Advocates Call on Niagara County Legislature Chairman Keith McNall to Protect Community & Expand Economy by Supporting #DriversLicensesNOW

Niagara County, NY – Chairman of the Niagara County Legislature, W. Keith McNall (R-Lockport), continues to turn a blind eye to the needs of local community members who have been calling for access to driver’s licenses for all New York residents, irrespective of immigration status.

Office of the Census for New York City, New York Counts 2020 Coalition, elected officials, City agencies, and hundreds of volunteers kick off 1-year countdown to Census Day, April 1, 2020

NEW YORK, NY – Today, the Office of the Census for New York City Director Julie Menin and New York Counts 2020 coalition members were joined by Deputy Mayor Phillip Thompson, elected officials, City agencies, and volunteers for a Day of Action and rally to mark the one-year countdown until Census Day on April 1, 2020. The grassroots effort affirms the joint commitment from citywide stakeholders to attain a full and accurate count of every New Yorker.

State Funds $20M for 2020 Census Community Outreach, $11M for LIberty Defense Project, $7.8M for Adult Literacy Education, $2M for Refugee Resettlement, and Enacts 1 Day Bill
No Funding for Expanded Access to Driver’s Licenses, No Funding for Health Insurance for Undocumented Immigrants

NEW YORK, NY – Following the passage of the SFY 2019-20 budget, which notably failed to include legislation allowing all New Yorkers to apply for a driver’s license, regardless of immigration status, Steven Choi, Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition, issued the following statement:

“A lot of advocates who’ve spent years fighting and waiting for New York to finally take action to empower immigrant families are disappointed with the lack of progress that has been made on key priorities during the legislative session.

NEW YORK, NY – Following the announcement of the SFY 2019-20 budget today, which notably failed to include the $40 million allocation of funding for Census 2020 outreach and education initially included in both NYS Senate and Assembly One House budgets, Steven Choi, Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition, issued the following statement:

"News that New York State's budget allocation for Census 2020 has been slashed to $20 million is devastating for immigrants and all New Yorkers.

NEW YORK, NY – Today New York City announced a deal that would provide $1.6 million in funding for immigration attorneys fighting deportation cases, in order to address the increasing backlog in New York City immigration courts – the largest in the nation.

NEW YORK, NY – Today the United States Senate reintroduced the Dream Act of 2019 and the SECURE Act of 2019, bipartisan bills that would put immigrants brought to the United States as youth and recipients of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) on a road to permanent residency and citizenship.

Advocates mobilize in Long Island, Westchester and New York City, calling for NYS to expand access to driver’s licenses for all New Yorkers

NEW YORK, NY – Today hundreds of members of the Green Light NY coalition – from Long Island, Westchester and New York City – joined together to hold a day of action calling on members of the State Legislature to act on legislation that would expand access to driver’s licenses for all New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status, as part of the state budget.

NYS to lose up to two congressional seats based on projected Census data

NEW YORK, NY — Today, the New York Counts 2020 coalition joined members of the New York congressional delegation for a press conference calling on Governor Andrew Cuomo to join the State Legislature and commit $40 million in funding for Census outreach and education, and protect New Yorkers from losing political representation based on inaccurate Census data.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross refuses to give answers ahead of SCOTUS Census case

NEW YORK, NY - Today, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross testified before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, voluntarily and without a subpoena. After Secretary Ross refused to give definitive answers to several questions of the committee, Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings asked Ross to produce priority documents and answers to the questions by Tuesday, March 19th 2019. Chairman Cummings noted that if the Secretary did not by that date, he would be forced to issue a subpoena.

Governor Cuomo announces old funding, excludes immigrant legal services in 2019 budget

NEW YORK, NY - Today Governor Andrew Cuomo announced old funding for immigrant legal services, while continuing to exclude new funding in his 2019 Executive Budget to sufficiently provide legal assistance to immigrant New Yorkers statewide.