Caroleene Dobson announced on Monday that if elected she will push for legislation requiring the federal government to provide specific information to state and local officials whenever migrants, illegal immigrants, or other foreign nationals are placed in communities.
Dobson, a Republican, is running against Shomari Figures, a Democrat, in the general election for Alabama’s second congressional district.
Among the information required will be the number of individuals, their nations of origin, their sponsors, any known criminal records, their estimated length of stay and projected unreimbursed costs to state and local taxpayers.
“Our government is supposed to be open and transparent and make taxpayers feel safe and secure, but the current federal program of forcing migrants into local communities has been closed and opaque and makes taxpayers feel unsafe and less secure,” Dobson said. “With migrants, illegal immigrants, and others flooding our public school classrooms, emergency rooms, and other public facilities, a skyrocketing percentage of state and local taxpayer dollars are being spent on non-citizens who, traditionally, pay zero taxes themselves.”
Dobson said her proposal was prompted by the Cuba-Haiti-Nicaragua-Venezuela (CHNV) Parole Program which was created and implemented by the Biden-Harris administration.
The program was created without congressional authorization and has allowed 530,000 migrants to gain entry to the United States under unsanctioned “paroles” granted by President Joe Biden. Though the administration recently announced it was not extending paroles, parolees may apply for immigrant status or seek a pathway to citizenship as a result of a program that was created with questionable legality and no input from Congress.
“The federal government placed large numbers of migrants into communities in the Second Congressional District and across Alabama in the dark of night without preparation or even the courtesy of notifying local officials,” Dobson said. “People often fear the unexpected and become suspicious when important information is purposely withheld, so the current discord and worry in many of our communities could have been easily avoided with openness, honesty, and a bit of advance notice from the federal officials.”
Though the CHNV program is ending, Dobson noted that her legislation will require disclosure of essential information if similar shadowy efforts are implemented in the future or if the federal government, its Department of Homeland Security or other agencies seek to place large numbers of migrants, illegal immigrants or other non-citizens into communities without first alerting state and local officials.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email caleb.taylor@1819News.com.
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