SEATTLE -- The Biden administration has released a slimmed-down spending proposal that includes $100 billion for immigration reform.

The latest Build Back Better plan added up to about $1.75 trillion, excluding immigration funds, because the administration is waiting to hear if the Senate parliamentarian agrees it can be included in the budget reconciliation process.

Alizeh Bhojani, immigration policy manager for OneAmerica, a Washington state-based immigration advocacy group, is glad the Biden administration has recognized immigration as a priority, but is disappointed the latest proposal does not include a pathway to citizenship.

"What we're hearing loudly and clearly from our communities is that we need permanent protections," Bhojani asserted. "Particularly since immigrants are the ones who are the front-line workers, were out in the field, kept this country going through a pandemic."

The Biden administration said the $100 billion in the current budget framework would be used to reduce backlogs in the immigration asylum system and expand legal representation at the border. Republicans say immigration reform needs to address larger issues at the border, which they describe as in crisis.

Bhojani pointed out the Senate parliamentarian has been a source of frustration, twice ruling pathways to citizenship for some people should not be included in the budget reconciliation package because its policy impact outweighs the budget impact.

Bhojani emphasized OneAmerica has spoken with grassroots leaders in the state about these setbacks.

"The first and only thing we hear is, 'How is an unelected official obstructing the legislative process like this?'" Bhojani remarked.

States are limited in how they can support undocumented immigrants, but Bhojani acknowledged Washington state has been able to support folks with COVID-19 aid.

"When you have a federal government that is hostile to communities, states have had to do a lot of heavy lifting," Bhojani contended. "So for example, the Washington Immigrant Relief Fund was a huge victory for getting cash support to undocumented workers when federal relief explicitly excluded them."

She noted the Senate can overrule or ignore the Senate parliamentarian. In the meantime, she stressed OneAmerica will continue its efforts to add the citizenship pathway to the budget reconciliation package.

Protests are planned this Saturday throughout Arizona as organizers mobilize a "nationwide day of defiance" against what they're calling the Trump administration's attacks on civil rights, working families, public education and health care. The "No Kings" protests follow a week of immigration sweeps throughout the country, including in Arizona, that have sparked public outrage against President Donald Trump's mass deportation agenda and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This week, the president said people can expect additional ICE raids and warned protestors they can expect to be met with "equal or greater force."

But Leah Greenberg, co-executive director of the advocacy organization Indivisible, said there is power in collective action.

"This is coming at a moment when they are illegally sending troops into Los Angeles, intentionally attempting to escalate in order to justify broader crackdowns on dissent that makes it that so much more important for all of us collectively to be in solidarity with our immigrants friends and neighbors, with basic American values," she explained.

The widespread movement will run counter to Trump's projected multi-million-dollar birthday military parade happening in Washington, D.C., on Saturday. More than 100 pro-democracy groups are backing the nationwide No Kings events. To find where protests are happening visit no-kings-dot-org.

Greenberg argued that the Trump administration is actively attempting to chill dissent and create consequences for those who speak out, and claimed the administration is trying to create a false sense of inevitability.

"Their power, fundamentally, is dependent on all of us actually agreeing, actually obeying. If we collectively organize, if we collectively expose that lie for what it is - then we are are going to be in a completely different position and they are not going to be able to get away with the things they are trying to do," she continued.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, reminded people the power of the United States' government is derived from those it represents.

"Not from one man, not from one party, not from a crown," she contended. "That is what was the most important focus of the framers. That is why they shed lots of blood, sweat and tears to actually create this country, the first 13 colonies."

Immigrant rights groups have said they are considering legal action to restore a Texas law allowing in-state tuition rates for undocumented college students.

The move comes after the Department of Justice sued Texas and within hours, state officials complied without a fight. According to the U.S. attorney general, federal law prohibits schools from providing benefits to undocumented students not provided to U.S. citizens.

Kelly Cobb, partner and business immigration attorney at the Jackson Walker Law Firm in Houston, said the law had been on the books since 2001.

"They get the same residence requirement as someone that was born here," Cobb pointed out. "I think it's more of a policy argument. These were children brought here and why should they be penalized and have to pay higher tuition?"

Texas was the first state to enact such a law to help young adults without legal status. Conservative legislators have tried to repeal the law for years. Cobb noted if an appeal is filed, a judge could allow the law to remain in effect through the appeals process.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton took partial credit for the legislation being overturned. The lawsuit was filed just days after the end of the legislative session, where a bill to repeal the law stalled after passing out of a Senate committee. According to the American Immigration Council, the state will lose an estimated $460 million a year in wages if the ban remains in effect.

"It's going to have a financial impact on the universities," Cobb explained. "Also, they're going to college so they are going to come out professionals with degrees, who should be earning more. So, they will make money; they will make jobs."

The move is part of the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. Currently, 24 states allow undocumented students to pay in-state tuition.

In response to increasing federal threats to immigrant communities, including cuts to food assistance and deportations, a coalition of more than 100 community organizations is urging Oregon's lawmakers to pass the 2025 Immigrant Justice Package.

It includes five bills which would provide Oregon's immigrant families access to things like food and housing assistance, disaster relief and legal representation.

Martha Sonato, president of the Oregon Worker Relief Coalition, said the legislation will benefit all Oregonians.

"What community has put forward is a package of very impactful, cost saving investments," Sonato explained. "These are all basic rights that really help families stay together and succeed."

Opponents to some of the measures argued it is unfair to ask legal residents to fund benefits for people in the country illegally. Supporters, however, countered undocumented Oregonians contribute more than $350 million annually in state and local taxes, making them deserving of the benefits.

From the package, Sonato highlighted a bill to create a Farmworker Disaster Relief Fund. She noted Oregon farmworkers, more than 60% of whom are immigrants, face lost wages due to extreme weather like heat waves and wildfires.

"Farmworker Disaster Relief would really help make sure that farmworkers are able to take care of themselves and their families, just like they're taking care of all of us," Sonato emphasized.

Another bill in the package, Food for All Oregonians, would provide food benefits to all children in the state, regardless of their immigration status. The measures also seek funding to renew a legal aid program for immigrants, which Sonato argued is crucial in today's climate.

"This policy ensures that folks have due process by providing legal representation to immigrants that are seeking to adjust their status and facing deportation," Sonato added.

Sonato stressed investments in immigrant communities now will save the state money in emergency food, housing, and medical resources down the road.


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