Source: WRAL
Advocates for North Carolina’s immigrant community gathered this Tax Day to tout the contributions immigrants make to the economy and warn against a bill Republicans are trying once again to pass this legislative session.
The bill, House Bill 10, would require county sheriffs to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) – something that sheriffs in eight North Carolina counties promised not to do when they campaigned and won in 2018.
Since then Republican lawmakers have been trying to pass this bill, but have had it twice vetoed by Governor Roy Cooper. Now that Republicans have a veto-proof majority in both chambers, advocates expect Republican legislators to resurrect the bill once more.
“We don’t have a border, but they’re still using similar rhetoric to try to get folks to be scared and vote out against immigrants in November,” said Kelly Morales of Siembra NC.
While Republicans often try to cherry pick cases and use loaded rhetoric to connect immigrants with crime, the data shows that immigrants actually commit fewer crimes than native-born citizens.
Morales noted the “tireless work” immigrants contribute to the state, and what she would like legislators to prioritize instead. “Our members are proud to pay taxes in North Carolina, and we’d like to see those taxes go to fully-funded public schools, toward early childhood education and absolutely toward investigating employers who don’t keep their workers safe and who don’t pay their wages.”
The estimated 350,000 undocumented immigrants in North Carolina contribute around $300 million a year to the state in sales, income, and property taxes, according to a study by Carolina Forward.
