'...The package easily passed the Republican-controlled House of Representatives earlier this week. But action in the Senate was delayed as some conservative Republicans pressed for votes on immigration and other topics. They all failed. ...'
'...The Biden administration on Monday asked the Supreme Court to block Texas from enforcing an immigration law known as SB4 that would allow state law enforcement officials to arrest migrants suspected of crossing into the U.S. without authorization. One of the most far-reaching state immigration laws in modern U.S. history, SB4 would empower Texas law enforcement officials to stop, jail and prosecute migrants on state criminal charges of illegal entry or reentry. It would also allow state judges to issue de facto deportation orders against suspected violators of the law. ...'
'Street vendors can more easily get local health permits...Immigrant students will have improved access to in-state tuition at public colleges and universities, and to ESL courses at community colleges. Additionally, immigrant student borrowers will have more options to finance their college educations. ...An alternate plea scheme will be created for defendants charged with drug offenses'
'...California will welcome the new year by becoming the first state to offer health insurance for all undocumented immigrants. Starting Jan. 1, all undocumented immigrants, regardless of age, will qualify for Medi-Cal, California's version of the federal Medicaid program...'
'...The California Senate on Tuesday voted to pay $300 weekly checks to unemployed illegal immigrants even as the state faces a roughly $31.5 billion deficit and mass illegal immigration. Democratic state senators passed Senate Bill 227 by Sen. María Elena Durazo (D.) with a 30-7 vote...'
'...The California Dream for All Shared Appreciation Loans program that launched last March by the California Housing Finance Agency offered qualified first-time home buyers with a loan worth up to 20% of the purchase price of a house or condominium. The loans don’t accrue interest or require monthly payments. ...'
'Instead of rushing the Texas border, the program lets immigrants use the administration’s app to pick a destination, buy an airline ticket, and fly in unseen on what amounts to ghost flights. ...According to the Center for Immigration Studies, which sued the Department of Homeland Security for the documents on the program, over 210,000 have been processed since January. That is a population the size of Rochester, New York...'
'Tennessee will deploy two waves of National Guard troops to the Texas-Mexico border through the spring...Gov. Bill Lee met with deploying National Guard members in Millington, Tennessee, on Saturday, weeks after the governor traveled to the border and pledged to support Texas Gov. Greg Abbott...'
'If Mr. Biden wins a majority of pledged delegates to the Democratic National Convention, as he is virtually certain to do, then no, the party cannot simply decide to nominate someone else. ...'
'...the Office of Personnel Management unveiled new guidance Tuesday that would offer new pay and benefits incentives for hiring potential talent versed in the emerging technology.
The guidance, which follows an October executive order on AI, provides federal agencies with a series of recruitment, retention, relocation and other hiring flexibilities to make it easier to bring aboard and keep AI talent. ...'
'...A federal appeals court in Washington has ordered a new sentence for a retired Air Force officer who stormed the U.S. Capitol dressed in combat gear, in a ruling issued Friday that could impact dozens of other cases stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. ...a judge wrongly applied an enhancement that lengthened the recommended prison sentence range under federal guidelines. The enhancement — on the grounds that Brock’s conduct resulted in “substantial interference with the administration of justice” — has been applied in more than 100 other Jan. 6 defendants’ cases'
