Members of Colorado’s national delegation urge reform for migrant work authorization

DENVER (KDVR) — U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet and 18 other senators are urging President Joe Biden to provide protection and pathways to residency or citizenship for undocumented migrants and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients throughout the states.

The senators’ letter comes after immigration advocates, including Bennet, U.S. Reps. Joe Neguse, Brittany Pettersen, Yadira Caraveo, Diana DeGette and Jason Crow, alongside U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper, have repeatedly called for the president to use his executive authority to expand work permits and protect migrants from deportation.

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Some politicians have expressed a desire to deport all undocumented migrants in the U.S.

“Alternatively, streamlining pathways for undocumented immigrants with no criminal history and deep ties to the United States to obtain parole or a lawful immigration status would provide stability to their families, require them to pay taxes, and to check in with the U.S. government regularly,” wrote the senators.

According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were around 20,300 people in Colorado in 2023 “marginally” attached to the workforce. The BLS explained that these people are “not working, but indicate that they would like to work, are available to work, and have looked for work at some time during the past 12 months.”

“In 2019 alone, undocumented immigrants contributed an estimated $9.7 billion in federal and state taxes and over $11 billion in social security contributions,” the senators wrote. “Over 1.1 million U.S. citizens are married to an undocumented immigrant, and roughly 4.9 million U.S. citizen children have at least one undocumented parent.”

In Denver, migrants have continued to arrive and be supported by the city for a period. As of March 28, there are 712 migrants in city shelters, according to the city’s dashboard, which updates daily. In total, the city has supported 40,066 migrants at a cost of more than $62 million.

The city has also reported assisting nearly 1,400 people in applying for work authorization since February.

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“Protect and Unify American Families,” the senators urged in their letter, pointing to the over 1.1 million undocumented spouses in the US with an average time of 16 years living in the country.

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“Yet, these families live in fear that they may be separated from their loved one due to deportation, and often forgo much-needed health care and decline to report crimes due to their immigration status. The fear of deportation has also been associated with psychological stress linked to an increased risk of chronic disease for children with an undocumented family member,” the letter continued.

The senators noted that green card applications take a median of 42.4 months to complete and that DACA holders are facing hurdles like needing to travel to a US consulate to change their immigration status, and “struggle to obtain an appointment during the period of advanced parole granted by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.”

In a letter sent last week by Colorado representatives to USCIS, the lawmakers requested an investigation into the delays for employment authorization renewals and swift implementation of system reforms.

“Each of our offices have received numerous requests from constituents that have been unable to renew their employment authorizations in a timely manner, leading to many losing their employment as a result of these delays,” wrote Bennet, Neguse, and the lawmakers. “The over 13,000 Dreamers located throughout Colorado are actively contributing to our economy and nation every day and should be able to renew their employment authorizations in a timely manner.”

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