U.S. Rep. Castor Votes to Honor our Nation's Values and Pass American Dream and Promise Act

Press Release

Today, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) continued her work championing neighbors who seek the American Dream through passage of H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act, in the U.S. House. U.S. Rep. Castor is an original cosponsor of the legislation that offers a tough but fair pathway to citizenship for neighbors who meet the standards of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) -- up to 2.5 million immigrants, many who know no other country but the United States.

"Tampa's story is the American Dream -- a strong foundation built upon with the hard work and talents of many people who came from other places. Today, my Democratic colleagues and I honor our values and immigrant roots by passing the American Dream and Promise Act," U.S. Rep. Castor said.

"The legislation provides a tough, but fair, pathway to citizenship for children brought to America by their parents at a young age -- children who know no other country but America," U.S. Rep. Castor continued. "Our neighbors across Tampa Bay support comprehensive immigration reform because it is morally correct and because there are economic and workforce benefits for everyone. In Florida, we have invested in the education of DREAMers -- and now the DREAMers intend to give back to America. Let's give them that opportunity."

The State of Florida's economy benefits in many ways:

Immigrants eligible for the American Dream and Promise Act own 15,800 homes in Florida and pay $179.7 million in annual mortgage payments.
Eligible immigrants and their households contribute almost $1.1 billion in federal taxes and $469.1 million in state and local taxes each year.
Annually, these households generate $5 billion in spending power.
Across the country, individuals eligible for protection under the American Dream and Promise Act and their families contribute $75.4 Billion in spending power and $27.1 billion in taxes each year.

"We must stand up for our neighbors as the Trump administration seeks to deport DREAMers and strip work authorizations from several groups of immigrants with TPS who call America home and have built lives here over decades," said U.S. Rep. Castor. "I am thrilled that the Democratic-led Congress will honor the values of hard work and the American Dream through adoption of the American Dream and Promise Act, particularly children brought to America by their parents at a young age."

U.S. Rep. Castor has been a champion for her neighbors seeking a better life in America. She has worked to unite Tampa Bay behind our DREAMers and neighbors protected under TPS. She has held town halls, public meetings and roundtables focused on immigration and protecting DREAMers where she brought together legal experts and community resources, and hundreds came out to learn and support the success of these students. She has awarded several of her neighbors with the "American Dream Award", recognizing them for their outstanding accomplishments after immigrating to America and Tampa in the areas of business, innovation, law, education and health care, and have made remarkable contributions to our community.

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