Congresswoman Lois Frankel (FL-22) today voted against a bill that will reverse President Obama’s immigration actions that keep families together and allow hardworking parents to work and pay taxes.

“My mom and dad taught me that family comes first,” said Congresswoman Frankel. “Sadly, this is mean spirited legislation that separates children from their parents and turns the dreams of talented young people into nightmares. I am hopeful that we can work together to find a bi-partisan approach to immigration reform that better reflects our values and advances America's prosperity.”

The legislation, if enacted into law, would overturn the President’s Executive Orders on immigration. An Executive Order dated June 15, 2012 established the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which gives deferred action to undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States before they turned 16 years old, have been in the U.S. for at least five years, have been convicted of no serious crime, and have a high-school diploma, a GED, or have served in the U.S. military.

The Executive Order of November 20, 2014 expanded DACA to include all children brought to the country prior to 2010 and established the Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA), which prioritizes the deportation of felons and allows nearly 5 million undocumented immigrants who have no criminal background to be deferred from deportation if their child is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.

The President’s Executive Orders mean big bucks for the United States. According to federal estimates, the DREAM Act is expected to add $2.3 billion and the most recent Executive Order would add $90 billion to $210 billion to the U.S. economy over the next ten years. It alleviates the fear of deportation from the minds of millions of parents, allowing them to work in the open and pay taxes.

The legislation now goes to the Senate, and if it passes, President Obama has threatened a veto.

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