LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION memorializing the United States Congress to pass
and the President to sign a comprehensive immigration reform bill in
2014

WHEREAS, Immigrants often struggle to thrive in this country and may
face significant hurdles when pursuing U.S. citizenship; and
WHEREAS, Many undocumented immigrants are employed by employers that
violate federal and state labor laws, which can lead to unpaid or
subminimum wages, lack of overtime pay, and poor or unsafe working
conditions; and
WHEREAS, Many undocumented immigrants become victims of fraudulent
immigration services; and
WHEREAS, Higher education is often impossible for undocumented immi-
grant youth to afford because their undocumented status makes them inel-
igible for many forms of financial aid; and
WHEREAS, 4.5 million U.S. citizen children with at least one undocu-
mented parent are at risk of being separated from that parent; and
WHEREAS, Congress has for many years considered legislation to address
the needs of immigrant families; and
WHEREAS, The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors
("DREAM") Act, introduced for the first time in 2001, would allow states
to provide higher education benefits and a pathway to citizenship for
eligible undocumented immigrant youth; and
WHEREAS, Attracting the Best and Brightest Act was introduced in
Congress in 2012 to grant visas for immigrants who receive advanced
degrees in the science, technology, engineering or mathematics fields;
and
WHEREAS, The Protect our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation
(POWER) Act, introduced in Congress in 2011, sought to expand the U-visa
program to give immigrant victims of labor law violations the opportu-
nity to apply for legal status if they participated in the investigation
of their employer; and
WHEREAS, In January 2013, a group of U.S. Senators and President
Barack Obama proposed comprehensive immigration reform frameworks to
address the needs of immigrants living in the United States; and
WHEREAS, These proposals seek to establish a pathway to citizenship
for undocumented immigrants; end the unlawful hiring of undocumented
workers; provide visas for immigrants who receive advanced degrees in
the science, technology, engineering or mathematics fields; provide
incentives to undocumented youth who want to pursue higher education;
and promote family unification; and
WHEREAS, An effective comprehensive immigration reform bill should
also modify immigration court proceedings to provide judges increased
discretion and provide defendants with a right to counsel, recognize and
prevent the crime of immigration service provider fraud, and preserve
family unity by eliminating family numerical visa categories; and
WHEREAS, None of these or other significant immigration reform meas-
ures have been enacted into law; and
WHEREAS, Enactment of comprehensive immigration reform could benefit
the 475,000 undocumented immigrants in the New York State's labor force,
the 400,000 undocumented children in New York State's public schools,
and thousands of U.S. citizen children who have at least one parent who
is an undocumented immigrant; and
WHEREAS, In 2011, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 27.3% of the
State's workforce was comprised of immigrants; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Congress of the United States be and hereby is
respectfully memorialized by this Legislative Body to pass and the Pres-

ident to sign a comprehensive immigration reform bill in 2014; and be it
further
RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to the President of the Senate of the United States, the Speaker
of the House of Representatives, and to each member of the Congress of
the United States from the State of New York.