Dear MASCP Friends,
In 2001 Salvadorans living in the U.S. were granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS) after a series of destructive earthquakes in El Salvador. Those who signed up for the program and renewed their status and paid the fees every 18 months have been working, buying houses and running businesses, raising families, participating in their communities and contributing to the Social Security and Medicare system (knowing they would not benefit from either program) for many years. There are more than 195,000 Salvadorans living in the U.S. under TPS and their TPS is up in March of 2018.
The current TPS designation for Salvadorans expires on March 9, 2018 and the Trump administration has not decided whether to extend it or not. The expectation is that it will be extended for 6 months instead of the usual 18 months as was the case recently for Haitian TPS holders. After that, the status of TPS for Salvadorans is in limbo but the results of ending it are well documented:
- Loss of TPS holders’ remittances to El Salvador which total $4.28 billion or 16.8% of the Salvadoran national GDP.
- Forcing TPS families into making hard decisions about their American born children and probably splitting up families.
- Loss of $3.1 billion yearly to the US GDP.
- Loss of $390 million yearly contribution to Social Security; $91 million each year to Medicare.
- $1 billion in turnover costs for U.S. employers over 10 years.
Arcatao asks for our help!
Don Milton Monge, former mayor of Arcatao, at the meeting of the Arcatao Town
Council on November 9 asked that we (in the US) “do all we can to fight against Trump's attacks on TPS and DACA. This is a huge concern for all of El Salvador.”
(Report from MASCPer Abi Denger, Arcatao, December 9, 2017).
Comprehensive immigration reform is crucial to moving past these temporary measures and protecting immigrants like Salvadoran TPS holders and DACA recipients from random deportation.
Call Your Representative today and ask them to co-sponsor the American Promise Act (HR 4253) which will help Salvdorans and other Central Americans who have TPS have a pathway to permanent residency in the U.S.
Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121
Click here to find your representative