Coalition Member Statements
Economic Benefits of Immigration Reform Infographics
Following the release of the Congressional Budget Office’s scoring of the Senate immigration bill, below are two infographics that also highlight the benefits to the U.S. economy if comprehensive immigration reform passes this year. Click the image for a full-size, printer-friendly version of this infographic. Click the image for a full-size, printer-friendly version of this infographic.
Read More »NEC Leads Coalition of Biz Groups in Urging Senate to Support STEM Fund
SOURCE: The New England Council The New England Council, the nation’s oldest regional business association representing over 400 companies and organizations throughout the region, has joined with 10 other regional chambers of commerce and business organizations in urging New England’s Senators to support the inclusion of a STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) education fund in the comprehensive immigration reform bill currently before the U.S. Senate. Organizations from all six New England states signed a letter sent to the New England Senate delegation yesterday. “As the Senate considers bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform legislation this month, they have the opportunity to… Read More »
STEM Fund Key to U.S. Global Competitiveness
SOURCE: The Hill’s Congress Blog By John E. Sununu and Maria Cardona, inSPIRE STEM USA Co-Chairs Although the work is not yet complete, advocates for a national fund for science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) and computer science education have reason to be optimistic. Washington is well into its much-anticipated discussion on immigration reform, with a proposal for a broad bill under consideration in the Senate and legislation overhauling high-skill immigration recently introduced in the House of Representatives. Both pieces of legislation include a national fund intended to help the U.S. train more of its students in STEM fields and produce… Read More »
New England Biz Leaders Applaud Sen. Ayotte for Support of Immigration Reform
SOURCE: The New England Council The New England Council and other regional business leaders are applauding Senator Kelly Ayotte for her recent announcement that she will support the comprehensive immigration reform bill currently before the Senate. The New England Council is a non-partisan alliance of over 400 businesses, academic and health institutions, and public and private organizations throughout New England dedicated to promoting economic growth in the region. “The New England Council applauds Senator Kelly Ayotte for her support for the comprehensive immigration reform bill currently being considered by the U.S. Senate,” said Council President & CEO James T. Brett…. Read More »
Need for STEM Graduates Is Indisputable
SOURCE: The Seattle Times, Letters to the Editor By Beneva Schulte, Executive Director, inSPIRE STEM USA The Economic Policy Institute study presents a picture of America’s STEM-worker shortage and STEM-education crisis that is vastly different from authoritative research on this topic [“Study: Shortage of U.S. STEM graduates a myth,” Business, April 25]. Most researchers agree there are not enough qualified workers to fill currently vacant American jobs or the jobs the nation is expected to add in the future that require experts like computer scientists, mathematicians and engineers. One flaw is that the study uses the category of “information science,”… Read More »
BBJ: Immigration Reform Must Address the Skills Gap
SOURCE: The New England Council By James T. Brett After years of discussion about the need to update our immigration system, the issue is finally on the so-called “front burner” in Congress and comprehensive reform is on the horizon. From a pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens to border security, there are a number of challenging issues our leaders in Washington must tackle. There is, however, an additional issue that any comprehensive immigration reform plan should also address: the shortage of educated, highly skilled workers in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields. The U.S. Department of Commerce estimates… Read More »
Microsoft Supports Introduction of Historic Immigration Bill in the Senate
Statement from Brad Smith, General Counsel & Executive Vice President, Legal & Corporate Affairs, Microsoft: Today, the U.S. Senate took a significant first step toward reforming our nation’s broken and outdated immigration system with the introduction of comprehensive legislation by the ‘Gang of 8′ Senators. The bipartisan bill will broaden economic prosperity in both the short and long run by increasing access to the best and brightest talent from around the world, while also providing American students and workers with additional STEM education and training opportunities. We thank the Senators for their leadership on this proposal and look forward to… Read More »
inSPIRE STEM USA’s Letter to Gang of Eight Senators on Immigration Reform
On April 9, 2013, members of inSPIRE STEM USA sent the following letter to the Gang of Eight U.S. senators responsible for drafting new immigration reform legislation: inSPIRE STEM USA applauds the Senate’s bipartisan leadership as it seeks to improve our nation’s challenged immigration system. As you and your colleagues pen this significant legislation, our coalition—comprised of advocacy groups, educational organizations, and business leaders—encourages you to integrate the STEM fund concept outlined in the Immigration Innovation Act of 2013 (I-Squared) into the comprehensive bill. The STEM fund should be part of the solution to solving our nation’s STEM education deficiencies…. Read More »
Caterpillar: We Need Commonsense Immigration Reform Today
SOURCE: Caterpillar Advocacy Center From a speech given by Caterpillar CEO Doug Oberhelman at an Illinois Business Immigration Coalition event in Chicago: Today I want to talk about three of my favorite topics—competitiveness, innovation and accountability. We know that U.S.-based companies need to be able to compete in an ever changing and growing global market place. That goes for any company. You don’t need to have a global footprint like Caterpillar to know this is true. Our companies need to be competitive, cities like Chicago need to be competitive, our state needs to be competitive and of course our country… Read More »
NEC Urges Congress to Address STEM Skills Gap in Immigration Reform
SOURCE: The New England Council’s “The Brett Briefing” Blog The New England Council is urging Congress to address the shortage of highly skilled workers in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields as they pursue comprehensive immigration reform. In a letter sent today to all members of the New England Congressional delegation, the Council urged members to support the provisions put forth in “Immigration Innovation Act of 2013,” referred to as the “I-Squared” bill to address the STEM skills gap with both short term and long term solutions. … Read The New England Council’s letter to Senator Christopher Murphy… Read More »