The State of Florida is home to over 1.7 million lawful permanent residents, of whom approximately 835,097 are eligible to become citizens through naturalization. A recent study conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center found that roughly one-third of immigrants eligible to naturalize fail to do so for reasons that include, but are not limited to, the cost and complexity of the citizenship process. Naturalized citizens have higher income, generate more taxes, connect with their neighbors more easily, and assume their full rights and responsibilities in this country, to proudly say “America is Home”.
Cities for Citizenship is a collaboration co-chaired by the mayors of Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York that was established to promote large-scale naturalization campaigns in metropolitan areas with large immigrant populations. Participating metropolitan areas in Cities for Citizenship include Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chattanooga, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, Nashville, New York City, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Redding, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. Broward County is an ideal location for the Cities for Citizenship initiative due to its considerable immigrant population and the extensive existing network of profit, nonprofit, and governmental organizations that currently and capably work towards reducing the barriers that deter lawful permanent residents from becoming citizens. Moreover, the Board of County Commissioners, currently already supports naturalization programs with the Florida Immigrant Coalition and the Community Access Center, which have processed citizenship applications for approximately 3,000 individuals, 85% of whom were eligible for fee waivers.
This item seeks to authorize the County Administrator and staff to take the necessary budgetary and administrative actions in order to allow Broward County to become a participating community in the Cities for Citizenship Initiative.
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