Permanent legal resident status would be granted to more than 300,000 qualified Temporary Protected Status (TPS) migrants from Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, and Haiti under a bill introduced Tuesday by Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL).
Extending Status Protection for Eligible Refugees with Established Residency (ESPERER) Act of 2017, H.R. 4184, was cosponsored by three of Curbelo’s Florida colleagues, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Republican, and Reps. Frederica Wilson and Alcee Hastings, Democrats.
“Esperer” means “hope” in French, Curbelo said. “While hoping and waiting they would be able to return to their native countries for years, Nicaraguan, Salvadoran, Honduran and Haitian migrants have become essential parts of the South Florida community by contributing to our local economy and our culture.”
TPS does not offer a path to permanent residence or citizenship. Instead, it is granted to those who would face dangerous conditions in their home country due to armed conflict, natural disasters or other extreme situations.
Persons with TPS status who arrived in the United States before Jan. 13, 2011 from the four nations would have to apply for status adjustment by the end of 2020, according to the bill. They must not be inadmissible or deportable under specified sections of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and must meet specific stipulations on conviction for federal or state offenses.
They also must not have “ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in the persecution of any person on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion,” according to the legislation.
The TPS program has received short-term extensions that lead to “anxiety and uncertainty not only for these migrants and their families, but also for their employers and neighbors whose prosperity also depends on them,” Curbelo said. “While I will continue to support extensions for Temporary Protected Status, this bipartisan legislation would give these migrants the peace of mind to continue giving back to their communities, contributing to our economy and supporting their families.”