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How are immigrants and refugees impacted by the impasse?

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Illinois

* You will recall that yesterday Attorney General Lisa Madigan urged Gov. Bruce Rauner to do three things “to protect all Illinois residents from the harm caused by the executive actions” of President Trump…

* Refuse to enter into any agreement that would use Illinois law enforcement authorities as federal immigration officers. Deputizing Illinois law enforcement as immigration officers would not only divert already scarce resources away from public safety efforts and raise serious legal questions, but also undermine the values on which the country was built.

* Strengthen the work performed by the Bureau of Refugee and Immigrant Services within the Illinois Department of Human Services, which assists immigrants and refugees settling in Illinois through training, health screening, citizenship classes and other services. From October 1, 2016 through January, 31, 2017, 1,001 refugees arrived in Illinois.

* Commit to strong enforcement of Illinois’ anti-discrimination laws and bolster efforts to fight hate crimes against all residents across the state, including immigrants and refugees. Illinois’ hate crime statute provides both criminal and civil protections to those who have experienced hate-based harassment, injury and property damage.

* The governor’s office responded after I’d left the office…

The attorney general’s press release is detached from reality and is clearly an attempt to distract from her efforts to stop the pay of state employees and force a crisis in Illinois. The governor has no intention of deputizing the Illinois State Police as immigration officers, has signed legislation to strengthen Illinois’ hate crime statute, and supported the resettlement of thousands of refugees over the last two years.

Well, that’s good to know. State cops have better things to do with their time, particularly in the Chicago area.

* But Sen. Toi Hutchinson (D-Olympia Fields) sent me an e-mail not long ago saying she’d asked staff about the impact that the impasse has had on services for immigrants and refugees. She forwarded me their reply…

Due to the budget impasse and the Administration’s decision to not issue certain contracts, the following programs did not receive funding in FY 16: Welcoming Centers, Immigrant Integration Services, and Refugee Social Services. This equates to $7.7 million that was issued in FY 15, but not in FY 16. These programs were funded in FY 17 due to the Stop Gap Budget, but providers endured a whole year without funding, and services were cut that help immigrants and refugees successfully integrate into the State and become legal citizens.

The stop gap, of course, has now expired.

“So,” Hutchinson wrote, “for all the folks who want to make sure that we cut, here’s one more example of things that got cut. This needs to end.”

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 2:27 pm

Comments

===The governor has no intention of deputizing the Illinois State Police as immigration officers, has signed legislation to strengthen Illinois’ hate crime statute, and supported the resettlement of thousands of refugees over the last two years.===

Good to know. Also, thanks Governor Rauner for changing your mind about re-settling refugees in Illinois. It’s one broken promise you can particularly proud of.

Comment by 47th Ward Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 2:35 pm
With no full-year budget since Rauner took office, when anyone calls for “cuts,” what’s the baseline they’re starting from? Cut from FY14?

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 2:57 pm
“The attorney general’s press release is detached from reality and is clearly an attempt to distract from her efforts to stop the pay of state employees and force a crisis in Illinois”

Ah yes, we all know only one elected official is allowed to force a crisis.

Comment by illini97 Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:11 pm
We have 11 billion problems… do we need to be in the health screening etc business for immigrants ?

Comment by the Cardinal Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 3:24 pm
–The governor has no intention of deputizing the Illinois State Police as immigration officers, –

That’s a marker. Let’s see if he sticks to it if the Trump administration turns up the heat.

–supported the resettlement of thousands of refugees over the last two years.–

In what ways? I don’t think pulling the no-pay, slow-pay grift on the likes of Catholic Charities and Lutheran Socials Services counts as being supportive.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 5:12 pm
He is also proposing cuts to immigrants with green cards already receiving services in the Community Care Program.

Comment by CCP Hostage Tuesday, Feb 7, 17 @ 8:05 pm