PLAINSBORO, NJ, August 1, 2022 — With the courts likely to declare the 10-year-old, Obama-era DACA 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.”