Editor’s note: The New Jersey Business Immigration Coalition is an advocacy group founded by Katherine Kish and Nicholas Montalto with a mission to bring together “business, higher education, and economic development leaders who recognize that immigrants strengthen New Jersey’s economy and communities and who wish to create conditions to attract, retain and integrate immigrants into our labor force and communities.” Learn more at www.njbusinessimmigration.org.
With the courts likely to declare the 10-year-old, Obama-era DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program unconstitutional, the future of more than 800,000 young people brought to America as children looks bleak unless Congress reaches some sort of bipartisan accord to regularize their status.
DACA has allowed hundreds of thousands of these young people to get an education and to enter the workforce. Many of them now have young families of their own. A court decision invalidating the program would throw them out of work and disrupt not only their lives but also those of their growing number of dependents.
Employers in New Jersey will feel another ripple effect: they will have to absorb the cost of recruiting, hiring, and training replacement workers, who may or may not be available to fill these positions.
For these reasons, the New Jersey Business Immigration Coalition is urging the members of the New Jersey congressional delegation to support legislation to create a pathway to full citizenship for DACA recipients, as well as for those barred by court decree from applying to participate in the program. The Coalition outlined its position in a two-page statement sent to all members of the delegation this month.
Created in 2019, the Coalition consists of 38 member organizations, including some of the largest business organizations in the State of New Jersey. The goal of the Coalition is to promote bipartisan and evidence-based solutions to the immigration challenges facing our state and nation.
According to Coalition’s Coordinator Nicholas V. Montalto, “these young people are Americans in all respects. Solid majorities in both parties are supportive of a legislative solution. Now is the time to act.”
The coalition’s position, as outlined in its statement, is as follows:
A Permanent Solution to the DACA Problem Will Provide a Boost to the American Economy
At a time when the American economy is struggling to find enough workers to fill existing job openings, an entire group of young people, raised and educated in America, may be denied the opportunity to use their skills and training for their own advancement, as well as for the benefit of other Americans.
Although the ten-year-old Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program tried to address this problem, it was never intended to be a permanent solution. Members of both parties, as well as the majority of Americans, recognized that only Congress could give them full and durable rights as Americans. Yet ten years have gone by, and nothing has been done.
Now court challenges threaten the continuation of the program, large numbers of young people are locked out of the program, and those with DACA protections could easily lose them.
Over the years, more than 800,000 individuals brought here as children have relied on DACA work permits and deportation protections to pursue higher education and join the workforce. Although worries over the possible rescission of DACA never disappeared, DACA recipients had a huge burden lifted off their shoulders resulting in documented improvements in their emotional well-being, along with impressive academic achievements.
The initial cohort of DACA recipients has now grown up. A recent study finds that the overwhelming majority (at least 85 percent) are now participating in the labor force. More than one-third (37 percent) are married, and more than 4 in 10 (42 percent) have at least one child at home. Their efforts to achieve the American dream, however, could be in vain if the courts rule that President Obama exceeded his authority in granting them protections under DACA. Such a ruling would result in their loss of permission to work legally in the U.S. The Migration Policy Institute estimates that there are 10,000 employed DACA recipients in New Jersey.
Not only are these young people threatened with loss of status, an even larger number are barred by court order from applying to participate in the program. Of the nearly 100,000 undocumented students graduating high school each year, only a quarter are eligible for DACA protections. Even if allowed to apply, many of them wouldn’t qualify because of age requirements under the original program. An estimated 427,000 undocumented students are currently enrolled in higher education, but less than half are DACA-eligible.
The Coalition believes that it is contrary to our nation’s interests to hold these young people hostage to the fate of policy deliberations on other immigration matters.
Their homes, their upbringing, their education, their friendships, and their language are all largely American. They have no other future than in this country. A study from the Migration Policy Institute found that DACA holders contributed nearly $42 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product each year and added $3.4 billion to the federal balance sheet. If we choose to extract them from the American economy, we will all pay a price. Employers, in particular, will have to absorb the cost of recruiting, hiring, and training replacement workers, who may not be available to fill these positions.
The New Jersey Business Immigration Coalition urges all members of the New Jersey congressional delegation to support bipartisan legislation providing a pathway to citizenship for this important segment of New Jersey’s population.
Members of the New Jersey Business Immigration Coalition include:
American Conference on Diversity; Asian Indian Chamber of Commerce; Capital Region Minority Chamber of Commerce; Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey; Choose New Jersey; Diversity Dynamics; Domain Computer Services; Eastern Monmouth Area Chamber of Commerce; Einstein’s Alley; ExportJERSEY; Genova Burns LLC; Greenberg Traurig LLP;
HG Media; Hudson County Chamber of Commerce; Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce; Innovation+; Meadowlands Chamber; Mercer County Community College; Mercer County Office of Economic Development; Middlesex County Regional Chamber of Commerce; Montclair State University; Morris County Chamber of Commerce;
New Jersey Business and Industry Association; New Jersey Chamber of Commerce; New Jersey Chapter, American Immigration Lawyers Assoc.; New Jersey Chinese-American Chamber of Commerce; New Jersey Nursery and Landscape Association; New Jersey Restaurant and Hospitality Association;
Passaic County, Division of Economic Development; Princeton-Mercer Regional Chamber of Commerce; Rowan University; Solar Landscape; Somerset County Business Partnership; Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; TechUnited;and UrbanTech
