House duo introduce bipartisan immigration package offering ‘dignity status’

A bipartisan House duo has introduced a new immigration measure that would offer a pathway to citizenship for undocumented migrants in the U.S. while investing in border security.

The bill comes on the heels of a GOP-passed House bill all but guaranteed to fail in the Senate, which places severe limits on asylum.

Reps. María Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) and Veronica Escobar (D-Texas) see their legislation as having a better chance for success that the hardline GOP bill, charging undocumented workers a “1.5 percent dignity levy” in taxes and other fees that will pay for both border security and job training for American citizens.

“This is a historical moment. Two members of Congress — one Democrat, one Republican — decided to work on one of the most divisive topics in this country: immigration. Who wants to do that? Very few people,” Salazar said at a Tuesday press conference, noting no immigration legislation has had serious traction in a decade.

The legislation is Salazar’s second crack at The Dignity Act, a bill she introduced during her first year of Congress in 2021, and the word is weaved throughout the programs created by the updated bill.

For those already in the U.S. with no criminal record, the legislation would allow undocumented workers to enter with “dignity status,” allowing them to work anywhere and travel abroad freely. They must pay $700 in fees a year for seven years — just under $5,000 dollars — while under the status. Meanwhile, their payroll taxes will drop from 7 percent to 1.5, as they will not be charged for contributing to U.S. government programs for which they are not eligible. She noted those under dignity status will be responsible for paying for their own health care.

The billions raised though the dignity status fees will go towards funding border security. The 1.5 percent tax will fund the worker training.

Salazar repeatedly addressed likely skeptics within her own party, as well as common refrains posed by immigration restrictions. 

“No one can say the undocumented are stealing anything away from you,” she said, pointing to the job training program.

Getting on the path to citizenship would kick off another five-year process for those with dignity status, one that takes five years and requires another $5,000. But it comes with a major snag — no one would have citizenship granted through the program unless the Government Accountability Office determines the border has remained secure for a year.

For those seeking asylum at the border, the bill would establish humanitarian campuses, where migrants would be housed while they await a determination in their case — something the bill mandates must take place within 60 days rather than the years-long process many await in immigration court currently.

The bill appears to include a longstanding priority for immigrant advocates, as Escobar said they are “working to ensure legal representation” to all those at the centers.

“It also updates systems so that we don’t have law enforcement, like the United States Border Patrol, performing humanitarian tasks. That’s what’s happening today,” said Escobar, who represents a district that includes El Paso.

She said the bill will also expand other pathways to migrate to the U.S., blaming the “collapse” of the U.S. asylum system on limited other options.

“A border that is better managed with integrity comes not just with security but with legitimate legal pathways that people can get into so we truly preserve asylum for what it’s intended to be: a beacon for those fleeing persecution not poverty,” she said. 

“That is what we are seeing today…and there is a role for those individuals though other legal pathways in this bill.” 

The bill until Monday night had an all-female roster of co-sponsors — Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) is the latest addition — and is being spearheaded by two Latina members. 

Sponsors repeatedly stressed that the bill is not perfect, calling for others with better ideas to join their group as they hash out the bill.

“This bill is not perfect. The minute it is released we will hear…from the left and right about all the things it does and all things it lacks and leaves undone. But we cannot let the illusion of a perfect bill prevent us from doing what is right,” Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-Mich.) said. 

While the bill faces an uncertain path forward in the House, it stands in contrast to the legislation passed last week, H.R. 2, which did not secure a single democratic vote.

It devotes just as much focus on those already in the U.S., with more than 10 million estimated to be living in the U.S. undocumented, as opposed to H.R. 2’s scrutiny of those seeking asylum.

“I don’t want anyone to confuse amnesty with dignity. This is not amnesty. Amnesty is what the undocumented have right now and have had for 30 years,” Salazar said.

“[It] brings dignity to those millions and millions of people invisible to most Americans who are doing the jobs others are unwilling to do: the undocumented class. They deserve the respect we give our neighbors even if we don’t know them.”