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  • Blog

Does Pushing Undocumented Immigrants out of a State Help or Hurt the Local Economy?

This highlights a key policy choice states must make: is it better to have a growing economy with lower unemployment overall or marginally higher wages among a small group of workers?

Bad for Business: How Anti-Immigration Legislation Drains Budgets and Damages States’ Economies

Experience from states that have passed anti-immigration measures shows that the these laws can hinder prospects for economic growth, and the costs of implementing, defending, and enforcing these laws can cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

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  • Blog

Giving the Immigration Facts a Fighting Chance

December 14, 2015

As we move through the 2016 presidential election cycle, the issue of immigration will continue to be a central topic of the debate. The United States is at a tipping point after more than two...

  • Blog

Due Process, Enforcement Reform and Family Unification Top Sanders’ Platform

December 2, 2015

Senator Bernie Sanders, a contender for the Democratic nomination for President, recently released his updated and vastly expanded immigration platform. His initial plan was short on detail;...

  • Blog

Sanctuary Cities vs. Community Policing: A Resurging Debate

October 26, 2015

From Washington, D.C. to San Francisco to Raleigh, the debate over whether local law enforcement officers should be involved in enforcing federal immigration law is back at the fore. In the past...

  • Blog

How North Carolina’s Anti-Immigrant Bill Would Impact All State Residents

October 13, 2015

At a time when many states are adopting policies that harness immigrant’s social and economic contributions, elected officials in North Carolina are advancing anti-immigrant legislation that could...

  • Blog

Many States Recognize Benefit of Tuition Equity for Undocumented Students

October 9, 2015

This week, the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) released new information about how the top 15 states of residence for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)-eligible youth are either...

  • Blog

After Five Years, Are Challenges to SB 1070 Coming to an End?

September 17, 2015

A federal judge in Arizona issued a decision on September 4, which some say signals the end of years of legal challenges against Arizona’s SB 1070 law. For the most part, the law has been gutted,...

  • Blog

Welcoming Week Honors Immigrant Contributions and Builds Bridges in Local Communities

September 14, 2015

The heated political rhetoric so far in the 2016 presidential campaign has often been at the expense of immigrants. And the policy solutions put forth by some candidates have centered around...

  • Blog

States Continue to Expand Access to Driver’s Licenses for Undocumented Residents

August 19, 2015

Currently, ten states and the District of Columbia offer driver’s licenses to undocumented residents of their states who can meet certain requirements. Two additional states, Hawaii and Delaware,...

  • Blog

Annual Review of State-Level Immigration Policy Still Trending Pro-Immigrant

August 11, 2015

After long legal battles over punitive, state anti-immigration laws like Arizona’s SB1070 and Alabama’s HB56, state governments learned the limits on what types of immigration policies they can...

  • Blog

Will Governor Christie ‘Tell It Like It Is’ on Immigration?

July 1, 2015

Republican Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey became the 14th candidate to announce his candidacy for the GOP presidential nomination. He’s highlighting his reputation as a straight-talking...

  • Blog

The Department of Justice Sues California Over Its ‘Sanctuary’ Policies

March 7, 2018

A lawsuit challenging several California laws filed Tuesday is the U.S. Justice Department’s latest salvo in the ongoing policy and legal battle regarding “sanctuary” policies. The complaint,...

  • Advocacy

Assumption of Risk: Legal Liabilities for Local Governments that Choose to Enforce Federal Immigration Laws

March 7, 2018
This policy document describes the legal liabilities local governments face when they honor ICE requests, known as “detainers,” to hold individuals past the completion of their criminal custody until immigration agents take them into administrative custody.
  • Blog

Lawmakers Are Blaming Undocumented Immigrants for the Opioid Epidemic

February 15, 2018

The scapegoating of immigrants for crime in the United States was on full display at a February 15 hearing of the House Judiciary Committee. The hearing was devoted to exploring the ways in which...

  • Blog

The Federal Government Is Using Immigration Raids as Retaliation Against California

February 8, 2018

When agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided 77 businesses throughout northern California at the end of January and beginning of February, they were doing more than...

  • Blog

ICE Issues Guidance on Enforcement at Courthouses

February 7, 2018

After a significant increase in arrests outside of courthouses in 2017, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has finally released new guidance that officially gives its agents permission to...

  • Blog

Mapping the Local Response to Aggressive Immigration Enforcement

February 2, 2018

States, localities, and communities continue to hold their ground against the aggressive and punitive immigration enforcement agenda touted by President Trump and his administration. Compared to a...

  • Blog

The State Immigration Laws You Should Know About

January 24, 2018

In the course of the first year under the Trump administration, states and localities have increasingly pursued immigration policies that serve the best interests of their own communities. While...

  • Press Release

Immigration Justice Campaign and Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network Announce New Partnership

January 12, 2018
The Immigration Justice Campaign (Justice Campaign), a joint initiative between the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the American Immigration Council (Council), and the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network (RMIAN), located in Westminster, Colorado, announce their partnership to increase pro bono representation for individuals in immigration detention in Colorado.
  • Blog

‘Sanctuary’ Policies Do Not Foster Crime, Research Shows

December 18, 2017

During its first ten months in office, the Trump administration has made aggressive immigration enforcement a priority. One of the areas in which this approach was crystalized was around so-called...

  • Blog

Where Doug Jones Stands on Immigration Policy

December 13, 2017

Doug Jones, a former Democratic prosecutor once considered a longshot in Republican-majority Alabama, narrowly won the state’s Senate race Tuesday evening in what may ultimately prove to be a...

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