Texas 2017 - 85th 1st C.S.

Texas House Bill HCR24 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85S11919 KSM-D
2	2	By: Anchia H.C.R. No. 24
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5	5	CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
6	6	WHEREAS, In an increasingly complex global economy,
7	7	transnational labor mobility is crucial to the prosperity of the
8	8	United States, but our rigid, outmoded immigration policies are
9	9	making it difficult for the nation to compete; and
10	10	WHEREAS, The United States Congress last enacted major
11	11	immigration legislation more than a quarter-century ago; since that
12	12	time, piecemeal attempts at reform have failed to create the kind of
13	13	rational and effective system we need to maintain competitiveness,
14	14	whether in industries like agriculture, construction, and
15	15	manufacturing, which require large numbers of workers able to
16	16	perform physically demanding tasks, or in technology, where there
17	17	is increasing demand for employees with advanced degrees in math
18	18	and science; and
19	19	WHEREAS, Immigrants perform vital functions in a variety of
20	20	industries, and in Texas, they start nearly a third of the state's
21	21	new businesses; even unauthorized immigrants produce more in state
22	22	revenue than they receive in state services, according to a 2006
23	23	study by the Office of the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts,
24	24	which estimated that their deportation would cause more than a six
25	25	percent decline in the workforce and nearly an $18 billion decline
26	26	in the gross state product; and
27	27	WHEREAS, The United States is home to millions of
28	28	unauthorized immigrants, including children brought to this
29	29	country illegally who have grown up here and know no home other than
30	30	the United States; a commonsense road map to earned legal status for
31	31	these residents would create additional tax revenue and stimulate
32	32	the economy by allowing them to open bank accounts, obtain college
33	33	degrees, buy homes, establish new American companies, and create
34	34	jobs; a study published by the Cato Institute estimated that a
35	35	complete overhaul of the immigration system would yield at least
36	36	$1.5 trillion in added U.S. gross domestic product over 10 years;
37	37	and
38	38	WHEREAS, A rational overhaul of the immigration system
39	39	requires a tough, fair, and practical program to address the status
40	40	of unauthorized immigrants, stopping real threats and contingent on
41	41	bringing accountability to border enforcement programs, providing
42	42	additional funding for border communities that bear a
43	43	disproportionate burden in the enforcement of immigration laws, and
44	44	addressing visa overstays; in order to protect all workers, whether
45	45	native or foreign-born, it must include an efficient and
46	46	transparent employment verification system that identifies
47	47	qualified candidates while penalizing employers who knowingly hire
48	48	unauthorized immigrants; federal policy must also be designed to
49	49	develop a guest worker program to respond to the future labor needs
50	50	of U.S. business by matching willing workers with willing American
51	51	employers; and
52	52	WHEREAS, Recognizing the characteristics that will help
53	53	build prosperity and strengthen our society, a commonsense road map
54	54	to earned legal status for unauthorized immigrants would encompass
55	55	a health and criminal background check, proof of a stable U.S. work
56	56	history and current employment, and payment of relevant fines and
57	57	taxes; to gain probationary legal status, individuals would be
58	58	further required to demonstrate knowledge of English and American
59	59	civics and go to the back of the same line as those prospective
60	60	immigrants seeking to come to the United States legally; fairness
61	61	demands that the system take into account special circumstances
62	62	surrounding candidates for probationary legal status, such as
63	63	minors brought to the country as children or agricultural workers
64	64	whose labor is essential to maintain the food supply; and
65	65	WHEREAS, The United States is a nation founded upon respect
66	66	for the rule of law; national security and our national interests
67	67	are poorly served by an embattled immigration system, and patchwork
68	68	attempts to mend its deficiencies undermine our potential for
69	69	prosperity and leave us ill-prepared to meet the challenges of the
70	70	modern world; and
71	71	WHEREAS, Solutions that provide for blanket amnesty, such as
72	72	those presented in the Simpson-Mazzoli Act of 1986, encourage
73	73	future violations of the law and should be excluded from the panoply
74	74	of options to be considered by the United States Congress; now,
75	75	therefore, be it
76	76	RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas,
77	77	1st Called Session, hereby respectfully urge the United States
78	78	Congress to swiftly enact and fund comprehensive immigration reform
79	79	that creates both a commonsense road map to earned legal status for
80	80	unauthorized immigrants and a guest worker program that
81	81	contemplates the future needs of U.S. business, in furtherance of
82	82	our nation's economic growth and national security; and, be it
83	83	further
84	84	RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
85	85	copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
86	86	the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
87	87	Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the
88	88	members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that
89	89	this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a
90	90	memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.