Giving Unauthorized Immigrants Resident Status in Exchange for Service in the Military (H.R. 60)
Do you support or oppose this bill?
What is H.R. 60?
(Updated October 21, 2020)
This bill — known as the ENLIST Act — would permit unauthorized immigrants who entered the United States before turning 15 years old to join the military. If, after completing their service, those immigrants were honorably discharged, they could then apply for a green card. Securing a green card means they can stay in the U.S. In order to meet enlistment requirements to serve their time in the armed forces, applicants must speak English, pass a background check, and have earned a high school diploma.
This opportunity would only be available to unauthorized immigrants who arrived in the U.S. before December 31, 2012. More recent arrivals would not qualify, even if they had not turned 15 when they entered the country. The criteria for arrival and time spent in the U.S. are essentially the same as the DREAM Act, another immigration reform initiative that aims to give unauthorized immigrants a path to permanent residency.
The bill's full title is the Encourage New Legalized Immigrants to Start Training Act.
Argument in favor
Allows unauthorized immigrants to prove American allegiance through military service, while offering a solid path to permanent resident status.
Argument opposed
This bill allows people who are here illegally to skirt the law while giving them the benefits that come with serving the nation in the armed forces.
Impact
Eligible unauthorized immigrants; their families; the U.S. armed forces; and the Secretary of the Dept. of Homeland Security.
Cost of H.R. 60
A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.
Additional Info
In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Jeff Denham (R-CA) introduced this bill to allow qualified unauthorized immigrants to gain legal status through military service:
"There is no greater act of patriotism than serving your country in the armed forces, and my ENLIST Act would allow young immigrants to earn legal status in order to stay in the country they love. Immigrants have honorably served alongside us in the armed forces for decades, and this would be a positive step forward for our nation as we seek a collective solution to this issue."
"If they take that oath of office, illegal aliens into our military have to misrepresent themselves in order to be accepted into the military, so that's fraud... And this bill called the "Enlist Act" would reward them for doing so, for defrauding the Department of Defense and putting on the uniform and at least in theory defending America... We don't ride around throwing citizenship like you do M&M's or Tootsie Rolls or whatever it is we're tossing out in our parades."
This legislation currently has the support of 203 bipartisan cosponsors in the House, including 106 Democrats and 97 Republicans.
Media:
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Sponsoring Rep. Jeff Denham (R-CA) Press Release
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Los Angeles Times
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McClatchy
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ThinkProgress (Previous Version)
Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: Flickr user NYC Marines)
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