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The U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 and Where it Stands in its Promise to Immigrant Children

By immigrationprof

Guest blogger, Athena Edwards, law student, University of San Francisco

On January 20, 2021, the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 was sent to Congress by the Biden Administration.[1] Biden, within his first day in office, signed three immigration executive orders and sent the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 to Congress, [2] The first executive order to the Attorney General of the United States and the Secretary of Homeland Security to reinstate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA).[3] The second executive order sought to overturn the travel ban imposed by Donald Trump.[4] The third executive order was sought to reverse Executive Order 13768, which stipulated that “sanctuary jurisdictions” that refused to comply with immigration enforcement measures would not be “eligible to receive Federal grants, except as deemed necessary for law enforcement purposes” by the U.S. Attorney General or Secretary of Homeland Security.[5]

On February 18, 2021, the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 was introduced in the House and Senate by Representative Linda Sanchez and Senator Bob Menendez.[6] The Act makes reforms to the family-based immigration system by clearing backlogs, recapturing unused visas, eliminating long wait times, and increasing per-country visa caps; prohibits immigration bans that discriminate based on religion and limits presidential authority to issue future bans while also increasing the number of Diversity Visas; provides new funding to state and local governments, private organizations, educational institutions, community-based organizations, and not-for-profit organizations to expand programs to promote integration and inclusion and clears employment-based visa backlogs, recaptures unused visas, reduces lengthy wait times, and eliminates per-country visa caps.[7] The Act also prioritizes Border Control, demands asylum and administration reform, and provides assistance to Central-American countries to address migration’s root causes.[8] The most poignant and expansive part of the Act is the pathways to permanent residence and citizenship section. Its deliverance on the campaign promise that the Biden Administration would create a path to citizenship, particularly for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals beneficiaries and others.[9] Outlined in Section 1103, the act allows any noncitizen who arrived in the US before age 18, regardless of the facts surround their initial entry could become a permanent resident, along with family if they: graduated from high school or obtained their GED certification; registered for the Selective Service; has either finished 2 years or more of a bachelor’s degree program or a postsecondary vocational program; or has served in the uniformed services for a minimum 2 years and did not receive an honorable discharge, or has earned income for at least three years and at least 75% of the total time they had held employment authorization, excepting such periods when they were enrolled in postsecondary education.[10] Those already holding DACA status and meeting the renewal requirements of that status could apply for permanent residence under a streamlined program almost immediately.[11] Granting these young people permanent residency opens up the pathway to citizenship as they will be eligible to apply for citizenship in five years or less in some cases. This campaign promise, however, is at risk of being broken.

On President Biden’s campaign website, his promise to “create a roadmap to citizenship for the nearly 11 million people who have been living in and strengthening our country for years”  and commitment to work as a zealous advocate for this legislation.[12] Those campaign promises are on the verge of being broken. The press, politicians have vilified the Act for being too expansive would burden an already complex system, faces herculean’ challenges that would not fulfill Biden’s quest for bipartisanship policy, and have been deemed a bill that could wreck on the democratic majority in 2022 midterm elections.[13] As of March 2021, the Biden Administration has allowed the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 to take a backseat to the American Dream and Promise Act of 2021 and the Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2021, both of which only grant conditional residency status and agricultural work visas. A far cry from the immigration reform promised on the campaign trail and etched in the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021. The Biden Administration’s decision to advocate for a piece-meal approach to immigration policy to court Republican legislators in the name of bipartisanship is a mistake.

The Biden Administration prioritizing bipartisanship over reform is a mistake because it continues to deprive Dreamers and others a viable path to citizenship, forcing them to remain in purgatory, and the lack of reform continues to destabilize communities of color; in particular Latinx communities which are where the United States sees the bulk of its immigrant population joining.[14] The Biden Administration’s preliminary decision to break its promise of being a zealous advocate for immigration reform and abandon the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 to die in Congress is likely to do more harm to the Democrat’s voting blocking, which heavily relies on communities of color to support the party’s candidates and campaigns. This decision is wiping out a new generation of potential voters, organizers, and leaders for change by depriving them of the stability and security that comes with permanent residency along with a clear path to citizenship. According to the Pew Research Center, by the year 2050, the United States’ racial and ethnic mix will look quite different from those of minority groups comprising the majority.[15] The 2019 U.S. Census Bureau, in releasing new data on race-ethnic population estimates in anticipation of the 2020 census, noted a shift in the racial demographics in the youth population within the last 10 years that illustrates the growth of minority communities that will see them comprising the majority in the future: with Latinx communities seeing the most growth.[16]  

Through the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, the Biden administration has an opportunity to set united states policy-making on a path towards the future and the diverse generations destined to inherit the nation. The Biden Administration needs to keep its promise in being a zealous advocate and creator of immigration reform on behalf of the communities raising the next generation. Its failure to do so is not an option.   

 

[1] The United States Government. (2021, January 25). Fact Sheet: President Biden Sends Immigration Bill to Congress as Part of His Commitment to Modernize our Immigration System. The White House. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/20/fact-sheet-president-biden-sends-immigration-bill-to-congress-as-part-of-his-commitment-to-modernize-our-immigration-system/.

[2] Lopez, G. (2021, January 20). Biden’s flurry of first-day executive actions, explained. Vox. https://www.vox.com/22240617/biden-executive-actions-orders-covid-19-immigration-racial-justice.

[3] The United States Government. (2021, January 21). Preserving and Fortifying Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The White House. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/preserving-and-fortifying-deferred-action-for-childhood-arrivals-daca/.

[4] The United States Government. (2021, January 21). Proclamation on Ending Discriminatory Bans on Entry to The United States. The White House. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/proclamation-ending-discriminatory-bans-on-entry-to-the-united-states/.

[5]Executive Order 13768: Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States. Federal Register. (2017, January 30). https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/01/30/2017-02102/enhancing-public-safety-in-the-interior-of-the-united-states.

[6] Miao, H. (2021, February 18). Democrats introduce sweeping immigration bill with 8-year pathway to citizenship. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/18/immigration-democrats-to-introduce-bill-with-pathway-to-citizenship.html.

[7] AILA – Senate Bill: U.S. Citizenship Act 2021. American Immigration Lawyers Association. https://www.aila.org/infonet/senate-bill-us-citizenship-act.

[8] Id. at pg. 19-25

[9] Id.

[10] Id.

[11] Id.

[12] The Biden Plan for Securing Our Values as a Nation of Immigrants. Joe Biden for President: Official Campaign Website. (2020, August 5). https://joebiden.com/immigration/.

[13] Rappaport, N. (2021, February 22). Biden’s immigration bill could wreck his majority, but Democrats have opportunity to do the right thing. TheHill. https://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/539762-bidens-immigration-bill-could-wreck-his-majority-but-democrats-have?rl=1.

[14] Vespa, J., Medina, L., & Armstrong, D. M. (2020, February). Demographic Turning Points for the United Sates… The United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2020/demo/p25-1144.pdf.

[15] Passel, J. S., & Cohn, D. V. (2020, May 30). U.S. Population Projections: 2005-2050. Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project. https://www.pewresearch.org/hispanic/2008/02/11/us-population-projections-2005-2050/.

[16] Frey, W. H. (2020, July 16). The nation is diversifying even faster than predicted, according to new census data. Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/research/new-census-data-shows-the-nation-is-diversifying-even-faster-than-predicted/.

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