86R24000 KSM-D
By: Reynolds H.C.R. No. 154
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, In an increasingly complex global economy,
transnational labor mobility is crucial to the prosperity of the
United States, but our rigid, outmoded immigration policies are
making it difficult for the nation to compete; and
WHEREAS, The United States Congress last enacted major
immigration legislation more than a quarter century ago; since that
time, piecemeal attempts at reform have failed to create the kind of
rational and effective system we need to maintain competitiveness,
whether in industries like agriculture, construction, and
manufacturing, which require large numbers of workers able to
perform physically demanding tasks, or in technology, where there
is increasing demand for employees with advanced degrees in math
and science; and
WHEREAS, The U.S. is home to millions of unauthorized
immigrants, including children brought to this country illegally
who have grown up here and know no other home; a commonsense road
map to earned legal status for these residents would create
additional tax revenue and stimulate the economy by allowing them
to open bank accounts, obtain college degrees, buy homes, establish
new American companies, and create jobs; and
WHEREAS, A rational overhaul of the immigration system
requires a tough, fair, and practical program to address the status
of unauthorized immigrants, stopping real threats and contingent on
bringing accountability to border enforcement programs, providing
additional funding for border communities that bear a
disproportionate burden in the enforcement of immigration laws, and
addressing visa overstays; federal policy must also be designed to
develop a guest worker program to respond to the future labor needs
of U.S. business by matching willing workers with willing American
employers; and
WHEREAS, National security and our national interests are
poorly served by an embattled immigration system, and patchwork
attempts to mend its deficiencies undermine our potential for
prosperity and leave us ill-prepared to meet the challenges of the
modern world; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 86th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to pass
comprehensive immigration reform that creates a path to citizenship
for undocumented immigrants; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the
members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that
this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a
memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.