The Dignity Act is an attempt to fix flaws in the current immigration system, according to Reps. Veronica Escobar (D-TX) and Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), who introduced it Tuesday. It could be “one potential source” to fill open positions in senior living, according to an industry advocate.
The legislation is an updated version of a failed 2021 immigration reform bill.
“For those already in the US with no criminal record, the legislation would allow undocumented workers to enter with ‘dignity status,’ allowing them to work anywhere and travel abroad freely,” the Hill reported.
The legislation addresses, as deliniated by Leading Age, covers policies in the following areas: 1) securing the border and restoring law and order; 2) fixing our asylum system; 3) giving dignity and redemption to undocumented immigrants; 4) dignity for American workers; 5) American agricultural dominance; and 6) unleashing American prosperity and competitiveness. This last area is of particular interest to LeadingAge as it proposes to make fixes to the current system aligned with the organization’s current policy priorities
“As workforce shortages persist across aging services, providers are looking to foreign-born workers as one potential source for filling open positions,” LeadingAge said Wednesday in post to members. “Immigrants already are significant contributors to the long-term care workforce: over 30% of all home care aides, over 20% of all nursing assistants, 20% of RNs in nursing homes and over 15% of licensed practical nurses (LPNs) in nursing homes are foreign born.”
According to a fact sheet from Escobar’s office, the pathway to citizenship offered by the legislation could bring as many as 11 million undocumented people “out of the shadows.” Immigrants participating in the program would be required to pay $5,000 over the course of seven years (the duration of the program), as well as pass a criminal background check, pay any outstanding taxes and begin or continue paying taxes.
“No taxpayer funds will be used to pay for the Dignity Act,” Salazar stressed.
Immigrants would be assessed a 1.5% levy from their paychecks, which would be deposited into an Immigration Infrastructure Fund to be used for border security and job training.
The Dignity Act also would target getting visas to immigrants who have been waiting 10 or more years, raising the per-country cap on immigration, increasing high-skilled employment visas opportunities, creating an immigration agency coordinator and sending resources to US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) called the bill “an important step forward as we work towards a more fair, humane, orderly and legal immigration system.”
