Immigration

We are a nation of immigrants past and immigrants present. Since the formation of the United States of America, immigrants have made our country what it is today. However, our current immigration system is broken, and we must fix it.

Since being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, I have been a strong advocate for comprehensive immigration reform. I know first-hand the benefits that reforming our system will bring to the Valley. I support policies that will modernize our broken immigration system in the 21st century by securing our borders, tackling the immigration backlog, keeping families together, and improving the process to earn a pathway to citizenship. Continuing the status quo is unacceptable and we must act now. I will not stop fighting until we enact comprehensive immigration reform. 

Latest Efforts

• To address the VISA backlog: I voted to pass the Fiscal Year 2022 budget, which provided $275 million to the U.S. Citizenship, and Immigration Services (USCIS) to help alleviate visa backlogs and streamline asylum cases.

• In July 2022, Costa joined the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in an effort calling on the U.S. Senate to pass the Farmworker Modernization Act, and American Dream and Promise Act. Two pieces of legislation have passed the House.

• In February 2022, Costa joined his colleagues in a letter to the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services to request improvements to the USCIS Contact Center, which would improve accessibility and efficiency to schedule appointments on pending immigration cases. 

• In November 2021, Costa joined 88 of his colleagues in a letter urging Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate President Pro Tempore Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-IL) to reinstate a pathway to citizenship in the Build Back Better Act.

Legislation

• Original co-sponsor of H.R.1603 - Farm Workforce Modernization Act, groundbreaking legislation that would provide a path to legal residency for nearly 250,000 California farm workers. This bill contains provisions establishing a certified agricultural worker (CAW) status and changing the H-2A temporary worker program. This bill passed the House.

• Original co-sponsor of H.R. 6 – American Dream and Promise Actaims to protect our nation’s Dreamers and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) holders, by providing them a pathway to citizenship. This bill passed the House.

• Introduced and an original co-sponsor of H.R. 2571 - AMIGOS Act, which would grant Portuguese citizens eligibility for E-1 and E-2 Visas, which allow individuals to enter the United States to conduct “substantial trade” or invest a “substantial amount of capital” respectively. This bill passed the House.

• Co-sponsored H.R. 1177 - U.S. Citizenship Act, which would establish a new system to responsibly manage and secure our border, keep our families and communities safe, and better manage migration across the Hemisphere.

• Co-sponsored and passed H.R. 1333 – NO BAN Act, which would strengthen the Immigration and Nationality Act to prohibit discrimination based on religion and limit the broad executive authority to issue future travel bans. This bill passed the House.

• Passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2022, which authorized $500 million to support the relocation of Special Immigrant Visa-holders and at-risk Afghans in honor of our commitment to those, who at great risk, supported the U.S. mission in Afghanistan. This bill was signed into law by President Biden.