Today, U.S. Congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) underscored the importance of passing a permanent solution to protect our country’s DREAMers and encouraged them to reapply and renew their DACA status.

Last September, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the Trump Administration would end the DACA program and cease accepting applications to it in October. In January, a federal judge in California issued a nationwide injunction blocking the Trump Administration’s attempt to rescind DACA, and a second federal judge in Brooklyn did the same last month. Both judges, in their rulings, stated DACA recipients could continue to apply to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for renewals to the program. Currently, the terms of the DACA policy for renewals established by the Obama Administration remain in place. 

Rep. Peters released the following statement on reaching President Trump’s March 5^th deadline with no resolution in sight:

“Today marks six months since Trump heartlessly terminated DACA without a legislative substitute,” said Rep. Peters. “DREAMers are by definition contributors to our society who know no other country but this one; it is awful that they are faced with such fear and uncertainty. President Trump fuels this self-imposed crisis by refusing to support any of the bipartisan proposals put forth by Congress. I urge our nation’s DREAMers to renew their DACA status and I want them to know that I will keep fighting for them and that the overwhelming majority of Americans are with them. I challenge President Trump and Republican leadership to match even a fraction of their bravery and take action.”

Peters is a cosponsor of the DREAM Act, and an original cosponsor of the United and Securing America (USA) Act, which offers a permanent, legislative fix for our country’s DREAMers and invests in border security through new technology and border modernization.