Therefore. I feel it is patently unfair to force local government to tax their own citizens to pay for a problem that is solely the making of the Federal Government. Counties and cities do not make immigration policy in this country. we in the Congress do. We have failed in that responsibility. Let us not fail now to take responsibility for the results of our mistakes by forcing the local communities all over the country to shoulder the entire cost of a problem that they had no part in at all. The flow of refugees into south Florida is hardly typical of normal immigration patterns. In fact. there is no other State or community in the United States which has become the home for up to 80 percent of the annual immigration flow from one foreign nation. Also. Florida has found that it is the destination point for most of the refugees leaving Haiti and the volatile countries in Central America. When a community experiences a large influx. it also finds itself faced with profound fiscal and social costs. The numbers can be staggering. According to a recent report from the Committee on Immigration Policy of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce. fewer than 20.000 Cuban born residents lived in Dade County prior to 1960. there are now estimated to be 525.000 residing in the Miami area. The refugee situation that local governments in south Florida have to cope with on a daily basis is not one of their own making. We are not asking for an increase in funding levels. this bill would merely continue targeted assistance at 1985 levels for the next 2 years. In addition to helping south Florida. many other refugeeimpacted areas would continue to receive funds. Areas as diverse as Sedgewick. KS.
Keywords matched
Immigration immigration refugees refugee refugeeimpacted