WASHINGTON – United States Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) and Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), and a bipartisan group of House lawmakers introduced to Congress on Tuesday a new version of the “Dignity Act”.
The Dignity Act, first introduced in 2023, aims to address immigration-related issues, including strengthening border security, providing some undocumented immigrants with an opportunity to obtain legal status if they meet specific criteria, and expediting asylum processing.
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“Now that President Trump has finally secured the border, it’s time to fix the rest of the system. America is feeling the impact. Cities are overwhelmed. Workers are needed. The system is broken and inaction has a cost. Millions have lived in the shadows for decades, working, paying taxes, raising families. They don’t want a handout. They want a chance,” Salazar wrote on her Instagram.
READ | Click here to access summary of the Dignity Act of 2025
According to the bill summary, the “Dignity Act” would provide some undocumented immigrants the chance to “work, earn legal status and get right with the law,” through what it’s called the “Dignity Program.”
The “Dignity Program” is a seven-year program that would provide some undocumented immigrants with temporary legal status, travel authorization and protection from removal proceedings. Applicants of the program must comply with all federal and state laws, pass a criminal background check, pay back taxes and start paying income taxes.
The program would not provide a path to obtain citizenship. It also says that participants would need to pay $7,000 in restitution during the seven years of the program. They also must check in with DHS every two years and remain in good public standing.
“They did break the law. They are illegals or undocumented. But they have been here for more than five years, contributing to the economy. Those people, someone gave them a job, and they are needed because we need hands in order to continue being the number one economy in the world,” Salazar said during an interview with Fox & Friends on Tuesday morning.
Moreover, the “Dignity Program” would not make them eligible for federal programs or health insurance.
“They can go back home for Christmas, they can come back. Continue working, buying homes, paying taxes and contribute to the economy,” Salazar said.
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The Dignity Act would also give recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also known as Dreamers, a path to pursue permanent legal status and citizenship.
According to Escobar, the new bill will be tailored to the “current political environment” and has more co-sponsors than the first one.
“She and I worked for about seven months on a bill that addressed border security but also legal pathways so that our country benefits from immigration. We know that if we solve the immigration challenges that we face, we can have a stronger economy, and we can do that,” Escobar told ABC on Monday.
Congressman Adam Gray (D-Merced) said the proposed legislation also would:
- Create new regional processing centers, so migrants do not have to make the journey to the U.S./ Mexico border to seek asylum
- Invest in border security and modernize our land ports of entry
- Mandates accountability for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
“For generations, people from all over the world have come to the Valley to work hard, pay taxes, and provide for their families. Without them, our economy would crumble. The bipartisan Dignity Act reflects this reality and addresses our broken immigration system, strengthens our southern border, fixes our visa backlog, and grants legal protection to hardworking, law-abiding immigrants already living in the United States," Gray wrote in a news release.
Just months after President Donald Trump returned to office amid a wave of anti-immigration sentiment, the share of U.S. adults saying immigration is a “good thing” for the country has jumped substantially — including among Republicans, according to new Gallup polling.
MORE | How US views of immigration have changed since Trump took office, according to Gallup polling
About 8 in 10 Americans, 79%, say immigration is “a good thing” for the country today, an increase from 64% a year ago and a high point in the nearly 25-year trend. Only about 2 in 10 U.S. adults say immigration is a bad thing right now, down from 32% last year.