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Essay on Immigration Law Reform

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Immigration reform has been making the news for many years - since Arizona passed SB1070 and Alabama passed HB56. In an attempt to curtail enactment of these laws, the United States Department of Justice, United States Department of Homeland Security, United States Department of State, and United States Department of Education filed complaints against both states. Additionally, there are over “865 bills and resolutions relating to immigrants and refugees in 45 state legislatures and the District of Columbia during the first quarter of 2012” (2012 Immigration-Related Laws, 2012) with the exception five states who were not in session at the time of reporting. Immigration laws in the United States started with the passage of the 1790 …show more content…

The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 delegated federal authority to state and local enforcement “to arrest, detain, investigate non-citizens for immigration, and collective evidence. In addition, transferred enforcement to the Department of Homeland Security after the 9/11 terrorist attacks” (as cited in Huntington, 2008, p. 799-800) on behalf of the federal government. Finally, the purpose of immigration laws is to determine status, rights, and obligations associated with alien residency, naturalization and/or citizenship (Immigration, n.d.). Furthermore, “immigration law serves as a gatekeeper for the nation's border, determining who may enter, how long they may stay, and when they must leave. Congress has complete authority over immigration. States have limited legislative authority regarding immigration” (as cited in Immigration, n.d).
Arizona v. United States, ___ U. S. ___ (2012) is a pending court case regarding Arizona’s immigration statute. In 2010, Arizona enacted to immigration reform laws after the federal government’s failure to enforce current immigration reform laws. Arizona state laws SB1070 and HB2162, “enjoined since July 2010 following a federal challenge, and currently under appeal to the United States

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