HIRONO PRAISES DACA RENEWAL FOR UNDOCUMENTED CHILDREN

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Mazie K. Hirono applauded today’s announcement by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will begin accepting renewal requests for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for undocumented immigrant children.

“I commend the Department of Homeland Security for announcing the renewal of the DACA program for undocumented children. These millions of young people, including the estimated 4,000 in Hawaii who may be eligible, should be able to stay in the country they call home. The DACA program, however, is no substitute for comprehensive immigration reform. I urge House Republicans to take up the bipartisan Senate immigration bill passed more than a year ago.”

The U.S. Senate’s only immigrant, Hirono worked closely with colleagues to shape the Senate’s immigration reform bill in the Judiciary Committee and on the Senate floor, attaching 11 amendments to the bipartisan bill that passed last year. Since the bill’s passage, Hirono has worked to support immigration reform by introducing legislation such as the Investing IN States To Achieve Tuition Equity (IN-STATE) for DREAMers Act, which would make the University of Hawaii system eligible for federal funding as part of a new $750 million initiative to reward states like Hawaii that offer in-state tuition and need-based financial aid to qualified students regardless of immigration status.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has also provided the following resources to help individuals avoid immigration service scams: http://www.uscis.gov/avoid-scams.