Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act

Today, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) reintroduced her Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act. As her press release indicates, the act “reduces the current 180-day waiting period for work authorization eligibility to 30 days, allowing an asylum seeker to apply for authorization as soon as the asylum claim is filed.” Her goal is to allow asylum seekers “to gain work more quickly, become self-sufficient through the process of establishing roots in their new community, and contribute to our economy.”

-KitJ