
solution. Arizona has been waiting too long already. We deserve a
solution now.
Comprehensive immigration reform is the number one issue about which
I receive constituent feedback. Over 70 percent of the feedback
encourages us to get comprehensive reform done. In short, my district
wants us to get to ``yes.''
In our State, there is broad agreement among businesses and towns
that conduct international trade, among schools that recruit
international talent, among local chambers of commerce; there's
agreement that comprehensive reform is an economic imperative. For this
reason, Senator McCain and Senator Flake led a bipartisan effort in the
Senate to pass a comprehensive bill. Our Senators worked across the
aisle to get this done.
Senator McCain and Senator Flake understand that securing the border
is a critical component of comprehensive reform. Controlling our
borders prevents dangerous criminal cartels who traffic guns, drugs,
and people from entering our country. It also creates an opportunity
for those who want to do good to join us and contribute to our economy.
Business leaders at home agree that comprehensive immigration reform
will help us meet our labor demands. It will create opportunities for
us to recruit and invest in the world's top talent. This much-needed
reform will fortify our international trade relationship with Mexico.
That's Arizona's and one of America's largest trading partners.
Mayors in my community are unified. They believe a hyperpoliticized
border is bad for business and it's bad for our economy.
We can no longer continue to educate young dreamers, cultivate their
talent, and then send them to a different country where they're
competing with us. Their pathway to citizenship is vital for our
economy.
When hardworking families are able to come out of the shadows and
take part in the American Dream, our community grows stronger.
Arizona's families and our economy depend on the U.S. House's
commitment to a bipartisan solution. I call on my colleagues in both
parties to put aside ideology and work to find a workable, practical,
and pragmatic solution.
Arizona has been waiting too long already. We owe it to our State to
pass immigration reform this year.
Thank you, Congressman, for yielding time to me to speak on this
important issue.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you, Congresswoman Sinema.
It's really important for us to also recognize that there are many
industries that you might not think of that have to do with benefiting
the economy as a whole for your community. If you have any activity of
tourism in your community, you need to understand that comprehensive
immigration reform is going to benefit you, as well.
With that, I invite Congresswoman Gabbard to take the floor.
Ms. GABBARD. Thank you very much, and I appreciate my colleague
[[Page H4582]]
from California for leading and encouraging this conversation to talk
about the comprehensive immigration reform bill in a context that's
much broader than has been talked about in many of the headlines.
Madam Speaker, for all of us to understand and recognize the great
economic benefits and impacts of this bill on our country, we have to
recognize that our borders do not just consist of those on the
southwest border, our borders do not just consist of those along the
northern part of our country with Canada, but these borders exist in
every single one of our international airports all across the country.
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Anyone who talks to me, it doesn't take very long for them to figure
out how much I love my State of Hawaii, and also that I enjoy hearing
from other people how much they love Hawaii as well. Travelers to
Hawaii spent $16.9 billion in 2011 alone, and generated $2.5 billion
which went to Federal, State and local governments, dollars that helped
fund and create local jobs and public programs, such as funding our
police, our firefighters, our teachers, our infrastructure projects,
and our convention centers, where we host many, many gatherings of a
diverse group of industries from all over the world.
In 2011, 160,800 jobs were created by the travel industry in my State
of Hawaii alone. For every million dollars spent in Hawaii by
travelers, 10 jobs are created. Everyone knows Hawaii is a tourist
destination, but we have to realize the great potential that exists for
our country to be marketed as a tourist destination as well, and what
that impact will be.
Unbeknownst to many people, there are tourism provisions in the
Senate bill, this comprehensive immigration reform bill, that will
allow us to create an additional 1.3 million U.S. jobs by 2020 and
produce about $160 billion in economic output by the year of 2020.
It's time for us to regain our share of the global travel market.
From 2000 to 2010, the United States went from hosting 17 percent of
all global travelers to just 12 percent. This is moving us in the wrong
direction. By taking these steps that have been included in the
comprehensive immigration reform bill, we can increase American exports
cumulatively by $390 billion over the next 10 years.
I would like to talk about a couple of the travel provisions that
have been included in the Senate bill that will encourage tourism not
only in my home State of Hawaii but in States all across the country
where we have such great diversity of cultures and geography and
communities that must be celebrated.
The Senate bill includes reforms to the highly successful visa waiver
program that allows additional countries like Brazil and Poland to
apply for admission, enhancing U.S. security while also welcoming more
visitors to the United States.
This bill also expands the tested and proven global entry program
that allows preapproved, low-risk international travelers the ability
to utilize an expedited clearance process upon entry into the United
States. This expedited entry for trusted travelers enables our Customs
and Border Patrol personnel to focus their time and limited resources
on inspecting unknown or higher-risk travelers.
This bill also allows for expedited visa reviews for travelers who
wish to visit the U.S. on short notice. And also, an important
provision which will help service the limited resources of our
embassies by including a pilot program that tests the use of secure
video conferencing to conduct visa interviews, which would provide
increased access to the United States visas for potential travelers. In
this day and age of technology, this is a commonsense approach to this
updating of the immigration reform bill.
There are many more provisions that are included in this bill. It is
time for us to market the United States as a destination for our global
traveler community and create the jobs for our hotel owners, for our
airlines, for the restaurants, and all the small businesses that will
benefit from this, and create more jobs for our economy as a result.
Thank you for the opportunity to talk about this growing industry.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congresswoman Gabbard.
Some people say that comprehensive immigration reform needs to happen
because it is the socially responsible thing to do. But one thing that
our numbers show, and whether it is a conservative group or the
Congressional Budget Office staff, they basically are saying when we
pass comprehensive immigration reform, we are going to see places like
Social Security go up in value and actually extend the life of Social
Security with those additional payers. It is important for us to
understand that yes, it is a social responsibility for us to improve
our immigration system, yet at the same time, once again, every
American will benefit.
I yield to Congressman Cartwright from Pennsylvania.
Mr. CARTWRIGHT. Thank you, Congressman Cardenas. I want to say
tonight that I'm so proud of my fellow men and women, new Members who
have spoken in this Special Order hour so far on comprehensive
immigration reform.
Madam Speaker, it is obvious from the comments we've heard so far
that the economic benefits of immigration reform are irrefutable.
Sometimes you do have to follow the money, and the money speaks very
loudly and clearly in this case--comprehensive immigration reform
cannot be ignored as the correct solution. But I also want to mention
that each and every one of the speakers who has been up so far has also
said generically it is the right thing to do. I want to touch on that,
if I may, this evening.
In my own faith tradition when we think about what the right thing to
do is, we look to the Bible. We look to the Good Book. In my mind, one
of the most important passages in the Bible describes what happens on
the Last Judgment Day. It goes something like this:
When the Son of Man returns in all his glory, escorted by the angels,
then he will take his seat on the throne of glory. All the nations will
be assembled before him, and he will separate the people one from
another as the shepherd separates the sheep from goats. At his right
hand, he will place the sheep, at his left the goats. And to those on
his right, he will say, Come, accept as your inheritance the kingdom
that has been prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For
when I was hungry, you fed me. When I was thirsty, you gave me drink.
When I was a stranger, you welcomed me.
This passage could not be more clear on the moral imperative of the
day when we talk about comprehensive immigration reform. It isn't just
that comprehensive immigration reform will reduce our deficit. It isn't
just that comprehensive immigration reform will strengthen our Social
Security and our Medicare systems. It isn't just that comprehensive
immigration reform will increase our gross domestic product and
strengthen our American economy. No, more than that, at the heart of
our moral fiber, we know comprehensive immigration reform is the right
thing to do.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Cartwright.
I think it is very important for us to understand once again that
tonight we are covering many aspects of why comprehensive immigration
reform is good for this country. It's really important for us to
understand, and what I urge every viewer to do is to ask your local
Chamber of Commerce how they feel about whether comprehensive
immigration reform is overdue and whether or not we should pass such a
bill. Also ask your local law enforcement agencies. For example, 37 out
of the 50 State attorneys general in this country have all signed a
letter saying Congress, please pass a comprehensive immigration reform
bill. And please ask anybody from whatever religion you may be a part
of, ask that pastor, ask that individual that you look to for that
spiritual guidance to answer the question as to whether or not
comprehensive immigration reform is something they believe should
happen in this country.
I think the answers will overwhelmingly be yes, yes, yes.
Now I yield to Congresswoman Michelle Lujan Grisham from New Mexico
to speak.
Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico. I thank the gentleman from
California.
[[Page H4583]]
Madam Speaker, I could stand here all night talking about the many
reasons why our country needs comprehensive immigration reform that
keeps families together, provides a tough but fair pathway to
citizenship, enhances border security, and that's in line with our core
American values. But tonight, I'm going to focus on why immigration
reform is good for the American economy and good for the economy of New
Mexico.
Nationally, it's estimated that immigration reform will create
121,000 jobs a year and boost American GDP by $832 billion over the
next decade. Nearly every day, we hear Members from both parties
talking about the need to reduce our debt and deficit. Well, the
nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has determined that
comprehensive immigration reform will reduce our national deficit by
nearly $850 billion over the next two decades.
In New Mexico, comprehensive immigration reform will create 6,000
jobs over the next decade and increase our GSP--gross State product--by
$3.8 billion. These economic benefits and new jobs will have a ripple
effect, leading to even more economic activity, higher productivity,
more critical investments, better wages, and even more jobs for New
Mexicans and Americans. Simply put, we cannot afford not to pass
comprehensive immigration reform.
Our economic future demands it, and that's why I'm glad that so many
of my colleagues are taking to the floor this evening to make the case
for comprehensive immigration reform because the American people need
to know that it's good for the economy, good for business, and good for
job creation.
The Senate has done its job and acted in a bipartisan manner. Now
it's time for the House to do its job so we can send a comprehensive
immigration reform to the President's desk and finally fix our broken
immigration system.
Mr. CARDENAS. I thank the congresswoman.
Next, I'd like to yield to Congressman Murphy from Florida. We've
heard from a congresswoman from Hawaii, and next Congressman Murphy
from Florida will speak. Tourism is an important economic issue tip to
tip in this country, and Florida is no exception.
Mr. MURPHY of Florida. First, I want to thank Mr. Cardenas for
putting this Special Order together. I'm here tonight to call on the
House of Representatives to pass bipartisan comprehensive immigration
reform that would reduce our deficit and grow our economy.
Madam Speaker, now that the Senate has passed comprehensive
immigration reform with broad bipartisan support, it is time for the
House to step up and do the same. Passing immigration reform will cut
our Federal deficit and grow the economy. The Congressional Budget
Office reported that the Senate immigration bill would reduce the
Federal budget deficit by $850 billion over the next 20 years.
Comprehensive immigration reform will also grow our economy. By
expanding the U.S. labor force and America's productivity, increasing
the number of available high-tech visas and increasing foreign
investment, comprehensive immigration reform will increase our gross
domestic product. It is projected that this will increase GDP by $1.4
trillion by 2033.
While not perfect, the Senate immigration bill is an important
bipartisan compromise to address what is currently a broken system. I
came to Washington to work across the aisle and find commonsense
solutions just like this. Furthermore, the fact that this bill would
reduce the Federal deficit and grow the economy should be something we
can all agree on.
I urge my colleagues to support passing the Senate's bipartisan
comprehensive immigration reform bill.
Mr. CARDENAS. I thank Congressman Murphy. I think it is important for
us to understand that every State has its unique differences, yet
again, we are one Nation and we will all benefit from comprehensive
immigration reform.
I would now like to yield to Congressman Veasey from Texas.
Mr. VEASEY. I thank the distinguished gentleman from Los Angeles,
California, for hosting this Special Order hour on a very important
topic, and that is immigration reform.
Madam Speaker, recently I previewed a screening of ``The Dream is
Now'' in Fort Worth, and Representative Castro also came to Fort Worth
to join me on that. And I can assure you that the hundreds of
constituents who attended the event represent a microcosm of
undocumented immigrants in the U.S. who need us to act now on
comprehensive immigration reform. The dream for 11 million people to
come out of the shadows and contribute economically to the only country
they've ever known rests in the hands in the United States House of
Representatives.
Immigrants contribute to our economy as workers, as future
entrepreneurs, as consumers, and as taxpayers. Latinos account for
increasing shares of the economy and electorate in Texas. According to
the U.S. Census Bureau, Texas's almost 450,000 Latino-owned businesses
had sales receipts of nearly $62 billion and employed over 395,000
people in 2007, the last year for which data is available.
Additionally, over 61,000 foreign students in Texas contributed $1.4
billion to the economy in tuition fees and living expenses in the 2011-
2012 academic year. These monumental numbers cannot be ignored.
In Dallas alone, immigrants accounted for 16 percent of economic
output as of 2007, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute.
If all undocumented immigrants were removed from the State of Texas,
our State, the Lone Star State, would lose $69.3 billion in economic
activity, $30.8 billion in gross State product, and approximately
403,174 jobs, according to a report by the Perryman Group.
{time} 2000
The Perryman Group is run by Ray Perryman, out of Waco, Texas, who
has worked very closely with Rick Perry, who is really the face of the
Republican Party in Texas.
It's time to highlight the economic benefits of immigration reform
and to further encourage those on the right to support comprehensive
immigration reform moving through the House.
In a time of economic hardship, it's hard to imagine that my
colleagues on both sides of the aisle would be against expanding our
economy, investing in American manufacturers, and strengthening
American workers.
I want to thank the gentleman for allowing me to speak on this very
important issue. Let's not make these families and our economy wait any
longer. The time for comprehensive immigration reform is now.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Veasey.
It's really important for us to understand, I keep saying, every
corner of this country's going to benefit from comprehensive
immigration reform. And you just heard from one of our Representatives
from Texas explaining that there's actually Republicans in his State
who actually realize the economic benefit and are urging comprehensive
immigration reform now as well.
Before I go to the next speaker, I must ask, Madam Speaker, how much
time do we still have?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from California has 18 minutes
remaining.
Mr. CARDENAS. I yield time to the gentleman from Florida (Mr.
Garcia).
Mr. GARCIA. I'd like to thank the gentleman from California.
Madam Speaker, it's been 20 days since the Senate passed
overwhelmingly a bipartisan immigration reform bill.
In the House Judiciary Committee, we've considered four controversial
bills, none of which address the 11 million people that are already
here.
In south Florida, for example, there are thousands of Venezuelan
families stuck in an immigration system with some combination of legal
or undocumented status. They came to this country fleeing Chavismo and
have since purchased homes, started businesses, and invested millions
in our community.
Earlier this year, I introduced a bill, the Venezuelan Liberty Act,
which would allow any Venezuelan who had been in the United States
since Chavez was elected to adjust to permanent-resident status. This
is similar to what Congress passed in 1997 with the Nicaraguan
Adjustment Act and the Central American Relief Act.
[[Page H4584]]
However, because we have yet to consider any sort of legalization
path, the House Judiciary Committee has not yet had the opportunity to
consider this bill as an amendment or to debate on how best to bring
people out of the shadows.
And Venezuelans aren't alone. The Haitians, the Africans, the Central
Americans on TPS, the young people who are covered under DACA continue
to live their lives in immigration limbo while the House has yet to
act.
Immigration reform isn't about politics. It's about our Nation's
values. It's about our economy. It's about our future.
The recent White House report and last month's CBO report confirmed
what my constituents in south Florida already know: our Nation's
livelihood depends on fixing our broken immigration system.
The Center for American Progress projected that immigration reform
would generate over 8,000 additional jobs per year in Florida and that
current Florida citizens would see an increase in wages of $6.3 billion
over the next 10 years.
We may not agree on everything, but we cannot afford to wait any
longer. Passing immigration reform will spur innovation, lower our
deficit, and raise wages for all workers.
As if the voices of many DREAMers who have recently descended on
Washington aren't enough, business leaders, law enforcement officials,
farmers, clergy throughout the U.S. have urged Congress to take action.
It's time to move this Nation forward. I urge the House leadership to
bring immigration reform to the floor.
The time has come. Ha llegado la hora.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Garcia.
Next I'll yield time to the gentleman from California (Mr. Vargas).
Mr. VARGAS. I want to thank the gentleman from California for
yielding to allow me to speak on this very important issue to
California.
But I especially want to thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania for
putting it in the context of our faith and our faith communities and
our faith tradition. He, of course, quoted famously from Matthew 25. He
could have quoted from Leviticus. In fact, I would like to do that now,
from Leviticus 19:33-34:
When an alien resides among you in your land, do not
mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be
treated as your native born. Love them as yourself for you
were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
And I have to ask, are we keeping that commandment?
Are we keeping that rule?
Are we keeping that pronouncement?
Of course we're not. I wish that we were.
Immigration reform is vital to the economy of our country and, in
particular, to California and my district. California is unique in that
it is home to the technology industry, which relies heavily and highly
on skilled talent and has an incredibly successful agriculture
industry, which needs a temporary worker program that provides a
predictable workforce.
The more California business leaders I speak with, the more apparent
it is that immigration reform is the key to stimulating our economy and
encouraging job growth.
Ruben Barrales, the immediate past president and CEO of the San Diego
Regional Chamber of Commerce and current head of the Republican
Political Action Committee, GROW Elect said:
It is the responsibility of national leaders to modernize
our immigration laws to help the United States remain
competitive in the global economy.
Comprehensive immigration reform should help to attract and
retain highly skilled immigrants, and should provide some
pathway to legalization for qualified undocumented
immigrants.
We must welcome immigrants, who continue to strengthen our
economy and reinvigorate our society.
The California Chamber of Commerce is also acutely aware of the
immense value that surrounds successful immigration reform. The
California Chamber of Commerce, along with 29 other chambers, including
the El Centro Chamber in my district, signed a letter stating that they
stand united in adopting comprehensive reform.
The letter states:
Immigration reform is especially important to California as
there are approximately 2.6 million undocumented immigrants
in California, 23 percent of the Nation's total.
The uncertainty over their legal status is a drag on our
economy and, if resolved, would stimulate consumer spending
and investment.
Many of those who are in California have called our State home for
more than 10 years, becoming Americans in all but legal status.
Californians would benefit from more than 18,000 jobs created each year
as a result of comprehensive immigration reform, according to a 2013
study by the Center for American Progress.
Moreover, California would see a 10-year cumulative increase in gross
state product of $125.5 billion, an increase of earnings of all
California residents of $68.2 billion, and, finally, an increase in
taxes paid by undocumented immigrants by $5.22 billion.
There is no denying that immigration reform is an economically sound
decision, and I urge my Republican colleagues to work with us to
achieve real, valuable, economically beneficial immigration reform.
And I respectfully ask that, again, they look at their own faith
because that's really the basis of this. We know it's the right thing
to do.
Look to Genesis. Look to Leviticus. Look especially to Matthew 25,
and you'll see in your hearts, this is the right thing to do.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Vargas.
I'll yield time to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Castro). And I'd
like to ask Congressman Castro if he can help me answer the question a
young lady tweeted on this, as we're commenting tonight from the floor.
Brenda asked, What are you doing for children who came here through
no fault of their own?
Congressman Castro.
Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Well, Congressman, thank you for that question,
and thank you for your work on this issue.
Madam Speaker, in the Senate bill that was passed recently, there is
relief for students known as DREAMers, those who were brought here as
young kids through no fault of their own and through no choice, and now
find themselves undocumented, with no way, oftentimes, to go to college
or to pursue their career dreams. These are folks who are literally in
a kind of limbo.
And so what we should do is offer them a path to citizenship to allow
them to become American citizens. This country is, after all, for the
overwhelming majority of them, the only country they've ever called
home. It's the only place they know as home; and this is an issue, I
think, that tugs at the conscience of Americans.
And most polls show that an overwhelming majority of Americans
support a path to citizenship for DREAM Act students.
So I hope, Congressman Cardenas, that what we can do in the House of
Representatives is follow the example of the Senate, work in a
bipartisan manner, and offer relief for these DREAM Act students who
are caught in limbo, who, through no fault of their own, are here in
the United States of America, who call our country home, who are proud
to be Americans, and who deserve a chance to become full-fledged
citizens.
I would also point out, you know, as I said before, that there are
very compelling moral and economic reasons to support comprehensive
reform.
I represent San Antonio, Texas, here in Congress. And of all the
States in the Nation, I believe that Texas has the most to gain or lose
by what happens on this issue. The reason I say that is that we have
the longest border with Mexico, for example, 1,200 miles.
We do the most trade with Latin America, and there are four or five
major American industries and Texas industries, everything from the
high-tech industry in Austin, just as you have one in California in
Silicon Valley, to the agricultural industry, the construction
industry, the hospitality industry. These major American industries
literally would not exist the way they do but for immigrant labor.
And I want to give you the best example of that. The agricultural
industry self-reports that 50 percent of its workers are undocumented.
And so when States like Alabama and Georgia pass laws that essentially
led immigrants to flee those States, their agricultural industries paid
a very steep
[[Page H4585]]
price. So those are the stakes that we're dealing with on this issue.
I am hoping that House Republicans will join Democrats who have been
pushing for comprehensive reform for quite some time now, join us in
coming to a solution that does more than just incite fear or scare
people, and actually tries to resolve this issue in a pragmatic way for
the Nation.
Mr. CARDENAS. Thank you very much, Congressman Castro.
I'd like to thank all of my colleagues who spoke here tonight.
And thank you, Madam Speaker, for affording us the opportunity to
speak to the American public and to actually explain this very, very
critical, important economic benefit to our great country.
I'd like to thank my colleagues, my fellow Americans, for speaking
out tonight and explaining to every American of our great country that
comprehensive immigration reform benefits you. Every single person born
in this country will benefit tremendously from passage of comprehensive
immigration reform.
I think it's important for us to understand that, to many of us
American-born citizens, this is a very important issue. It's about
economics, but it's also an emotional issue as well.
I'm very, very proud to say that I was born in this country, and I
thank my parents for coming to California and for raising me in
California as an American citizen, even though they were raised in
Mexico.
I think it's important for us to understand that I'm proud of growing
up in a family where my father owned a business, and he taught me and
explained to me, with his first-grade education in Mexico, he told me
time and time again, as well as telling my 10 brothers and sisters, you
have an opportunity for an education. You need to take advantage of
that opportunity, and we did.
I'm very proud to say that my mother had a second-grade education, my
father had a first-grade education, but their children now have
doctorate degrees, master's degrees, bachelor's degrees, engineers,
teachers, psychologists, all raised in one humble home in Pacoima.
{time} 2015
That is the American experience, ladies and gentlemen. And one thing
that I'm very proud to say as well about our 10 families, now that
we're raising our own American families, every single one of our
households pays more annually in taxes than my mother and father's home
ever made in one given year. I'll say that again. From a humble home
where a man and a woman together raised their children, their entire
annual income did not equal the amount of taxes that each one of their
sons and daughters now pay today.
To me, that's the exclamation point on everything we've talked about
tonight. We've talked about how important it is to the Social Security
system. It will boost that. We talked about how it is to the deficit
that we hear about on this floor so many times. It will actually erase
$850 billion from our U.S. deficit.
There are so many benefits that will benefit not only our coffers
here in Washington, which benefits America, but will actually benefit
hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of American-born citizens that will
work in those industries that are created and spearheaded by immigrants
to this country.
And I must say this. I would like to read a few of the names of
immigrants born outside of this country who created businesses in this
country that many of us use everyday and recognize:
Sergey Brin from Russia, cofounder of Google;
Pierre Omidyar, an Iranian immigrant from France, one of the
cofounders of eBay, Inc.;
Jerry Yang from Taiwan, cofounder of Yahoo;
James L. Kraft, a Canadian, cofounder of Kraft Foods, Inc.;
Levi Strauss, a man from Germany, founder of Levi-Strauss in
California;
Liz Claiborne from Belgium, founder of Liz Claiborne, Inc. If you
think clothes don't mean much, that's a United States company worth $5
billion;
Andrew Grove from Hungary, cofounder of Intel, a company worth $112
billion;
Kevork S. Hovnanian from Iraq, founder of Hovnanian Enterprises, a
homebuilder that in 2011 had revenues of $1.1 billion.
And the list goes on and on and and on. Every single one of those
individuals made their second life here in our great country. And it's
because there was a time that in this country we embraced everyone from
around the world. And all we asked of them is that they just obey the
laws once they are here and that they do well with the opportunities
that our great country affords every human being when they are here.
We have one of the highest standards of living in the world. And
there's a reason for that. Because there was a time for many, many
years that we welcomed people to our shores. At this time where we just
reopened the Statute of Liberty, it's time for us to embrace people
from around the world and for us to recognize it's not just about doing
the right thing for them. It is the right thing for every American
citizen born in this country. The benefits economically are tremendous.
There are no losers, ladies and gentlemen, when it comes to the
United States Congress doing the right thing. Let's put a comprehensive
immigration bill through our process and on the desk of this President
and let's watch this country thrive. Our great country deserves it.
Once again, I would like to thank everybody who participated, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
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