HR0318LRB102 18532 MST 26764 r 1HOUSE 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

HR0318- 2 -LRB102 18532 MST 26764 r 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

HR0318- 3 -LRB102 18532 MST 26764 r 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

HR0318- 4 -LRB102 18532 MST 26764 r 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.

HR0318- 5 -LRB102 18532 MST 26764 r 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.