Pro US immigration reform committees gain financial support

November 26 2009 by Liam Clifford

US immigration groups that are in favor of reform are attracting more funding.

Two political action committees (PACs) in the US, which are in support of US immigration reform, have attracted more funding from sponsors than PACs that are anti-immigration, according to a new report by the Associated Press.

ImmigrationPAC and Immigrants’ List both agree that reform should take place to allow some illegal immigrants to be able to become US citizens and live in the US permanently and legally.

Both PACs have been operating for just four years but have raised a total of $100,000 during this election cycle so far. Although this represents a small amount in comparison to some PACs, it beats the amount raised by PACs that support immigration enforcement only, who have seen donations fall dramatically, indicating a shift in public opinion about US immigration policy.

ImmigrationWorks USA, a federation of small organisations that support the path to citizenship model, welcomed the news. Tamar Jacoby, who heads up the federation, said, "even a small amount of pro-immigration reform PAC money, pro-immigration muscle, makes it a two-sided debate."

To highlight the change in public support, the PAC Americans Against Illegal Immigration said the group raised $850,000 in the 2008 election cycle but is “mostly dormant right now.”

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