Broad Nebraska coalition calls for immigration changes to support ‘neighbors,’ state growth

LINCOLN — The prosperity of all Nebraskans depends on immigration, helping to provide the workers to fuel Nebraska’s economy and the families that can help communities thrive.

That’s the message of a new, broad and diverse alliance of more than 60 Nebraska business, labor, agriculture, health care, justice, social welfare and faith organizations that have come together to push for reforms to a national immigration system they say is long out of date.

The Nebraska Alliance for Thriving Communities says the failure of policymakers in Washington to provide meaningful immigration changes in nearly four decades leaves thousands of Nebraska workers and families in limbo and thousands of jobs vacant — not only stunting growth but also threatening services important to all Nebraskans.

The alliance is calling for workable solutions that would expand legal immigration programs and create legal pathways for the thousands of undocumented Nebraskans who are already contributing to the state’s economy and communities to apply for permanent residency.

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“Nebraska faces a need for more working people to keep the basic systems running that we rely on, from health care and aging care to construction, maintenance and repair,” Denise Bowyer of Omaha Together One Community, a 30-year-old organization made up of community and faith institutions, said during a Wednesday rally outside the State Capitol. “We all see the workforce strain, the help wanted signs and the risk that good operations will close because they simply can’t find enough people.”

During the public rollout of the new coalition, numerous business representatives and others spoke to the urgency of the need for systematic change to federal immigration law.

Laura Field, executive vice president of the Nebraska Cattlemen, said there are “gaping holes” in the labor force across the beef production process, threatening livelihoods in one of the state’s biggest industries. But the federal visa programs that can help meet the demand are filled with red tape, she said, and provide only temporary help.

Speakers also talked of the need to secure the futures of the thousands of immigrants currently working in the state whose futures are in limbo.

Itzel Lopez, an Omaha business owner and CEO of the Latino Economic Development Council, spoke of her life in Nebraska as a “Dreamer” — an unauthorized immigrant who came to the United States as a child.

The more than 3,000 Nebraskans who have lived here under former President Barack Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program must reregister for the program every two years, she said, and could see their legal residency status ended at any time.

Lopez, who came to the United States from Mexico at age 12, talked of the peril of “not knowing whether you’ll suddenly be told you can’t stay in the only place you know as home.”

Nebraska business and agricultural groups have long been calling for an immigration overhaul. But the Nebraska Alliance for Thriving Communities — some two years in the making — represents the largest and broadest pro-immigration organization ever put together in the state, and perhaps any state, said Bryan Slone, CEO of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

He said the broad alliance formed is also proof that concensus on tricky, political immigration issues is achievable. He said the group now looks forward to working with state and federal policymakers to bring about needed change.

After all, he said, immigration “was how this state was built.”

Need for employees to help Nebraska grow

The alliance’s push for change is deeply rooted in the state’s economics and demographics.

Nebraska has low unemployment and lots of available jobs — almost two open jobs for every unemployed person, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s well above the national average of roughly 1.25 jobs per available worker.

With millions of baby boomers nationally retiring each year, that challenge will only grow. Nebraska will need more new workers and families to keep local businesses, services and institutions functioning, the coalition said.

“This workforce issue we have now may be just the tip of the iceberg,” Slone said.

Recent census data also has shown that the state’s Latino population is fueling more than three-fourths of the state’s population growth — with much of that growth from immigrants and children of immigrants — while the White population is falling slightly.

The alliance said the lack of immigration overhaul has strained the state’s workforce, left communities unable to provide everyday services that help communities survive and grow, and is bad for families.

Kris Bousquet, executive director of the Nebraska State Dairy Association, said she talked to a dairy farmer who had worked 48 straight hours with almost no break to make sure the cows got their daily milkings. She spoke to another producer whose herdsman was deported, leaving behind a wife and three children who were all U.S. citizens.

“People start as employers on our farms,” she said, “and over time they become family.”

Zoe Olson, executive director of the Nebraska Hospitality Association, said restaurants and grocery stores have reduced hours and even closed their doors because they don’t have enough employees.

“This has a direct impact on town livability,” she said.

The alliances says the jobs of thousands of native workers also depend on immigrants. They additionally cited a study that immigrant Nebraskans contribute $1.3 billion in state, federal and local taxes annually. That includes $113 million in state and local taxes paid by undocumented immigrants.

Immigration is major issue in presidential race

The announcement of the alliance also comes as immigration has emerged as a hot-button issue in the presidential election, and with immigrant encounters at the southern border reaching record levels in the past year.

Former President Donald Trump has called for the mass deportation of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, suspending refugee resettlement and completion of a wall at the southern border the Republican had pushed while in office.

Vice President Kamala Harris has not released a comprehensive immigration plan, but the Democrat has voiced support for a path to legal status for Dreamers. She also criticized Trump for helping to scuttle a bipartisan bill that would have increased border security.

The Nebraska coalition in a policy statement said part of effective “border governance” is having updated and workable immigration laws that serve the country’s needs.

“Fair immigration reduces labor trafficking,” said Lina Traslavina Stover of the Heartland Workers Center in Omaha, a longtime immigrant advocacy organization.

The alliance said among the specific changes that are needed include expansion of the nation’s long-term, family-based and employment-based immigrant visa and refugee resettlement programs. It also calls for improvements to temporary worker visa programs, such as allowing applicants’ spouses to also take jobs.

It additionally calls for creating ways for “longtime community members” in Nebraska who are undocumented to apply for permanent residency. It said a similar pathway to apply for residency should be created for Dreamers and those here on Temporary Protected Status, a three decade-old program that has allowed migrants from countries with unsafe conditions to live and work in the United States.

The alliance says the immigration and visa system needs to focus on families, not just individuals, to sustain communities. The coalition also says the system needs to be simpler and faster, focus on permanency and provide for “many more” people from across the skill spectrum.

On the state level, group said Nebraska should reverse its legal position in support of ending the DACA program and oppose future litigation that would damage the state’s ability to recruit families. In 2018, Nebraska under Attorney General Doug Peterson joined eight other states in filing a suit challenging the legality of the program. The case is still working its way through the federal court system.

The immigration alliance said it will also advocate for investments on the state level for infrastructure, housing and child care to facilitate the assimilation of immigrant workers.

“Most of us came from immigrant ancestors who were welcomed to Nebraska, and we want to continue that opportunity for others,” Olson said. “Because Nebraska is a great place to raise a family and use your talents.”

Among the organizations in the new alliance:

ACLU of Nebraska, Aksarben Foundation, Associated General Contractors of Nebraska, Center for Rural Affairs, Greater Omaha Chamber, Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Lutheran Family Services, Nebraska Appleseed, Nebraska Cattlemen, Nebraska Corn Growers, Nebraska Farmers Union, Nebraska Health Care Association, Nebraska Hospital Association, Nebraska Hospitality Association, Nebraska Independent Community Bankers, Nebraska Pork Producers, Nebraska Soybean Association, Nebraska State AFL-CIO, Nebraska State Dairy Association, Nebraska State Education Association, Nebraskans for Peace, Omaha Federation of Labor, Omaha Together One Community.

Photos: Nebraska organizations announce support for positive immigration laws

Laura Field, executive vice president of the Nebraska Cattlemen, speaks at a press conference for positive immigration solutions on the steps of the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024.