Follow-Up to February’s Lunch with the League –
Neighbor to Neighbor Program
Dear Members and Friends,
As a follow-up to February’s excellent presentation at Lunch with the League, we have some information for you from Andrea Cramer’s presentation:
Here is the Neighbor to Neighbor website: https://n2nsb.com/about/
Keep a close eye on current legislation that could impact immigration in our state:
SB 376 which was voted “do pass/adopted” by the Senate Committee on Appropriations. This would make immigrants who are resettling eligible for Medicaid and other health and family related programs. https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bills/senate/376
SB 248 was also in the Senate Committee on Appropriations. This would smooth the path for undocumented immigrants to get a driver’s license, as is common practice in many other states. https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bills/senate/376 However, the bill has apparently died in committee.
HB 1050 Allows for a path for refugees to get their state ID cards and driver’s licenses, also important so that they can drive to work, shopping, etc. legally. This bill is now in the senate: https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bills/house/1050
Also of interest is the WELCOME CORPS! Individuals can now sponsor refugees! So, if any of your churches, groups, or friends, please let them know! https://welcomecorps.org/
This is a comparatively new rule – before this, only groups (Catholic Charities in South Bend, Immigrant Welcome Network in Hammond) could sponsor refugees. The government passed this rule in order to help accommodate the backlog of 125,000 refugees, this year alone.