Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara, on Thursday applauded passage of the Senate immigration bill, bipartisan legislation designed to address comprehensive immigration reform.
“I am pleased that the Senate passed bipartisan legislation to address comprehensive immigration reform,” Capps said. “Now is the time to fix our broken immigration system. The Senate vote today is great progress, but we still have a long way to go to make comprehensive immigration reform a reality. I call on my colleagues in the House to take meaningful action so that we can fix our broken immigration system, secure our borders, and bring hardworking families out of the shadows.”
Many of the goals Capps has long supported, including an earned path to citizenship and reforming and improving the current visa system, are included in the Senate legislation. The bill also recognizes the contributions of Dreamers and our agriculture workforce by providing them an expedited path to citizenship — critical to the Central Coast economy.
Finally, the bill also includes important components for comprehensive reform such as border security measures and employer verification. The legislation passed the Senate with strong bipartisan support with a vote of 68-32.
Capps has held numerous immigration roundtables throughout the district with a variety of stakeholders, including high-tech companies, faith leaders, workforce advocates and member of the agriculture industry to discuss the priorities of the Central Coast.
— Ashley Schapitl is press secretary for Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara.