« financial aid for school

financial aid for woman »

DREAM Act

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search

Background

Alien minors in the United States can only obtain permanent status through their parents; there is no independent method to accomplish this. If a child is brought into the country without immigration visas there is no method for becoming a documented resident. Returning to their country of birth would not guarantee a path to documented status. Attempts to return are often difficult, with roadblocks such as ten year bans on re-entering the U.S.

Members of Congress have introduced several forms of this bill in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Members in the House have not brought the bill to a floor vote as a stand-alone bill; Senators debated a version of the DREAM Act S.2205 on October 24, 2007. The bill, which required 60 votes to gain cloture, failed on a 52-44 vote, 8 votes short of overcoming a filibuster by senators opposed to the bill.

The United States military faced challenges in enlistment, which in 2005 were described as a "crisis" by some. Immigrants who do not have a "green card" are not technically allowed to enlist (although unlawful exceptions are sometimes made due to enlistment shortfalls). Several senior officials at the Department of Defense have spoken in favor of promising legal status to members of the military as a means of boosting recruitment.

Description

According to the 2009 version of the senate bill, DREAM Act beneficiaries must:

• Have proof of having arrived in the United States before age 16.
• Have proof of residence in the United States for a least five consecutive years since their date of arrival, compliance with Selective Service.
• Be between the ages of 12 and 35 at the time of bill enactment.
• Have graduated from an American high school or obtained a GED.
• Be of "good moral character"

During the first six years, the immigrant would be granted "conditional" status, and would be required to graduate from a two-year community college or complete at least two years towards a 4-year degree, or serve two years in the U.S. military. After the six year period, an immigrant who met at least one of these three conditions would be eligible to apply for legal permanent resident status. During this six year conditional period, immigrants would not be eligible for federal higher education grants such as Pell grants, but they would be able to apply for student loans and work study.

If the immigrant did not meet the educational or military service requirement within the six year time period, their temporary residence would be revoked and they would be removable. They a