Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL) and Veronica Escobar (D-TX) teamed up to introduce the first immigration proposal during this session of Congress on Tuesday to combine legal status for the undocumented with more money for border security.

Salazar, who represents part of Miami, and Escobar, who represents the border community of El Paso, have been working on the legislation for six months. The Dignity Act aims to create a pathway to citizenship for "Dreamers," undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. The 500-page bill would create a program to allow undocumented immigrants to live and work in the U.S. legally if they pay restitution. It would also overhaul how asylum claims are processed by establishing “humanitarian campuses” on the U.S. border and processing them in 60 days.

WHO'S IN, WHO'S OUT, AND WHO'S STILL WAITING TO ANNOUNCE FOR SENATE IN 2024

The legislation would allow those already in the U.S. with a clean record to have “dignity status.” They would have to pay $5,000 over seven years. Their payroll taxes would drop from 7% to 1.5%, so they would not be charged with contributing to U.S. programs for which they are not eligible. Under the new status, they would also be responsible for paying for their own healthcare. The funds raised through dignity status would go toward border security, while the 1.5% tax would go toward retraining and reeducating American workers, an effort to counter claims that immigrants are taking U.S. jobs.

The proposal comes 10 years after the Senate passed a bipartisan comprehensive immigration package, but never received a vote in the House, which was controlled by Republicans. The bill is the first since then that includes a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and alters legal immigration processes that have prevented many from being able to acquire a visa in the past. Salazar and Escobar unveiled their legislation on Tuesday with the support of Reps. Kathy Manning (D-NC), Hillary Scholten (D-MI), Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon (R-PR), and Mike Lawler (R-NY).

“This is a historical moment. Two members of Congress — one Democrat, one Republican — decided to work on one of the most divisive topics in this country: immigration. Who wants to do that? Very few people,” Salazar said at a press conference on Tuesday.

Salazar introduced a version of The Dignity Act in 2021 on her own, but it didn’t move through the lower chamber. House Republicans passed a sweeping border security bill along party lines earlier this month, but it won’t go anywhere in the Democrat-controlled Senate. The White House said President Joe Biden would veto the bill.

While Congress is similarly split along party lines in the same way it was in 2013, there’s increasing pressure for lawmakers to act, with a federal judge in Texas looking likely to strike down protections for "Dreamers" in the near future.

GRAEME JENNINGS

Escobar, who represents a key border town, said she believes this time could be different from the 2013 immigration effort. She said on a flight home from a bicameral CODEL trip to Mexico City in March that she and Salazar discussed their bill with Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Mike Lee (R-UT), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ).

“On the flight home, Rep. Salazar and I laid out the outline of the bill. There was serious interest,” Escobar said in response to a question from the Washington Examiner. “Sen. Coons and I have maintained ongoing conversations around it. I have flagged for Sen. Cornyn on a number of occasions that we were almost done.”

“We are sharing text, and it can’t just be the House working on this. We need our Senate partners, Republicans and Democrats, to see the good in what we are trying to accomplish,” Escobar added.

Sens. Cornyn, Murphy, and Coons have been working with Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Sinema on an immigration framework they released in December. Coons applauded the release of the bipartisan bill in the House, calling it an important step forward.

“Our immigration system is deeply broken and congressional action is long overdue,” Coons said in a statement released shortly after the unveiling of the bill. “I look forward to working with my colleagues to introduce legislation in the Senate that can move us forward.”

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), who has been critical of the Biden administration’s border policies, also appeared to be supportive of Escobar and Salazar’s legislation.

“Salazar and Escobar’s legislation presents another opportunity to help us find lasting non partisan solutions that secure the border, keep Arizona communities safe, and ensure the fair and humane treatment of migrants,” Sinema said in a statement provided to the Washington Examiner. 

Despite the bipartisan collaboration and early praise of the bill, it is likely to face an uphill battle in a divided Congress ahead of a major election year, with Republicans often objecting to legalizing undocumented immigration and Democrats wary of increasing funding for border security. Co-sponsors of the bill emphasized that it is not perfect and continue to call on others to help collaborate.

“This bill is not perfect. The minute it is released, we will hear from the Left and Right about all the things it does and all things it lacks and leaves undone,” Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-MI) said Tuesday. “But we cannot let the illusion of a perfect bill prevent us from doing what is right.”

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Salazar also addressed skeptics within the Republican ranks who often object to proposals that include a pathway to citizenship, calling it amnesty.

“I don’t want anyone to confuse amnesty with dignity. This is not amnesty. Amnesty is what the undocumented have right now and have had for 30 years,” she said Tuesday.