Bill would allow DACA recipients to enlist in US military
“This is a great combination of number one, allowing a very talented pool of people to serve the country while at the same time giving them earned status, which is something that is already on the books, especially when people are in legal permanent residence.”
Rep. Ruben Gallego
Two Arizona Democrats this week introduced bills in Congress that if passed would allow undocumented youth brought as children to the United States the ability to work in Congress and to enlist in the U.S. military.
On Tuesday, Reps. Greg Stanton, DAriz., and Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., introduced the American Dream Employment Act. It would end an employment ban in place that limits jobs to U.S. citizens and legal residents with a pathway to citizenship. That prohibits recipients of Deferred Action or Temporary Protected Status.
Reps. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Salud Carbajal, D-Calif., filed a bill on Wednesday that would allow Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, recipients to enlist and serve in any branch of the U.S. armed forces, and would provide them with a pathway toward citizenship once their services ends.
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals has been in place since 2012. But its future is still uncertain a full decade after it took effect. There are nearly 590,000 active DACA recipients, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. It would not grant legal status in the country, but it does shield recipients from deportation and provides them work permits. The program has been challenged in court, and a ruling on its legality is expected at any moment.
The two bills face several hurdles. Both need the backing of some Republican lawmakers because the GOP controls the majority of votes in the House and sets the chamber’s agenda. And Republicans are fixated on border security concerns and have shown little appetite for compromise bills that could establish pathways to citizenship. Any House-passed bill also would require support in the closely divided Senate.
Given DACA’s shaky legal footing, lawmakers in Congress have repeatedly attempted to pass legislation such as the DREAM Act that would provide a pathway to citizenship for an estimated 2.3 million people known as “Dreamers,” according to the most recently filed bill’s guidelines. Congress has yet to pass the DREAM Act into law.
The bills filed this week by Gallego, who is running for the Senate in Arizona, and Stanton would extend DACA recipients’ eligibility to join the military and to apply for federally funded positions in the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives.
“Mean-spirited rules still prohibit these bright, intelligent young people from serving the public on Capitol Hill. I’m proud to help introduce this legislation to give ‘Dreamers’ the opportunity to shape policies that affect the only country they’ve ever called home,” Stanton said.
Gallego and Carbajal introduced a similar version of their bill last year near the end of the previous congressional session. It was referred to subcommittees, but time ran out before any significant action.
Under current rules, only U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents can enlist in the military. The bill would extend the eligibility to DACA recipients with their USCIS-issued work authorization documents, but would not alter aptitude qualifications. Once their service ends under honorable discharge, under the bill, the enlisted DACA recipients would then gain permanent residency in the U.S. and be eligible to become citizens.
“This is a great combination of number one, allowing a very talented pool of people to serve the country while at the same time giving them earned status, which is something that is already on the books, especially when people are in legal permanent residence,” Gallego said.
The bill is aimed at easing recruitment shortfalls within the U.S. military, Gallego said. An analysis by the nonpartisan Brookings Institution described the struggles several branches, most notably the U.S. Army, have had in meeting their recruitment goals last year.
Antonio Valdovinos, a DACA recipient who grew up in Phoenix, said he had always dreamed of joining the U.S. Marine Carps growing up, especially after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. But at the age of 17, he realized he was undocumented and was ineligible to enlist. He documented his story in a musical titled “¡Americano!,” which premiered in Phoenix in 2020 and debuted off-Broadway in New York in 2022.
“I remember very clearly just feeling absolutely devastated, invisible and a sense of worth that was not familiar for me,” Valdovinos said. “I pledged allegiance to the flag proudly every day through grade school. I had wanted to join the Marines my entire childhood and to my high school years. I had my very good friends join the Marine Corps, and I fell behind. I felt left behind. I felt devastated.”
He was able to apply for DACA shortly after then-President Barack Obama announced the program in 2012. That allowed Valdovinos to get a work permit and work up to establishing his own consulting firm, and credits Gallego for mentoring him as he found his career path outside the military. Valdovino said he supports the bill for younger “Dreamers” who feel the same way he did back then.
Even though there has not been any significant action for “Dreamers” at the federal level, there has been some success locally. In November, Arizona voters granted “Dreamers” in-state tuition to public colleges and universities, and the governor is looking to fund state-funded scholarships for “Dreamers.”
“I think that the general public in Arizona is more supportive of ‘Dreamers’ than the politicians, because obviously we have to take it to the ballot issues, not in the legislature,” Gallego said. “And I think that when you come up with commonsense solutions, you end up having a kind of bipartisan support. And that’s what I’m trying to do with this bill.”