utsandiego.com
Written by
Elizabeth Aguilera
9:44 a.m., Jan. 8, 2012

At least 1 million undocumented immigrants could live and work in California with less likelihood of deportation if a group’s proposed ballot initiative wins voter approval in November.

The initiative, called the California Opportunity and Prosperity Act, is the latest measure to touch on the divisive, politically charged question of how to deal with the 10 million to 11 million illegal immigrants living in the United States.

It was filed with the State Attorney General’s Office last month. Supporters — led by Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes, D-Los Angeles — must collect 504,760 valid signatures to win a spot on the ballot.

The proposal could decriminalize eligible immigrants by urging federal officials to make removal of them a lower priority. To qualify for the five-year pilot program, undocumented immigrants must prove they have lived in California since before 2008, are not felons, speak English and pay taxes. The project would be self-funded, covered by the immigrants’ registration fees.

Backers said the state could reap more than $325 million in new revenue as more undocumented workers start filing taxes in hopes of enrolling in the program — money that could help pay for schools, roads, health care and public safety.

California is home to about 2.5 million illegal immigrants, including roughly 1 million who currently pay state and federal income taxes, Fuentes said. For tax purposes, undocumented immigrants are allowed to apply for an Individual Tax Identification Number with the Internal Revenue Service.

The Prosperity Act’s main goal, Fuentes said, is not to settle the underlying question with one state initiative but to encourage the president and Congress to start tackling it head-on.

“This is a practical, bipartisan solution to a problem that Washington seems unable or unwilling to address,” he said. “I hope that this shows Washington, D.C., that if they fail to act, California will take the lead on this critical issue. We are the most populous state, we have the largest undocumented population, we have an unfortunately robust underground economy. We have to figure out how to reconcile that.”

Federal agencies and the White House have not taken a public stance on the initiative effort. Across the country, the only other state that has tried something similar is Utah.

In March 2011, Utah’s governor signed guest-worker legislation that would allow certain illegal immigrants in the state to receive a guest-worker card. The law, which would take effect in 2013, has not been recognized by the federal government.

Critics of the California Opportunity and Prosperity Act call it de-facto amnesty and accuse the backers of trying to bypass federal immigration laws. They also point to the nation’s high unemployment rates and say any jobs filled by undocumented immigrants should not be protected.

“They are trying to preserve spots for people in the workforce who came in illegally at a time when there are millions of Californians who are willing to do jobs they might not have been willing to do five years ago,” said Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-San Bernardino. “We need to get legal residents working because it’s one of the fastest ways to raise revenue.”

So far, opposition to the proposed initiative is firing up conservative blogs. If the proposal gets on the ballot, its backers expect critics to intensify their campaign against it.

The Prosperity Act was written to complement President Barack Obama’s recent directive that immigration enforcement agencies focus on the undocumented who have criminal records instead of those who are law-abiding students or longtime workers.

In November, the Department of Homeland Security started rolling out projects to make such distinctions for pending and future court cases, as well as train enforcement officers on the new priorities.

Under the system envisioned by Fuentes’ group, California would compile a list of program enrollees and ask federal officials to recognize such participation as a buffer against deportation.

“We are not offering Social Security numbers or work visas, we don’t have that authority,” Fuentes said. “We are offering the ability to collect taxes and petition the federal government.”

John Cruz, a longtime Republican operative who campaigned for President Ronald Reagan and served as appointments secretary for former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, said the measure aims to “carve out a middle ground.”

“From my perspective, the primary purpose is to begin a national dialogue,” said Cruz, who co-filed the measure with the state. “We have to find a way in which even Republicans can support a measure which will, in essence, be treating illegal immigrants in a fair and equitable way — especially those who have been here many years and whose lives have been built here.”

State deadlines require signatures for the ballot measure to be submitted by June.

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/...page=1#article