Democrats Introduce US Citizenship Act of 2021

February 19, 2021

On Thursday February 18, 2021, Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey and Representative Linda Sanchez of California introduced the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 meant to be a “humane response” to President Trump’s previous policies, according to the New York Times.

The bill as introduced would allow “virtually all undocumented immigrants to eventually apply for citizenship; increase legal immigration; add measures to secure ports of entry and speed processing of asylum seekers; and invest $4 billion in the economies of Central American countries to reduce migration.”

The Biden administration has also worked to curtail arrests and deportations, switching to a case-by-case basis. The guidance issued by DHS Secretary Mayorkas would require ICE to seek approval based on set criteria to deport. Individuals who do not present national security threats, have felony convictions or have recently tried to cross the border illegally, are “not priorities” for deportation. Mayorkas says this is a temporary guidance and will have a permanent one within “90 days.” We will update our website when the permanent guidance comes into effect.

The passage of the U.S. Citizenship Act will take some time, as the new administration has other priorities with the Covid Relief bill set to be passed before immigration orders. We will keep our website up to date as things develop.

 

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TAGS: DHS, ICE, President Biden