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open season on immigrants
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Date: Sat, 28 Oct 1995 12:06:43 -0700 (PDT)
From: Elaine Shin Kwei
The EVP, an apisAA member, and myself got together Tuesday night to try to come up with some kind of fact sheet, since there seemed to be such a huge demand for it. We had piles of information that we tried to distill into the most relevant and easy-to-read format. Granted, this is not a polished draft, but hopefully it'll help to raise awareness out there.
Right now the most important thing is to increase the publicity on this issue and let the general public know that certain legislators are planning an ill-disguised attack on students who are permanent residents of this country.
WARNING: THE US GOVERNMENT WANTS TO TAKE FINANCIAL AID FROM STUDENTS In addition to a bill recently passed in the Senate to cut Federal loans programs by $10 billion, the Senate and the House have both passed bills that will effectively curtail student aid benefits to LEGAL immigrants, including Pell grants, subsidized Stafford loans, and other federal financial aid programs.
These proposed cuts, hidden deep within a welfare reform bill (HR 4), are to be achieved through a process known as "Alien Sponsor Deeming", in which the income and assets of an immigrant's sponsor are added to the immigrant's own resources in determining eligibility for government financial aid programs. Since most immigrants must have a sponsor in order to immigrate here legally, deeming would disqualify many legal immigrants from receiving aid by falsely inflating their income and wealth.
WHO WILL BE AFFECTED?
*A new draft report issued this month by the General Accounting Office in Washington, D.C. states that 390,000 legal immigrants received Pell grants nationwide in 1992-93. The Pell grant program is designed to help the neediest students and has a maximum award of $2,340 per year.
*In California, legal immigrants make up 32.6% of Pell grant recipients. An analysis performed by the UC president's office found that more than 25% of UC students who receive need-based aid are legal immigrants.
*In New York, legal immigrants make up 26.5% of Pell grant recipients. In Florida, the total is nearly 16%.
*The Senate version of this bill (S. 269) would also restrict aid for naturalized citizens.
*The bills now under consideration would essentially affect anyone who was not born in the United States.
*A total of $21 million in Pell grants and $31 million in subsidized loans could be lost among the nine UC campuses alone. These restrictions will affect private colleges as well.
WHY SHOUDLD YOU CARE?
*As Permanent Residents of the United States, legal immigrants have been eligible for federal financial aid for many years.
*Permanent Residents have achieved academic excellence and have gone on to become distinguished alumni of UC Berkeley, UCLA, and many other fine institutions of higher education.
*Permanent Residents pay federal income taxes and are subject to the draft.
*Permanent Residents have gone through all of the proper legal channels for immigration to this country.
*The bills now being considered by a Joint Committee of the House and Senate would restrict benefits to many legal immigrants by changing eligibility requirements.
*Two classes of citizens would be created, and legal immigrants would effectively be denied opportunities for higher education.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
A list of those members of Congress who are on the Joint Committee considering these bills will soon be made available. We will try to organize letter-writing, faxing, calling, and emailing campaigns. We will also try to get in touch with local and national news media. Ethnic newspapers definitely need to be targeted.
More specific information on what you can do will be coming in the next few days. If you are interested in working on this issue or getting more information, contact the ASUC Executive Vice President's Office at:
Phone: (510) 643-9830 Fax: (510) 643-6396 Email: urd@uclink2.berkeley.edu asucexec@ocf.berkeley.edu
There will be a meeting this Friday, October 27 at 4:00 PM in the Senate Chambers (ground floor of Eshleman Hall) to discuss this urgent matter. Everyone is encouraged to attend.
Thanks for your attention and support!!!
Felicia Sze, ASUC EVP Elaine Kwei, Interns Coordinator-ASUC EVP Carolyn Lee, Asian Pacific Islander Students for Affirmative Action
Date: Sat, 28 Oct 1995 12:41:26 -0700 (PDT)
From: Elaine Shin Kwei
These are the phone numbers, fax numbers, and addresses for all of the Senators and Representatives who are on the committee which is working on the bill right now. Contact the ones who are from your area. My counterparts should be posting a more updated version of the fact sheet and also the form letter. If you have the resources, feel free to write as many of the legislators as you want.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - Area Code (202); Washington D.C. 20515
Republicans Phone Fax Office
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Bill Archer (TX) 225-2571 225-4381 1236 Longworth House Office Bldg. Bill Goodling (PA) 225-4527 225-9903 2181 Rayburn House Office Bldg. Pat Roberts (KS) 225-2715 225-5375 1125 Longworth House Office Bldg. E. Clay Shaw (FL) 225-1025 225-9480 1106 Longworth House Office Bldg. James M.Talent (MO) 225-2561 1022 Longworth House Office Bldg. Jim Nussle (IA) 225-2911 225-9129 308 Cannon House Office Bldg. Tim Hutchinson (AR) 225-4301 1541 Longworth House Office Bldg. Jim McCrery (LA) 225-2777 225-8039 225 Cannon House Office Bldg. Lamar Smith (TX) 225-5727 B370 Rayburn House Office Bldg. Nancy L.Johnson(CT) 225-4476 225-4488 343 Cannon House Office Bldg. Dave Camp (MI) 225-3561 225-9679 137 Cannon House Office Bldg. Gary A. Franks (CT) 225-3822 225-5085 133 Cannon House Office Bldg.
Democrats Phone Fax Office
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Sam M. Gibbons (FL) 225-3376 2204 Rayburn House Office Bldg. William L.Clay (MO) 225-2406 225-1725 2306 Rayburn House Office Bldg. E. Kika de la Garza (TX) 225-2531 225-2534 1401 Longworth House Office Bldg. John Conyers,Jr(MI) 225-6906 225-4423 2142 Rayburn House Office Bldg. Harold E. Ford (TN) 225-1025 225-9215 B317 Rayburn House Office Bldg. Henry A.Waxman (CA) 225-3976 225-4099 2408 Rayburn House Office Bldg. George Miller (CA) 225-2095 225-5609 2205 Rayburn House Office Bldg. Barbara B. Kennelly (CT) 225-2265 225-1031 201 Cannon House Office Bldg. Sander M. Levin (MI)225-4961 226-1033 106 Cannon House Office Bldg. Blanche Lambert Lincoln (AR) 225-4076 225-4654 1204 Longworth House Office Bldg.
SENATE - Area Code (202); Washington, D.C. 20510
Republicans Phone Fax Office
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William V. Roth, Jr. (DE) 224-2441 224-0354 SH104 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Bob Dole (KS) 224-6524 228-4569 SH141 Hart Senate Office Bldg. John H. Chafee (RI) 224-2921 228-2853 SD506 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Charles E. Grassley (IA) 224-3744 224-0473 SH135 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Orrin G. Hatch (UT) 224-5251 224-6331 SR135 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Nancy Kassehaum (KS)224-6770 224-6510 SD428 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. James M. Jeffords (VT) 224-5141 228-0338 SD530 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Daniel R. Coats (IN)224-5623 224-3924 SR404 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Judd Gregg (NH) 224-3324 224-4952 SR393 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Richard G. Lugar(IN)224-4814 224-2682 SR328A Russell Senate Office Bldg. Jesse Helm (NC) 224-6342 224-7588 SD403 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg.
DEMOCRATS Phone Fax Office
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Daniel Patrick Moynihan (NY) 224-4492 228-3904 SH203 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Bill Bradley (NJ) 224-3224 224-8567 SH731 Hart Senate Office Bldg. David Pryor (AR) 224-2353 224-8261 SR264 Russell Senate Office Bldg. John B. Breaux (LA) 224-4623 224-9753 SH516 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Edward M. Kennedy (MA) 224-7675 224-3533 SR315 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Christopher J. Dodd (CT) 224-2823 224-1083 SR444 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Barbara A. Mikulski (MD) 224-4654 224-8858 SH709 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Patrick J. Leahy (?)224-2035 224-9287 SR328A Russell Senate Office Bldg.
Date: Sat, 28 Oct 1995 12:43:28 -0700 (PDT)
From: Elaine Shin Kwei
We need to act now! The conference committee on both the Senate and House sides began meeting on Tuesday, October 24th, to hammer out the details on the HR 4 Bill-Welfare Reform Bil, including the exclusionary language relevant to immigrants and possibly naturalized citizens. The following is an informational update provided by different sources:
WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW COULD HURT YOU: Bill Attacks Immigrants and Naturalized citizens.
-The House side requires sponsor deeming for all new immigrants (Lawful Permanent Residents), therefore cutting benefits LPR, even after they become naturalized citizens. Effect: Millions of legal immigrants will be denied access to federal programs, including financial aid
BUT DID YOU KNOW THAT:- Immigrants pay over $70 billion in taxes annually while consuming $25 billion less than that figure in services (Urban Institute, 1994)- The House and Senate welfare restrictions could add $3.5-4.5 billion to our annual deficit (CBO estimates)- There would be such a thing as second class citizenship if the bill on the Senate side retains its exclusionary language. (In an address to Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, the Office of Management and budget wrote: "We cannot have two categories of citizens, and a provision that treats citizens less favorable than the native born...")- If you do not earn more than 200 percent above the poverty line, the welfare reform bill can hurt YOU -These are but a few facts you should keep in mind when you lobby the conference members.
Follow-up: FINANCIAL AID: -Senate Reconciliation Bill-Tax on Colleges and Universities: Senate wants to impose a tax on colleges and universities on the basis of the amount students borrow in federal student loan programs. Under the plan each school annually would be assed a fee equal to 0.85 percent of student loan volume. -Bills on both the House and Senate propose to eliminate the six-month grace period interest exemption for borrowers (on the House side this is applicable to all borrowers and only new borrowers on the Senate side.) -Also reductions in the Pell Grant Programs, campus-based student aid programs, federal work-study, Perkins loans as well as other federal assistance programs are threatened. (For more details, contact the American Council on Education or see http://www.webcom.com/albany/ny.html) EFFECT: Higher education could become unaffordable for many students, . ARGUE: There are no benefits to denying students access to loans and other forms of federal assistance for education, after all wouldn't a pool of highly educated, skilled students better contribute to our economy? The reconciliation bills are a slap in the face for all students, particularly the indigent groups and immigrants.
WHAT CAN YOU DO NOW?
Time is of essence as the conference commitee is finalizing the language of the bills as we speak now. We have included a list of conference committe members for H.R. 4. They can be easily reached via the Capitol operator at either (202) 224-3121 for Senators; or (202) 225-3121 for Representatives. Get your campus student and community groups involved now. Letters should be addressed as: The Honorable ______ United State (Senate/House of Representatives) Washington D.C., 20510/20515) Every phone call, letter and fax counts so: CALL OR FAX YOUR CONGRESSMAN/WOMAN TODAY! ```
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