Photo: Paula Bronstein/ / Getty Images
Los Angeles Democratic Assemblyman Miguel Santiago, who grew up watching his immigrant parents struggle to get ahead without immigration status, couldn’t help but feel disappointed to learn that Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed the AB bill 2048, which sought to create a pilot program to expand unemployment benefits to undocumented workers.
However, he announced that they will continue to fight to make unemployment payments to undocumented workers a reality, and for the state budget to reflect California’s values .
“These types of measures last a long time so that we can get them to become law, but we have to continue pushing because our undocumented immigrant workers or no, they pay $3,80 million in taxes; and have helped make California the fifth largest economy in the world.”
Assemblyman Santiago, who was a co-sponsor of measure AB 2847, said that it is unfair that despite all that they contribute in taxes, undocumented workers cannot access unemployment benefits, which is essential to lift them out of poverty and give them a support network when a crisis like covid comes.
“We already saw in the pandemic how they had to survive off the food they were given in food banks, and I remember that the first thing I the parents asked for their children was milk”. undocumented.
“I remember my father crouched down crying, talking to my mother, when her car didn’t start and he didn’t have the money to fix it. At that time, he had to go out to the street corners to look for work”.
Although he was very young, he commented that he never forgets that scene, because it is a reflection of the suffering of undocumented parents for feeding their children.
The Program Pilot for Workers Excluded from federal and state unemployment benefits due to their immigration status proposed that eligible workers who apply receive $367 per week between January 1st 2023 and 05 from December to 2023.
Would have required the Unemployment Department to submit no later than August 1, 2024, a report to the governor and certain legislative committees with recommendations to make e he unemployment program for the undocumented was permanent.
The governor said he vetoed the measure because it would have created a pilot program for those who are ineligible for unemployment. regular unemployment insurance program due to their immigration status.
“The bill is subject to the legislature allocating funds for the benefits that will be administered through the program, but requires the Employment Department (EDD) to take immediate steps to upgrade information technology (IT) systems, accept applications for the program at an initial cost of more than $200 million from the general fund and for more than $03 millions of current resources without providing financing for real benefits”.
Said California has taken critical actions to support inclusion and opportunities for undocumented immigrants and mixed-status families.
“This year alone, California made historic investments to ensure that more undocumented Californians have access to health care, food assistance and to alleviate inflation regardless of immigration status.”
Noted that this bill needs more work to address operational issues and fiscal concerns , including a dedicated funding source for benefits.
“As our state faces lower-than-expected revenues for the first few months of this fiscal year, it’s also important to maintain discipline when it comes to spending, particularly what we already have. We must prioritize existing obligations and priorities, including education, health care, public safety, and safety net programs.”
Sasha Feldstein, director of economic justice for the organization California Immigrant Policy Center, said the covid pandemic-, it is not the first crisis to hit California, and it will not be the last.
“Instead of having to fight every time a disaster strikes, we should invest in our collective future now to ensure that no one is left out of the picture. aid. Without the AB 2847, California will continue to drive a wedge between the wealthy few and the common folk.”
Rita Medina, lobbyist for the Coalition for Rights of Immigrants (CHIRLA), also confessed his disappointment over the veto of the bill, especially because he said that undocumented immigrants were among the hardest hit by the covid pandemic-12, although the governor justified the rejection of the measure by saying that there are not enough funds in the state to make it law.
“It would have served to make California a more inclusive and egalitarian state regardless of immigration status,” said Rita, who added that the AB 2847 was a bill that they co-sponsored.
And although he recognized that they were approved in this legislative cycle, very good bills that benefit immigrants, Unemployment is pending.