• U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) and U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) led 17 Senate Democrats in requesting administrative relief for undocumented immigrants, according to a March 26 statement from Padilla’s office. As the Biden administration considers executive actions on the border, the letter outlines recommendations to make immigration relief more efficient for the undocumented population and DACA holders in the United States. “We urge your administration to take all available actions to streamline pathways to lawful status for undocumented immigrants, providing certainty to the American businesses, communities, and families who rely on them,” the senators wrote in their letter. “Deporting all such individuals—as former President Donald Trump has threatened to do if reelected—would devastate the American economy and destroy American families.” Alternatively, the senators continued, streamlining pathways for undocumented immigrants with no criminal history and “deep ties to the United States” to obtain parole or lawful immigration status would provide stability for their families and require them to pay taxes and check in with the government regularly. The letter recommends that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security create a process to protect and unify American families; an executive action to permit spouses of Americans to work while their green card cases are pending; action to streamline the process for DACA holders to change to a nonimmigrant status; and that the administration modernize cancellation of removal rules to keep family caregivers together.
• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) is urging President Joe Biden to approve California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s request for a major disaster declaration, which would unlock additional federal storm aid for Central Coast communities impacted by recent winter storms, flooding, and other extreme weather, according to a March 25 statement from Carbajal’s office. The federal disaster declaration requested by Newsom would provide Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding to help repair damages from storms, flooding, landslides, mudslides, and tornadoes that occurred between Jan. 31 and Feb. 9 in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Ventura, and other California counties. “I am grateful for the swift support your administration has afforded to our region in the wake of the severe winter storms. However, public assistance is necessary to help the region recover,” Carbajal wrote to Biden. “In the city of San Luis Obispo, the storm caused severe damage to eight steel firehouse rollup bay doors. In Santa Barbara County, the county experienced severe cold temperatures, snow in higher elevations, flooding, among other extreme weather. At the San Marcos Pass, Santa Barbara County rainfall gauges measured 9 inches of rain and 4 inches of rain in the city of Santa Barbara within a 24-hour period.”
• As California’s Naloxone Distribution Project (NDP) delivers millions of naloxone kits that have resulted in more than 247,000 reported opioid overdose reversals, the state recently announced that the project will also offer fentanyl test strips to eligible organizations, according to a March 28 statement from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office. The test strips detect the presence of fentanyl, offering another tool to prevent overdoses. “Harm reduction programs like this one are a huge part of how we better protect people, how we get them into treatment. This work is time tested. Shame isn’t a solution; support and science-driven policy is,” Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said in the statement. The addition of test strips to the toolkits will help to prevent overdoses in the first place—and add another opportunity to connect people with recovery support and treatment. As part of ongoing statewide efforts, California released the Master Plan for Tackling the Fentanyl and Opioid Crisis to support overdose prevention efforts like those announced today. Recently, the state launched opioids.ca.gov, a one-stop shop for Californians seeking resources around prevention and treatment, as well as information on how California is working to hold Big Pharma and drug traffickers accountable.
