TALLAHASSEE, FL – FWD.us Florida State Immigration Director Ted Hutchinson issued the following statement today following President Biden’s Joint Address to Congress:

“Floridians are eager for immigration reform, and I thank President Biden for renewing his call for a pathway to citizenship for undocumented individuals, including Dreamers, TPS holders, farmworkers, and other essential workers, during his Joint Address. I encourage him to continue to work with Congress to finally get immigration reform legislation across the finish line. As the son of Bahamian immigrants and a life-long Floridian, I understand how the rich culture and contributions of immigrants make the Sunshine State successful. We need to carefully foster and grow this success and culture, but current immigration policies are hindering our economic health and overall well-being, which are especially critical as we respond to and recover from the pandemic.

“Floridians have welcomed recent progress on immigration, such as the Venezuelan TPS designation and passage of the Dream and Promise Act and Farm Workforce Modernization Act in the House, but there is more work to be done. Floridians are relying on our state’s immigrants, including the 390,000 undocumented immigrant essential workers in our state, to put food on our tables, educate our children, and care for us in the hospital, among many other contributions. Immigrants deserve a fair, humane immigration system that keeps families together, grows our economy, and that recognizes these contributions. Congress must act to preserve their place in Florida through the pathway to citizenship President Biden has called for, and that the majority of Americans are in support of. The need to act is urgent.”