House passes bill offering a path to citizenship for 'DREAMers'

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last updated 5 June 2019

With a vote of 237-187, the House on Tuesday passed the American Dream and Promise Act of 2019, which offers a path to citizenship for more than two million undocumented immigrants, including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients.

Under the measure, DACA recipients — also known as "DREAMers" — meeting certain requirements would receive 10 years of legal resident status. After finishing two years of military service or higher education or working for three years, they would be granted permanent green cards. The bill also protects immigrants who have temporary protected status or deferred enforced deportation, granted to people who have left certain countries due to natural disasters or war. Those who have been in the U.S. for at least three years and pass a background check would be able to apply for a green card immediately, and after five years, they could apply for citizenship.

Seven Republicans joined all 230 Democrats present to vote for the bill, which was first introduced in March. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she thinks Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will bring the legislation up in the Senate, as "there should be nothing partisan or political" about it. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the measure would cost more than $30 billion, The Washington Post reports.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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