Georgia Media
Are illegal aliens receiving taxpayer-funded rental assistance in Georgia? Update: Yes, they are.
Rising rents in South Georgia are leading to more eviction filings, according to WALB. (Hat tip, Georgia Pundit)
“Experts say nationally, rent hit sharp increases in the last year — up to 40% in some cities. This is making it hard for some to be able to keep a healthy living.
Many families in Valdosta will soon be thrown out of their homes. That’s because funding from the Georgia Rural Assistance Program is ending soon.
South Georgia’s Partnership To End Homelessness Director Dr. Ronnie Mathis said his office is overwhelmed with applications from 18 different counties needing rental assistance.
Mathis said the state’s rental assistance program does in fact work. But, the concern is how long the process takes. The office got a grant for $30,000 but that money was dispersed within 45 days.
“Time is of the essence with this. We really need Georgia rental assistance to speed up the process and if South Georgia’s Partnership is going to be one of the partnerships with them, we want them to be more involved with us,” Robinson said…”
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Update, June 3, 2020 10:30 AM: The federal law creating the Emergency Rental Assistance Program does not have immigration status limitations. Shorter: Yes, illegal aliens can and have accessed taxpayer-funded rental assistance.
We are in the process of confirming that DCA does not ask about citizenship or immigration status.
OCGA 50-36-1 requires verification of “lawful presence” for public benefits, including rent assistance and housing grants.
CHAPTER 36 – VERIFICATION OF LAWFUL PRESENCE WITHIN UNITED STATES
§ 50-36-1 – Verification requirements, procedures, and conditions; exceptions; regulations; criminal and other penalties for violations
__________
Department of Community Affairs “we’re here to help” link.
It should be noted that more than 20,000 illegal aliens have Georgia drivers licenses and ID Cards.
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals and the GA AG tell us DACA recipients have no “lawful presence” or legal status .
But, I see no question that asks for information on or proof of legal immigration status.
Part of application for benefits:
Foreign-Born Population Hit Record 47 Million in April 2022
Center for Immigration Studies
June 1, 2022
Increased two million since January 2021, driven largely by illegal immigratio
An analysis of the Census Bureau’s monthly Current Population Survey (CPS) shows that the total foreign-born population (legal and illegal) in the U.S. hit 47 million in April of 2022 — a record high in American history. The foreign-born population includes all persons who are not U.S. citizens at birth. The size and growth of the foreign-born population in the CPS are important because, unlike arrival figures for legal immigrants or border apprehensions, the CPS measures the total number of legal and illegal immigrants actually living in the country, which is what ultimately determines immigration’s impact on American society.
There is a good deal of variation month-to-month in the data, but the two million increase in the foreign-born population since President Biden took office last January is both large and statistically significant. The dramatic growth is also quite striking because for the foreign-born population to grow at all, new arrivals must exceed both emigration and deaths, as all births to immigrants in the U.S., by definition, add only to the native-born population.
- The 47 million foreign-born residents (legal and illegal) in the country in April of 2022 is the largest number ever recorded in any U.S. government survey or decennial census.
- The total foreign-born population (legal and illegal) increased by two million in the first 16 months of the Biden administration — January 2021 to April 2022 — twice as fast as the U.S.-born population grew.
- We preliminarily estimate that illegal immigrants accounted for two-thirds of the growth in the foreign-born population since January 2021 — 1.35 million.
- Taking a longer view, since 2000, the total foreign-born population has grown by 50 percent; it’s doubled since 1990, tripled since 1980, and quintupled since 1970.
- As a share of the total population, the foreign-born now account for 14.3 percent of the population, or one in seven U.S. residents — the highest percentage in 112 years. As recently as 1990 they were one in 13 U.S. residents.
- If present trends continue, the foreign-born share of the population will reach 14.9 percent of the U.S. population in September 2023, higher than at any time in the nation’s 246-year history.
- On average the foreign-born population has grown by 132,000 a month since President Biden took office, compared to 59,000 per month in Obama’s first term, 76,000 per month in Obama’s second term, and 42,000 per month under Trump before Covid-19 hit.
- While much of the recent increase in the total foreign-born population is due to illegal immigration, those in the country legally still account for three-fourths of all foreign-born residents.
- The states with the largest increase in the total foreign-born population from January 2021 to April 2022 are California (up 527,000), Florida (up 390,000), Pennsylvania (up 375,000), Michigan (up 247,000), Georgia (up 152,000), Arizona (up 148,000), New York (up 145,000), Tennessee (up 130,000), and South Carolina (up 128,000).
Introduction
This analysis is based on the Current Population Survey (CPS), sometimes referred to as the “household survey”, collected each month by the Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). We use the terms “immigrant” and “foreign-born” interchangeably in this report.1 The foreign-born or immigrant population in Census Bureau data includes all persons who were not U.S. citizens at birth — mainly naturalized citizens, lawful permanent residents, long-term temporary visitors, and illegal immigrants. The CPS shows a dramatic rebound in the foreign-born population after declining in the latter half of 2019 and then a dramatic fall-off in 2020 due to Covid-19 travel restrictions. While the CPS is a very large survey of about 130,000 individuals, the total foreign-born population in the monthly data still has a margin of error of about ±500,000 using a 90 percent confidence level. This means there is a good deal of fluctuation from month to month in the size of this population, making it necessary to compare longer periods of time when trying to determine trends.2
The Foreign-Born Population in the Last Decade..
Please see the entire report from CIS.org here.
Georgia law requires all jailers to report incarcerated illegal aliens to DHS – but it’s not enforced *Repost from Jan 2021 OCGA 42-4-14
“Immigration laws are the only laws that are discussed in terms of how to help people who break them.” Thomas Sowell 2017
Note: A version of hit essay was originally posted on the subscription news and opinion site, InsiderAdvantage.com (now James Magazine Online) January 26, 2021.
In 2011, Aurelio Mayo Perez, an illegal alien, was booked into the Cobb County jail for no driver’s license but released due to an immigration enforcement reduction edict from then-President Barack Obama. Two years later, Mayo Perez was charged with aggravated child molestation and rape. The name of the ten-year old girl he was convicted of repeatedly molesting is not available.
Last week, newly sworn Cobb County Sheriff Craig Owens held an elaborate press conference packed with invited anti-enforcement activists and proudly announced his termination of the 287(g) program. The Marietta Daily Journal described the event’s big finish with “…as the event ended, and a mariachi band began to play, the mood in the room was decidedly celebratory. The new sheriff even took to the floor and waltzed for a moment, reveling in his audience’s approval.” Cobb County Deputy Sheriff Loren Lilly – killed by an unlicensed illegal alien driver in a 2007 traffic crash – was unable to attend.
Democrat Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid pronounced Owens’ decision “bold, necessary, and overdue.” Cobb’s new District Attorney, Flynn Broady weighed in with “this is going to make our community safer.” We recommend reading the entire MDJ report
Created by congress in 1996, and signed into law by Bill Clinton, the voluntary 287(g) program is a tool used to expand the authority of local law enforcement to locate and report to ICE illegal aliens, usually in county jails. It’s a deterrent. Then-Senator Joe Biden voted in favor of passage.
The liberal Atlanta Journal Constitution reports Owens claims “the program morphed into one that profiled immigrants through traffic stops, which resulted in them being deported on misdemeanor charges.” While Sheriff Owens – a former Cobb County policeman – is certainly free to smear his fellow law enforcement officers with accusations of profiling, he should understand that it’s illegal aliens who are deported and that removal is the punishment for illegal immigration, not traffic violations.
Jose Alfaro-Contraras, an illegal alien from El Salvador, was one of the gunmen in an April, 2015 armed robbery of the owner of a check-cashing store in Duluth. A year earlier, Alfaro-Contraras had been in the Gwinnett County jail on a shoplifting charge. He was released because “minor crime.”
The above examples are taken from a 2017 report “Jail records reveal immigrants not deported after minor crimes later commit worse ones” from Atlanta’s Fox Five TV News investigative reporter Randy Travis.
Related: According to the anti-enforcement Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, Georgia is home to more illegal aliens than green card holders.
In metro -Atlanta’s Gwinnett County, on his first day in office, Sheriff Keybo Taylor made his enforcement policy clear when he quit the 287(g) program: “What we will not be doing is notifying ICE of anybody’s immigration status in the jail or any of our facilities…” said Taylor at his own presser. He told a local NPR interviewer 287(g) is slanted towards “people of color.”
“So basically, what that program started to do was target, uh, you know, people of color that were in this country that’s undocumented, so, you know, it became, you know, a racist issue for me…”,
He says he would rather focus on gang members. I was curious, so I checked with experts on gangs in Gwinnett and the skin color concern Taylor expressed. But on that topic Sheriff Taylor apparently does have concerns about borders “…crime and criminals…they don’t, they do not respect borders, so, you know, it’s nothing to come from Atlanta to Gwinnett County…” says Taylor. Indeed.
In print and radio interviews, both sheriffs have done a remarkable job of learning and adhering to the anti-287(g) talking points distributed by the far-left. Below are some of those tips from a 2008 ACLU ‘toolkit.’
‘How to oppose 287(g) agreements in your state or locality’
*Always describe how police enforcement of immigration laws endangers public safety for everyone.
*Assert that local police of immigration laws will result in widespread racial profiling.
*Assert that immigration enforcement is the responsibility of the federal government.
*Assert that police resources are stretched thin already.
Georgia law as a ‘Plan B’ plan to address anti-enforcement sheriffs
Attention Georgia prosecutors, including Flynn Broady: Independent of 287(g), longstanding (2006) state law (OCGA 42-4-14) requires jailers to check the immigration status of incoming foreign prisoners. “If the foreign national is determined to be an illegal alien, the keeper of the jail or other officer shall notify the United States Department of Homeland Security, or other office or agency designated for notification by the federal government.”
The AJC – again
In an entirely unbalanced, celebratory report on Cobb County Sheriff Craig Owens ending 287(g) the AJC recently told readers as a statement of fact “the program originally began to remove terrorists, as well as other violent criminals, from neighborhoods across the country.” But, as was noted here in December, the law establishing 287(g) program never limited it to applying only to terrorists or illegal aliens who were arrested for violent crimes.
The liberal AJC has not covered the fact that the above law is not enforced.
D.A. King is president of the Georgia-based Dustin Inman Society.
Republican Rep Bonnie Rich loses primary race in Gwinnett County – opposed voter security measure, HB 228
Noting foreign status on drivers licenses and official ID would be a “scarlet letter…”
Rep Bonnie Rich has lost the race in the Republican Primary for the newly redrawn House District 100 seat. Rich, chairwoman of the House Republican Caucus, has represented House District 97 for the last four legislative sessions was beaten by state Rep. David Clark who is the (pre-redistricting) House District 98 representative.
A carefully protected favorite of Speaker David Ralston, Rep Rich is best known to pro-enforcement advocates as the lead opposition to HB 228 sponsored by Cherokee County Rep Charlice Byrd.
HB 228 was a simple, “belt and suspenders” bill that addresses voter ID security and the drivers licenses and ID Cards Georgia issues to foreigners here as immigrants, guest workers, foreign students – and about twenty thousand illegal aliens with DACA protection. These credentials are labeled “LIMITED TERM” and almost exactly the same as the ones commonly issued to U.S. citizens. Not many people, including most legislators, have any clue what “LIMITED TERM” means. Explanation: the valid term of the credential is timed to expire when the holders visa or “green card” runs out or renews.
HB 228 also addressed the startling fact that there is nothing in state law that says these ID documents are excluded from acceptance as “proper identification” for voting purposes.
HB 228 also required the warning “BEARER NOT U.S. CITIZEN – NOT VOTER ID” to be added to the front of the LIMITED TERM credentials. Also, as mail-in vote security, the Department of Driver Services would begin a system in which the first two characters of the drivers license/ID Card numbers be “NC” on the cards issued to non-citizens. We would catch up with Alabama on that one.
Related: Popular “no-brainer” election integrity legislation, HB 228, apparently dead under the Gold Dome
HB 228 died without a 2022 hearing or committee vote. In the process of killing the measure, the members of the House Special Committee on Election Integrity revealed a troubling lack of knowledge on the identity credentials Georgia issues and related immigration basics. Rich criticized the bill with the explanation that noting foreign status on ID credentials would be a “scarlet letter” for immigrants.
Rep Clark may present problems for pro-enforcement Georgians. He introduced a bill (HB 920) in the 2019-2020 session that would have allowed illegal aliens to access instate tuition in Georgia’s public colleges. Clark’s bill was not limited to illegal aliens with DACA status. We will watch to see if Clark, a member of the Georgia “Freedom Caucus,” submits similar legislation in the coming 2023-2024 legislative session.
Rich was endorsed in the race by House Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones (R), the second highest ranking member of the Georgia House.
*Updated 26 May with a blurb from the liberal AJC:
Ralston nemesis ousts colleague, but most lawmakers cruise in primary
“Buford state Rep. David Clark has been a pain in House Speaker David Ralston’s backside in recent years, and Tuesday he delivered another blow.
Clark ousted Rep. Bonnie Rich, R-Suwanee, in the Republican primary for the newly drawn House District 100 in Gwinnett, Forsyth and Hall counties. Rich chaired the House Redistricting Committee that drew the district maps.
Most incumbents cruised to easy wins on Tuesday in the new districts, which were drawn last year in such a partisan way that the candidate who wins the primary will likely win in the November general election as well.” Here.
Bryan Tolar, BigAg lobbyist, on black market labor, Cadillacs and E-Verify AUDIO/VIDEO & transcript
“H2A is a very good program if you can afford it. This- the federal government says that the minimum wage for a H2A worker is $9.11 and you provide transportation and you provide housing and you cover all the visa costs. It ends up costing you about $13.50 per employee per hour for those operations. If we could all drive Cadillacs it’d be great, but everyone can’t drive a Cadillac. Some people can, others can’t. So we don’t need a Cadillac system and, and that’s what the, the H2A system is a Cadillac system.” Bryan Tolar to the Georgia House Judiciary Committee (non-civil), Feb. 2011
Bryan Tolar was president of Georgia Agribusiness Council in 2011 when HB 87 was going through the committee process and eventually passed and was signed into law in Georgia. Georgia has two E-Verify laws. One for private employers and one for public contractors and taxpayer-funded entities like cities, counties and other offices, including state agencies. Neither law is enforced. We challenge anyone to produce evidence of any sanction for violation.
Bryan Tolar professional info here and here. And here with mission statement.
Related: What is the H2A visa? (it’s no-cap access to legal foreign workers for growers)
Audio
Transcript: Rev.com
Cost to me: $16.10
BigAg lobbyist Bryan Tolar (00:01)
This is a very delicate issue for agriculture because being the largest industry and representing, uh, economic impact in all 159 counties, we have a lot at stake in this. We are in the midst of trying to grow our industry in several ways. One of which, and we’ve heard the, the governor talk about it and many of you have probably weighed in on it, the expansion of the port in Savannah. We want those large container ships to come to Georgia to carry agricultural products out, not bring agricultural products in. And the system that we have in place now with the, with the technology that’s in place, with the natural resources that are abundant to our great state, we are poised to grow this industry because commodity prices have finally reached a point where people are sta- talking about what do I have to plant to make a profit, but what can I plant so I can make the most profit.
BigAg lobbyist Bryan Tolar (00:51)
And when we look at that, we need to have a labor force to be able to harvest that product. And we want, obviously, want to utilize and do utilize a legal workforce. The federal government puts in place a pa- the parameters for hiring a legal workforce. If we have employers now, whether they’re agricultural or otherwise, that are not completing the I-9, then they’re already in violation of federal law. We can’t help them, this bill can’t help them, I’m not going to try to help them. But when we look at the e-verify portion, that really is the part of the bill that gives us the, the most challenge. And I, I, I- you’ve heard from others and there’s, there’s certainly different parts to give people challenges of their own. But for ours, it’s, it’s the e-verify requirement and I, and I apologize, I have not seen the latest draft to know where we are on the e-verify part, so, um, I’ll, I’ll wait to get details on that later.
BigAg lobbyist Bryan Tolar (01:35)
But if we require the e-verify, then we are putting another layer of government on an already challenged workforce that’s out there for agricultural production. And I’m talking getting your hands dirty workforce. Um, um, very difficult to find those workers no matter where you are. And over two-thirds of our counties, agriculture’s either the number one or the number two industry in those counties. So we’re not talking about small, small beans here. We’re talking about real economic impact. So as we move forward, we need to see- and it is a federal issue. I know you’ve heard that time and time again, it is a federal issue. And Representative Franklin, I’ll, I’ll say that- and I heard your comment earlier about the constitution that we don’t have any Georgia citizens, they are also US citizens. And so we have to operate- ’cause the US is the one that provides us- federal government provides us the visas that we need to get those workers in a guest worker program to pr- to get those citizenship papers so that we can have those legal citizens here.
BigAg lobbyist Bryan Tolar (02:26)
And that’s what, that’s what we’re trying to comply with. We’re trying to comply with a federal system that also provides a federal outlet through visa programs through H2A, which many of you may be familiar with, and H2B and I’ll touch on them very quickly. H2A is a very good program if you can afford it. This- the federal government says that the minimum wage for a H2A worker is $9.11 and you provide transportation and you provide housing and you cover all the visa costs. It ends up costing you about $13.50 per employee per hour for those operations. If we could all drive Cadillacs it’d be great, but everyone can’t drive a Cadillac. Some people can, others can’t. So we don’t need a Cadillac system and, and that’s what the, the H2A system is a Cadillac system. Now let’s talk about H2B. That’s really where we get to our landscape workers, our urban agriculture, the environment we’re in right now.
BigAg lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (03:15)
That is- that program is capped by the federal government was capped in 1990 with 66,000 visas nationwide. In 2004, we reached the cap of that. We can’t expand it. The state of Georgia can’t expand that cap. All we can do is apply for it and hope like heck that we get the workers, ’cause if we don’t, you’re out of business. And if we’re out of business, if we take a $68.8 billion industry and we take a just a 10% hit, we’re talking almost a $7 billion hit to Georgia’s economy. And that’s real. And when those- whe- and when those farming operations and when those landscapers, when they go away, they don’t come back, especially in rural Georgia. It’s that much more difficult if you’re trying to harvest a crop or if you’re trying to milk a cow or you’re trying to care for chickens, it’s a very diverse industry, it’s a very complex industry. This problem is a, is a very complex problem and it requires a federal solution.
BigAg lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (04:08)
But we understand immigration reform needs to happen and we understand there are things the state of Georgia can do and we recognize that this legislation carries a lot of different components in it that will serve the state of Georgia and will serve the state of Georgia well. But, but we take the biggest challenge in this legislation is with the e-verify part and mandating that on private employers. And at that point, Ms. Chairman, I’ll take any questions.
Committee Chairman: (04:29)
Let me, uh, let me ask you a, a question that warrants a probably a 10 to 15 minute answer about-
Committee Chairman: (04:36)
[crosstalk 00:04:36] Okay, well I won’t do that.
Committee Chairman: (04:37)
But I’m going to ask you to do it in 30 seconds.
Committee Chairman: (04:37)
Okay.
Committee Chairman: (04:38)
Very reasonably, I think.
Big Ag lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (04:39)
Yes, sir.
Committee Chairman: (04:42)
W- where’s the line? Where’s the line between those folks in the agricultural community who this perhaps not as big a deal and where- with the folks that where it is? In other words, where is that line of the, you know, where compliance with, uh, with H2A and e-verify and everything that you talked about, what’s the comfort level? And I understand that’s something of a subjective determination and, you know, in our minds we take an oath to support and defend and protect the law.
Big Ag lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (05:12)
Yes, sir.
Committee Chairman: (05:13)
Um, and we all take it seriously. I’m a little concerned about the fact that what I’m hearing is a message from you that says, “Well, we should enforce the law and protect the law and adhere to it, but only if we can afford it.” And that’s what I think I’m hearing. Tell me if I’m hearing something differently. And then tell me about who is it in your mind, just from your industry, intra-industry, where- who, who can afford it and who can’t. And the size of that operation.
Big Ag lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (05:54)
Okay.
Committee Chairman: (05:54)
Talk about the law first and how it is- I mean, that’s the message that I just heard and I want to make sure that I didn’t hear it wrong.
Big Ag lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (05:59)
That’s actually a, a 30 minute answer so I’ll, I’ll do my best. Um-
Big Ag lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (06:02)
I warned you (laughs).
Big Ag lobbyist Bryan Tolar: (06:04)
With regard to, to who can and who can’t take advantage of the H2A program because it is an expensive program, uh, the answer is it depends. It depends on what your commodity is, it depends on your locale for where your market is. Um, and I know that’s, that’s a lawyer type answer. I think I’ll say it depends a lot too. Um, but it- there is no, there is no simple answer and it’s because the industry is not simple. The solution is not simple. And it’s not a matter of drawing a line and saying, “Well, if we get above this point or we’re below this point, then, then we’re in
LA Congressman Mike Johnson to DHS Secretary Mayorkas: It’s an “invasion” – VIDEO
Congressman Johnson to Mayorkas: “My Advice to You is to Begin Your Search for a Different Career.”
Says that DHS is the agency with the smallest margin for error; that Secretary Mayorkas has presided over the greatest immigration catastrophe in American history, and has committed impeachable offenses
Buzz Brockway, lobbyist – SB 45, 2021/2022 – (video): Gutting occupational licensing security
RE: OCGA 50-36-1
Buzz Brockway lobbies for changes in occupational licensing, House version of SB 45, 2021/2022 session.
As passed the senate bill here. Note line 49. We pushed hard for that addition. The fifty-seven page House version (that did not pass and did not see a vote) was changed into an unrecognizable dumping ground, wish list for the dismantling of the verification system in place to keep illegal aliens out of the occupational licensing process. That complete rewrite was done in the House Regulated Industries committee chaired by Rep Alan Powell.
Brockway is not what a lot of kindly but naive people think he is. Alan Powell does not enjoy that confusion.
Our goal for the last nineteen years has been to make Georgia as difficult and inhospitable for illegal immigration as possible.
That is not Brockway’s mission. Or Powell’s.
Anything for a buck.
Start the video at 4:55
Bookmark: Romney, David Perdue, J. Neil Purcell, Bradley T. Crate, Trump and a mismanaged campaign for GA governor
Note to self/bookmark on the odiferous Perdue campaign. Future research coming.
Notice that the above very accurate ad (that came out about ten days before Primary Day) is paid for by Perdue for Governor Inc.
Here is the Ga Sec of State info on Perdue for Governor Inc. Note that Bradley T. Crate is CFO and Secretary.
He is also the founder and head of Red Curve Solutions and was treasurer of the 2020 Trump campaign.
Former Acting ICE Director, Tom Homan: “When it comes to dealing with illegal immigration, Kemp has failed the people of Georgia and this nation”
Tom Homan, acting ICE Director under President Trump has endorsed former U.S. Senator David Perdue in Georgia’s Republican Primary race.
Mr. Homan was the keynote speaker at the February, 2020 Dustin Inman Society event ‘Honoring Immigrants: A Pro-enforcement Conversation on Immigration’ in Atlanta and raised the issue of Gov Kemp’s defiance on his 2018 campaign promises then. We reminded all concerned about that fact last July with “Illegal immigration in Georgia: Former ICE Director Tom Homan Condemns Gov. Brian Kemp.”
We note that this announcement was posted on Twitter Friday, but we cannot find coverage of Homan’s support for Perdue or his criticism of Kemp in the that the liberal AJC.
A favor if somebody who still subscribes sends us a link to any story or blog post from the AJC editors?
We agree with Mr. Homan’s analysis of Kemp’s betrayal on illegal immigration in Georgia.
