Expected Executive Action On Immigration Would Have Big Impact On Wisconsin

President Barack Obama is expected to announce an executive action this week to loosen immigration restrictions in a way that would lift the threat of deportation for thousands of undocumented immigrants in Wisconsin.

The change that would affect the greatest number of people would be an expansion of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals memorandum, which allows people who were brought to the U.S. illegally before they were 16 to remain in the country while they apply for citizenship. Attorney Jerome Grzeca said the change would give people who were adults when they immigrated the same right, which he said could affect 44 million immigrants nationally and 40,000 in Wisconsin.

He said that those immigrants are “individuals who have U.S. citizen children, who have jobs already or the potential for jobs, have a clean record and strong community ties.”

Grzeca added that the extension would not only give those immigrants a deferred status, but also would give them work authorization. He said the change has support from many businesses that are now required to verify their employees’ immigration status.

A spokesman for the Wisconsin Dairy Business Association, however, said the proposed changes don’t address the industry’s greatest need. John Holevoet said changing the current seasonal guest worker program to a year-round format is their biggest priority. He said that’s a change only Congress can make, but that so far they’ve made no serious effort to push through legislation on the issue.