Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HR0318
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Full Text of HR0318  102nd General Assembly

HR0318 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY


  

 


 
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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Illinois is home to a large immigrant community
3that has contributed tremendously to our State; in 2018, 1.8
4million immigrants comprised 14 percent of the population of
5the State of Illinois; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Throughout the last year, the immigrant community
7has been on the front lines in the fight against the COVID-19
8pandemic, including, but not limited to, making up a large
9portion of the essential workforce as the country and the
10State went into a lockdown; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Nearly six million essential immigrant workers in
12the United States are uncertain about their future ability to
13reside in the country; some individuals are employed as U.S.
14temporary workers, while others have a protected status, and
15still others do not have documentation of lawful immigration
16status; and
 
17    WHEREAS, A large population of undocumented immigrants has
18lived in the U.S. for more than a decade and are caregivers for
19children who are U.S. citizens; in 2017, approximately 5.9
20million children who are U.S. citizens had at least one
21caregiver who did not have legal status in the U.S.; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, One in seven State residents is an immigrant,
2more than one in six workers is an immigrant, and close to
3one-third of all business owners in the Chicago metro area are
4immigrants; and
 
5    WHEREAS, The immigrant community has contributed
6significantly to Illinois in many ways, including the
7community's contribution to the State's economy; in 2018,
8immigrant-led households in the State paid $12.7 billion in
9federal taxes and $7.7 billion in state and local taxes;
10137,907 immigrant business owners accounted for 23 percent of
11all self-employed residents and generated $2.8 billion in
12business income; and
 
13    WHEREAS, The effects of immigration enforcement actions
14are felt by the individual, their family, and the larger
15community; it is undisputed that the separation of a child
16from a parent due to immigration enforcement action is
17associated with economic hardship, housing instability, and
18food insecurity; in addition, following an immigration
19enforcement action against a family member, children have
20demonstrated numerous emotional and behavioral challenges,
21even if the children are reunited with the family member at a
22later point; and
 
23    WHEREAS, Historically, U.S. policies have deeply impacted

 

 

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1the stability, economic conditions, and violence in countries
2from which many immigrants originally migrated to build a home
3in this country and this State; and
 
4    WHEREAS, The immigrant community and its allies have
5continuously fought to advance human rights and protections
6for individuals living in the U.S. who live in constant fear of
7law enforcement and cruel immigration enforcement actions; and
 
8    WHEREAS, It has been decades since the enactment of any
9major reform to our nation's immigration laws; this inertia
10has deeply impacted immigrant communities, as demonstrated by
11the continuous harsh ICE enforcement actions and separation of
12families; in 2019 for example, ICE carried out 226,000
13deportations; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Congress has debated numerous immigration reforms
15over the last two decades without great success, which has led
16the courts and the executive branch to take some temporary
17measures to address certain aspects of this nation's
18immigration law; and
 
19    WHEREAS, There is significant public support for the
20reformation of our country's immigration laws and the
21advancement of immigrant rights in the U.S. and Illinois; 81
22percent of Americans support a path to citizenship for

 

 

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1undocumented immigrants; and
 
2    WHEREAS, There are currently several bills before Congress
3that will help advance the rights and protections for the
4immigrant community in the United States, including HR1435
5American Right to Family Act, HR536 New Way Forward Act,
6HR1537 Farmworker Modernization Act of 2021, HR6 Dream &
7Promise Act, HR161 Venezuelan TPS Act of 2021, HR530 REUNITE
8Act, HR1177 U.S. Citizenship Act, S264 DREAM Act of 2021, and
9S291 National Office of New Americans Act; and
 
10    WHEREAS, These bills currently before Congress present an
11opportunity for our nation to take the necessary action to
12move our country forward and recognize the human rights of the
13immigrant community in our country and State of Illinois;
14therefore, be it
 
15    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
16HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
17we urge the U.S. Congress to take action in passing the
18necessary legislation to advance the human rights and
19protections of the immigrant community in the United States;
20and be it further
 
21    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
22delivered to the President of the United States, the U.S.

 

 

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1Senate Majority Leader, the U.S. Senate Minority Leader, the
2U.S. Speaker of the House, the U.S. House of Representatives
3Minority Leader, and all members of the Illinois Congressional
4Delegation.