Testimony of Former ICE Director Tom Homan at the Georgia Capitol Feb 10, 2023 - Transcript

Former ICE Director, Tom Homan in the Georgia Capitol, Feb 10, 2023.

The below video and transcript is from a hearing in the Senate Committee on Interstate Cooperation at the Georgia Capitol on Friday, February 10, 2023. The hearing was three hours long. This segment is the testimony of former Acting ICE Director, Tom Homan who was the final witness of the day.

Senate Media Release here.

Liberal Atlanta Journal Constitution coverage here.

Access to video here See “2-10-23” and go to 239:26 on the slide/counter

Transcript by Rev.com. My cost: $68.00 and about three hours.

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Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Yeah. Um, the, uh- the next person we’re gonna have, this’ll be the last person in this line of testimony, is Mister Tom Homan, uh, the former Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director.

Mr. Homan, we give you, uh, our sincere Georgia apologies for the delay today in our schedule.

Director Tom Homan:

So, I appreciate the invite. Um, after I make my remarks, I just wanna go over a few data points specific to Georgia that we have researched. I want to show them with you, uh, and take an extra f- couple minutes.

So, let’s- uh, uh, let’s look at borders as- as what is going on. First of all, where I come from, I was a cop in New York, joined the Border Patrol in 1984. I’ve been enforcing immigration law for 35 years. I was the first director that came up through the ranks. I was nominated by President Trump. I’ve worked for six presidents, starting with Ronald Reagan. Every president I worked for cared about s- border security. They all, they all campaigned on it. They all took steps to secure the border ’cause they recognized you can’t have national security without border security. Even President Obama, President Clinton, took steps to secure the border.

Matter of fact, under President Obama in FY12, I was the third in command of ICE. We removed a record number of illegal aliens, 409,000. No one did more than President Trump to secure the border. Illegal immigration was down 83%, a 45-year low. The data’s clear. It’s not my opinion. Anybody go to CBP website and look at the data. 83% decline, 45-year low.

President Biden’s the first president in the history of this nation who came into office and unsecured the border. That’s just a fact. I mean, when you- when- when you- when you promise you’re gonna put a moratorium on deportations, when you promise they won’t be detained, when you promise they can get work authorization, when you promise you can get free healthcare, when you promise that I’m gonna give you amnesty, when you make those type of promises, the most vulnerable people in the world are gonna make this trip to come to the greatest country on earth, and many of them will put themselves in the arms of criminal cartels who will abuse them.

So regardless of what anybody’s … I’m an immigration enforcement guy, but regardless of anybody’s opinion on immigration enforcement, good, bad, indifferent, what this administration has done has caused such a crisis, such large numbers. We went from 83 … 45-year low to historic numbers crossing the border we’ve never seen in the history of this nation. When you do that to the Border Patrol, it overwhelms them to the point that many sectors, up to 70 to 80%, that’s right, 70 to 80% of agents are pulled from the line, patrol, to process these big groups.

They’re criminal cartels, as you heard previously from Jason. They’ll push a group of 200 families to one area, knowing that whatever’s left on the border, which is very few of them, will seize to that area to deal with that humanitarian crisis, ’cause a lot of people are in bad shape and they need immediate medical care. The cartels create gaps.

So when you overwhelm the Border Patrol, 80% [inaudible 00:03:11], remember there’s 15,000 Haitians under the bridge, they pulled every agent from that sector in to deal with that. There was 204 miles of border unguarded for days. Cartels know exactly what they’re doing.

So when you create such a huge crisis like that, humanitarian crisis, what that causes is the border be vulnerable to drug crossing the border, criminals crossing the border, and also threat to terrorist, it’s a huge vulnerability, and let me- let … I don’t wanna understate that. Border patrol’s arrested 151 people from- that are o- who’re on the terrorist watch list, known, suspected terrorists. 151 since Joe Biden’s been in office. Border Patrol’s arrested people from 171 different countries. Many of these countries are sponsors of terrorism. There’s 1.2 million recorded got-aways, 1.2 million. If you don’t think a single one of that 1.2 million came from a country that sponsors terrorism, you’re ignoring the data. It’s just- it’s- it’s a real percentage.

So what this administration does has created not only humanitarian crisis, they created a public safety crisis. Border Patrol’s arrested over 70,000 convicted criminals. That’s who they arrested. Over 100 of them convicted of homicide. 71,000 criminals. 151 known suspected terrorists. And here’s [inaudible 00:04:29] 1.2 million got-aways. You heard it before. Why wouldn’t they turn themselves into Border Patrol, be processed, get a free airline ticket to the city of their choice, apply for work authorization, spend a couple years fighting their case, why would you not take advantage of that give-away program? Why did you choose to pay the cartels extra money to get away?

This is simple. They don’t wanna be vetted. They don’t wanna be fingerprinted. I’m not saying every one of them a criminal, but there’s a reason they tried to escape and ma- and 1.2 million did. That should scare the hell outta everybody. It does me.

So this is what we’re presented with today, and- and, uh, in, uh … how’s it affect Georgia? Look, there’s certain things Georgia can do. When I was down at the border, I can tell you right now that fentanyl’s going to every town, city, and state in this country. It’s coming to Georgia. Criminal aliens, some of them are coming to Georgia. Non-criminal aliens, they’re coming to Georgia. Why- why I think a lot of criminal aliens are coming to Georgia, one of the reasons why, your sanctuary city policies. Sanctuary city policies are a driver. Criminals know they can come, commit a crime, they’ll get arrested and they’ll do jail time, but they won’t be deported, ’cause sanctuary cities refuse to work with ICE.

But I hear the argument all the time, “Sanctuary cities is necessary ’cause you want victims and witnesses of a crime to come forward and not be afraid to talk to the sheriff.” It’s garbage. ICE isn’t looking for victims and witnesses. ICE wants to talk to the bad guys sitting in the jail cell that the local department decided to lock into a jail cell. That’s who they wanna talk to. They don’t wanna talk to victim, witness. Matter of fact, if they knew there’s a victim, he can actually get a visa as a victim of crime. So they want access to the bad guy. That’s all they want.

So this- the misnomer that drives immigrants away from working with law enforcement, that’s because of the mismessaging from the- from the open border advocates. We just need [inaudible 00:06:26] what- what is ICE doing in our jail? To take the bad guy off the street. You go to any neighborhood watch, immigrant community, and ask ’em, “Do you want pedophiles in your neighborhood? Do you want someone convicted of DUI 10 times in your neighborhood?”

Most people that come to this country legally, once they get here, are law-abiding. There’s family people, God-fearing people. They don’t want criminals [inaudible 00:06:50] either. They wanna protect their families. If you ask ’em, “Would you rather have ICE in the jail or in your neighborhood?” They’re gonna say the jail. So let me tell what sanctuary city policies do: Undermi- … When I was the director, 91% of everybody we arrested was a convicted criminal or pending criminal charges, which means we found ’em in a county jail. 91%. Nine out of 10.

Now, who is that other 9%? The other 9% were collaterals. You know where most collateral arrests are made? Sanctuary cities. Sanctuary jurisdictions. Why is that? Because when ICE can’t arrest a bad guy in the jail, they’re gonna do the job, which means now [inaudible 00:07:26] will find ’em. And here’s the downside of that. When he finds him, they’re probably gonna find others. And they’re not gonna walk away from the others. They’re here illegally, they’re gonna get- they’re gonna get locked up. So that’s where most of your other arrests come from.

I’ll argue this. When- in- when ICE can’t arrest a bad guy in the jail, now they gotta go to the neighborhood and find him on his turf where he has access to what- who knows what weapons. When you release- when you knowingly release a criminal alien back to the street, back to the neighborhood, they’re likely to re-offend in the very community which they live, the immigrant community.

So- so the- the sanctuary policy, number one, puts the immigrant community at greater risk of crime. Do you think that victim witness wants a bad guy back in their neighborhood? No. [inaudible 00:08:07] greater risk of crime, [inaudible 00:08:09] of a greater risk to ICE risk, and now ICE is back in their neighborhoods. It puts the officers at greater risk. Sanctuary city policies don’t make sense. These people are in the country illegally. There’s nothing in the Immigration and Nationality Act, the laws I enforce, that say you must commit a crime to be deported. No. You’re in the country illegally. And that’s the message we oughta stop sending, ’cause if all you keep sending that message, it’s okay, it’s just illegal immigration, the more people are coming over, so the border crisis.

The reason I didn’t go 120 mile-an-hour down the highway to get here, I’m afraid I’m gonna get a speeding ticket. The reason I don’t lie on my taxes, I don’t wanna get- I don’t wanna get- I don’t wanna get charged with tax evasion. When you enter the country illegally, you should know you did something wrong. You shouldn’t feel safe and secure. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. But understand, we can’t go arrest 20 million. I get that. That’s why we prioritize. 91% under my administration.

Now look at the current administration, it’s like 40%, because they’re dealing so much with this crisis on the border. That’s why we need access to the jails. If people want ICE to prioritize, they wanna prioritize more the criminals and public safety threats, then don’t lock us out of the jail.

Georgia has a lot of sanctuary cities in the state. Frankly, I’m disappointed in your governor [inaudible 00:09:27]. I saw when he first ran, he’s gonna take his pickup truck and pick ’em up. I haven’t seen him do much since then.

Let me- let me tell you what’s happening in Georgia. Not only because of sanctuary city policies, but even the Biden administration now has refused, ICE can’t release the majority of the criminals. Out of the criminals that were arrested when I was the director, about 80% of them are off the table now. They’re not called a priority. Domestic violence, not- domestic violence risk, not a priority. DUIs, not a priority. Burglary, not a priority.

So between the Biden administration cutting off ICE at the knees that took most of the crimes off the table, and sanctuary cities, let me tell you where Georgia’s at. 10 states experienced an extreme decline in enforcement of greater than 80%. Georgia ranks number three. The high volume counties with the steepest decline in removals, loc- of locally arrested criminals that were turned over to ICE, Gwinnett- Gwinnett County, Georgia, ranks right at the top.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

What- what county’s that?

Director Tom Homan:

Gwinnett.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Okay.

Director Tom Homan:

Let me go to the states, let me go to the counties. First of all, Georgia, number of ICE removals for locally arrested criminal aliens, Georgia’s down 82%. Huge. Gordon County, Georgia, down 95%. Bartow, Georgia, down 94%. Barrow, Georgia, down 94%. Chatham, Georgia, down 91%. Gwinnett, Georgia, 90% down. Cobb, Georgia, 83% down. Coweta, Georgia, C-O-W-E-T-A, Georgia, down 90%. Henry, Georgia, down 90%. I’m not putting this all on the sheriffs, ’cause a lot has to do with this administration taking certain criminals off the table that ICE can no longer put detainer on. But that’s the position Georgia’s in.

[inaudible 00:11:20] just came out by the Center of Immigration Studies, just a long, great, uh, data analysis. This is great. This is- this is accurate information. So if you’re asking me what Georgia can do to help with the border crisis, outlaw sanctuary cities. Sanc- sanctuary cities are sanctuaries for the criminal aliens. They’re not a sanctuary for [inaudible 00:11:38], they’re not a sanctuary for the citizens, they’re not sanctuaries for law-abiding, I use that term, you know, law-abiding, people are in a country legally, that- that obey the law after they’re here and try to raise their families, it’s not a- it’s not a sanctuary for them. It’s the sanctuaries for the criminals who ICE can’t get in jail to arrest.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Mister Homan.

Director Tom Homan:

With that, I’ll leave the questions.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Um, you said under the current administration, ICE, um, doesn’t worry about certain crimes, right?

Director Tom Homan:

ICE does, but the administration don’t allow them to, uh, uh, either put a detainer on them or arrest them.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Right. So wh- when I talk to law enforcement across the state and- and they pull over traffickers or smugglers, they say when they call ICE, they don’t answer the phone. They said back when Trump was president, they would call ICE and ICE took care of business, but today that doesn’t take place. I- is that across the board for all crimes? Or has this administration pick and chose which crimes those are?

Director Tom Homan:

They pick and choose what- what- what is called priority, uh, that ICE can spend time working on. As far as [inaudible 00:12:44], I heard- I heard the same thing across the country. But it’s sad because a lot of these [inaudible 00:12:49] trafficking cases that ICE should respond to. If trafficking’s really an issue, really a priority for this administration, they should demand ICE respond to those calls. But they don’t.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

So of- of all of ICE’s resources, how many of those are at the southern border versus other ports and other places in the country?

Director Tom Homan:

It depends on the- the flow at the border. They- they’ve had- they’ve had thousands down there. They’ve had hundreds down there. Depends on the flow. But- but here’s- here’s- here’s the truth about what the Biden administration has done. They mismessaged the American people. We need to further prioritize a smaller population of the most significant criminals because of a lack of resources. There is no lack of resources. In FY12 when President Obama, ICE arrested and removed 409,000 people. Now, with more agents than we’ve ever had, more immigration judges than we’ve ever had, they removed 59,000 last year. A fraction of the 409,000. So show me where the lack of resources is. This is about this administration opening the border up and at the same time, shutting down interior enforcement. That’s why- that’s why you don’t see- that’s why you see so many being- people being released.

ICE has thousands of beds empty right now, already paid for by the taxpayer, paid for by the taxpayer, sitting empty at about 100 bucks a night. But they rather [inaudible 00:14:12] in jail 300 bucks a night to put in a hotel. Why is that?

Well, I’ll tell you why that is. Immigration court data says nine out of 10 of people that claim asylum at the southern border never get relief from US courts. [inaudible 00:14:25] they don’t qualify. Nine out of 10. So that nine out of 10 will get an order of removal from a federal judge. The Homeland Security [inaudible 00:14:33] report, the secretary’s very own report, says this, “If you get an order of remove and you’re in ICE detention, you get removed 99% of the time. If you’re not in ICE detention and you [inaudible 00:14:43], you leave 6% of the time. If you’re [inaudible 00:14:46], 83% of the time. There’s a reason [inaudible 00:14:49], because they don’t want ’em removed.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Senator Robertson…

Sen. Robertson:

Director, thank you for being here. I appreciate that. Um, I recognize that accent. And, uh, so the best pronunciation of a lot of those counties, you’re forgiven.

Director Tom Homan

(laughs)-

Director Tom Homan:

Thank you, Sen- thank you.

Sen. Robertson:

Uh, dude, I got some- I got some good buddies with NYPD and- and- and, uh, um, off the mic, we have some very, uh, unique and spicy conversations back-and-forth to each other about each other’s, uh, perceived accents.

Um, now, talking about the sanctuary cities, I know the Florida governor, um, passed some legislation and- and full disclosure, the department I worked at, we got a little, small jail that holds about a thousand individuals and we had a really good relationship with our friends over at, uh- at ICE and- and they would come in and do the interviews and then we have a detention center not far in Lumpkin, Georgia, where individuals will be transported over and- and the planes would fly out of our Columbus Metropolitan Airport, carrying individuals back to the state of Texas so that they could be reunited with their, uh- where- with their families back home, those that were over here, um, illegally, or those that were being deported because of criminal activity and- and- and other things.

So, um, the- what has been the response of those … I know, I think, Florida passed the legislation not too long ago where Governor DeSantis signed legislation outlawing sanctuary cities in Florida. Do you know overall what the response has been to those communities that promote sanctuary?

Director Tom Homan:

They pretty much outlawed all of these … there’s still a couple sanctuary cities left, sanctuary jurisdictions, and th- and the state’s working on it. Uh, I asked that question, I was over there two months ago. They said that they gotten rid of most of them. There’s a few more left that they’re- they’re- they’re not forgetting about, they’re gonna go after. Texas also passed a law outlawing sanctuary cities and it’s working very well. And look, the- the- your average-

Director Tom Homan:

The average deputy, the average cop, they want ICE in the neighborhood because not only do they improve that public safety trust in the neighborhoods, they can remove [inaudible 00:00:11]. And, uh, and I’m disappointed in some sheriffs here in Georgia who, who said, “Well, I’m gonna have a sanctuary city. And I’m gonna kick 287G out of my jails, because I find it racially discriminating.”

I don’t understand that. The 287G program is colorblind. Everybody that gets booked in that jail gets through the system. If I get arrested tonight, in a 287G county, when they run my fingerprints through NCIC, it also bounces against DHS database and [inaudible 00:00:38] my record, ICE knows about it.

So, I’ve said it before, I think some sheriffs should give their role as a law enforcement officer and, and, and trying to protect those [inaudible 00:00:50], which you’re supposed to do, and, and, and fold to the political pressure from the left. And I, I hate to see that.

Senator Robertson:

Well, in, in, in, in response to that, I will point out that the state of Georgia, as conservative as we are, we do have some pockets of, uh, cities that are very liberal. And I know you experienced it in your home state too, where if I go up to, uh, upstate New York, I meet a lot of that have the same political leanings as I do. But when I get closer down to the, to the apple, things start getting a little different.

So we do have those. And-

Director Tom Homan:

We don’t claim anything south pawed.

Senator Robertson:

(laughs) And to be clear, um, this is not… Someone reaches out to, to your department, this is not some jackboot response where individuals come in, demand to be allowed into the jail, and go in there. Again, jurisdictional, uh, boundaries are always adhered to and no matter what is written in the media, uh, 99% of the time one cop, no matter what agency he’s with, works very well with another cop, no matter, no matter what agency he’s with.

And we understand the job of each other, and, and we tend to lean in and try to work together and get things done. And that’s always been the relationship we’ve had with federal agencies, even beyond ICE, with FBI, DEA, ATF, everybody.

And that, that, that understanding of cooperation has to be there so that we can solve our problems, our local problems, our state problems, and our federal problems, because a lot of times those local and… Or state and local problems, uh, many times come from outside of our state borders, like what we heard from other witnesses testimony, where a lot of these individuals are carried into Houston, Harris County, Texas, and then find their way over here to Fulton County, Georgia.

So uh, I appreciate all the hard work you did. I was, uh… I, I shot a message down there to the chairman. We, we need to get the stats you have for those individuals in, in the counties. I’m not going be able to pronounce ’em the way you did, but, uh, we do need to address that. That’s a serious problem.

Director Tom Homan:

I’ll hand, I’ll hand these over to the chairman before I leave.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

I’d appreciate that Mr. Homan. And, and if you could think of two things that Georgia could do, um, to stop this crisis other than the sanctuary cities, what else would it be?

Director Tom Homan:

You’ve got to make it uncomfortable for criminal aliens and traffickers to come to Georgia. There’s a lot of things you can do. You can [inaudible 00:03:24]-

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

So 287G.

Director Tom Homan:

287-

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

I mean, to my understanding-

Director Tom Homan:

E- expand 287, 287G. [inaudible 00:03:30].

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

To my understanding there’s no teeth in that, Senator Robertson. Like if the, if a law enforcement agency doesn’t abide by 287G, there’s, there’s nothing that comes about that, right?

Senator Robertson:

Well, it can… That’s right. That’s-

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Right.

Senator Robertson:

Right. You’re exactly right. The, the director understands there’s, there’s gotta be cooperation back and forth. And that’s where they would come in. And, director, you correct anything that I say that’s wrong. But they come in and we have them on local charges.

A lot of times the, the feds allow the local charges. We place a hold called an ICE hold, uh, once the charge- And a lot, and a lot of times, um, depending on the circumstances of what the state charge may be, um, we’ll now proc the state charge to get ’em quicker in the system to get ’em outta the country.

If it’s a serious violation of, of law, we prosecute, but that ICE hold follows. And then that individual walks out of the gate of whatever prison he or she are in they step on a, a nondescript white bus and eventually end up at a deportation center, eventually on an airplane at the taxpayer’s, American taxpayer’s expense, and are given a flight out of the, out of the, to the state of Texas or Arizona then deported.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Mr. Holman, would you, would, would you consider this an invasion?

Director Tom Homan:

Absolutely. And if you want to make it kind of cut [inaudible 00:04:49] for, for illegal immigration to flourish in the state there’s a lot of things you can do. You require e-verified. For any business does, any business that does business with the state of, um, Ala- uh, uh, of Georgia, target business places of employers knowingly hiring illegal aliens. Pass [inaudible 00:05:04] clause for bringing day labor.

Require state and local law enforcement determine immigration status. Then… And then call 24/7 hotline, which ICE has. Prevent sanctuary cities. We just talked about that. Empower state residents to sue official who obstruct federal law enforcement policies. Require the majority of law enforcement agencies to participate in 287G.

Require small rural jurisdictions to enroll in a warrant services officer program. Enrolling law enforcement officers in a one-day training program rather than a four week 287G program allows warrant officers in the smallest jurisdictions to at least serve administrative warrants and execute arrest on behalf of ICE.

Enact laws making it a crime to transport, conceal, induce an illegal alien. Prohibit illegal aliens from receiving drivers licenses, license plates, business licenses. Collect data and publish crimes committed by illegal aliens. Let your tax payers know how much time your law enforcement has been tied up arresting and prosecuting illegal aliens.

Prohibit state and local taxes from funding attorneys for illegal aliens. It’s a, it’s an administrative charge. They have no right to a paid, uh, a paid attorney. Revise the definition of state residents to ensure state residents are clearly defined as legal citizens and lawful aliens.

Prohibit business licenses, contracts, and grants for NGOs. Prevent the big state cost for illegal aliens rightly requiring agencies and social services not to provide social service system for non, noncitizens, non-legal aliens. Require voter ID and clean voter tolls. Sue the federal government for failing to, sue ICE, for failing to do their job.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

So, so you would consider ICE, under the current administration, to be liable for a lot of our problems?

Director Tom Homan:

The administration is. The- they work under the direction of the president of the United States, but this administration made the decision. The Secretary of Homeland Security has decided who ICE can and can’t arrest.

I’ve talked to literally hundred of angel moms and dads who, who lost their children to illegal alien crime and, you know, this, this administration will meet with immigration activists, but they won’t meet with angel moms. And, you know, many of them have filed lawsuits against the administration.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

So you, so you, you think we have claim, uh, as a state of Georgia, uh, to sue the United States government for a failure, uh, of the administration, obviously, because we can say we have an invasion?

Director Tom Homan:

You can sue them for a lot of things, yeah. I, I’ve written affidavits for the state of Texas with Governor Paxton for a 5 and 0. Uh, I’ve written affidavits for the state of Arizona. I’ve written affidavits for the state of Florida, uh, as their expert witness. And, uh, a lot of state AGs are suing this administration and their winning.

So I think as long as this administration refuses, as long as they advocate the responsibility to secure this border, then I think states need to sue. Because what this administration has done is just to unleash, uh, an invasion. Over 100,000 Americans are dead from fentanyl.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Right.

Director Tom Homan:

The DEA says 95% of that fentanyl comes across the southwest border. Over 1,700 migrants have died on US soil since this administration took to office. That’s a record by far. Criminal cartels are making billions of dollars. The, the, the, the increase in sex traffic on women and children are at an all time high. Known suspected terrorists are arrested [inaudible 00:08:16] and that’s not counting 1.2 million [inaudible 00:08:19].

So this administration, in my opinion as a guy who did if for 35 years, has created this crisis, not by accident, not by mismanagement, on purpose. They opened that border up.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Senator Robertson…

Senator Robertson:

Yeah, and to be real quick, something I, I think the director did respond back on and I want to be clear. When we talk about qualified immunity a lot of times, one things we have to remember is, is as disgusted as we may get with what we see we have to understand that are, are friends ICE, our brothers and sisters with customs, or, uh, border patrol, um, they’re acting under the, under the rules and regulations and policies established by the directors of the agency they work for who are acting under the rules and policies established by the, the, the administration who’s put that individual in place.

So, uh, never should we consider the, the those men and women out there wearing the badge, doing the job, whether they’re ICE or, or border patrol folks, as the enemy because they’re not. Um, I think we saw that when the whole, um, split, split reins on a horse during the Haitian bridge crisis was going on that, uh, we’re always ruling quick. Uh, individuals in the United States in the media are always ruling quick to make the law enforcement officer the bad person. And all they are doing is enforcing the laws that are on the books, which they are required and sworn to uphold.

So when we start talking about who is, um, who is liable, it’s, you know, it’s up, it’s way up the chain. That’s where the liability is.

Director Tom Homan:

And I agree with you 100%. I would never advocate for suing a front line officer who’s doing the job that administration tells them to do. I love ICE. I, I love the men and women of border patrol. It’s how I started my career.

14 of them committed suicide last year. And I’m not saying the boarder crisis caused them to take their own lives, but it certainly added to where whatever internal struggles they’re having to see the babies being pulled out of the river and talking, you know…

I’ve talked to girl as young as 10 years old who were raped multiple times by the cartels. I mean, these men and women on the border see horrific things every day. So, you know, God bless each and every one of them for standing on the frontline for us.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Senator McLaurin.

Senator McLaurin.

Thanks, Mr. Chairman. Um, sir, you testified a minute ago that the, it’s your opinion that the administration has created the boarder crisis on purpose. Is that…

Director Tom Homan:

Yeah.

Senator McLaurin.

That’s your view?

Director Tom Homan:

Yes.

Senator McLaurin.

What aspect of it do you feel was intentional by the administration? Uh, the, the crisis and the results themselves or are you saying just their policies that were intentional resulted a crisis?

Director Tom Homan:

President Biden signed over 90 executive orers, order abolishing everything we did on the Trump administration that gave us the most secure border in my lifetime. And he was… The incoming administration was briefed over 200 times my career law enforcement officers, “If you do this, this is what’s gonna happen. If you do this, this is what’s gonna happen.” And they ignored the advice of a career law enforcement officer with decades of service and did it anyways.

Senator McLaurin.

What do you think the president stands to gain from creating a border crisis on purpose?

Director Tom Homan:

You know, I don’t know. I’m asked that question all the time and, and the only thing I can tell you is I think there’s some ideology. It’s off tilt that people think we don’t need borders. And I think also, uh, what President Biden also did when he signed those 90 executive orders is tu- overturned the Trump census rules, which means millions of people will be counted in the census in sanctuary cities, which is gonna cause a reapportionment of seats in the house.

Now, that is my guess, because I’ve said many times… I’ve talked to all… I’ve talked to everybody on The Hill, right? Republicans and Democrats. Said, “Give me the… Can you give me a downside on a secure border? What’s the downside on a secure border? What’s the downside on less drugs coming across, less women being trafficked, less children drowning in a river, 1,700 migrants, less American dying in a drug overdose>? What’s the downside in a secure border? Why would you come into office and make these moves to unsecure the border?” Which they did.

Now, do I think the president wanted people to die? Absolutely not, but that’s the result of what they’ve done on the border to unsecure it.

Senator McLaurin.

Okay. I mean, I just wanted to clarify exactly what you meant by that because I think it’s … I mean, it’s a pretty remarkable thing for a former ICE director to say the president intends a crisis, right?

I mean, there’s, there’s definitely talking points and media, right wing, left wind, media where people might say something that serious, uh, but, you know, we’re, we’re sitting up here as colleagues from different parties. You served under by part- you know, different administrations, uh, administrations of different parties. It just struck me as a remarkable accusation to say the president-

Director Tom Homan:

[inaudible 00:12:55].

Senator McLaurin.

… intends a crisis and so that’s why I wanted to clarify exactly what you meant.

Director Tom Homan:

I appreciate that. He created this crisis.

Senator McLaurin.

Thank you.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Senator Robertson, do you have any more questions for Mr. Homan?

Senator Robertson:

No, I just, I just wanna… I appreciate your career. Appreciate your dedication to, to the federal government first, but I appreciate your dedication to law enfor- I mean, second. I appreciate your dedication to law enforcement and wearing the badge first.

And, um, the 20 executive orders, I, I find disturbing. And a lot of the things that, that you talk about, um, all come about with aggressive enforcement of laws not only to those here illegally, but to individual born and raised in these communities. And if we’d just enforce the law fairly and justly across the board no matter to whom or, or, or, or what time of day of night, then I think we’d find out we have a much greater country. But thank you again for your service.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Mr. Homan, um, I, I wanna talk about suing the United States because when state troopers come up to me and they say, “We pulled over an illegal alien and there’s nothing we can do about it,” I’m concerned because there’s no higher law enforcement for them to call.

Obviously, when we started this hearing we talked about the cost both financially, you know… I mean, my school superintendents are upset because, you know, they’re having to use county tax dollars to do something they didn’t anticipate doing, right? We also have the humanity cost of it, the, the sex trafficking, all of that.

So, in your opinion, what would you specifically as the state of Georgia sue the United States for? I- i- is it ICE? Is it the FBI? Is it border patrol? Is it just the administration in general?

Director Tom Homan:

The administration. uh, the Florida AGS sued the administration. Uh, the Texas AGS sued the administration. Missouri AGS sued the administration. Uh, Texas, Arizona, Missouri, and Florida. They’re the ones I know of right now. Um, I’d have your AG reach out to any of those, uh, folks and find out how they went about it.

Uh, I can off- I can put you in touch with, uh, groups in DC who I’ve assisted with those AGs with the legal, uh, rama- you know, the legal arguments. Immigration Reform Law Institute, uh, they have attorneys that have worked with Texas and Florida, uh, and Arizona. Uh, so certainly-

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

And how do… Do you know how they, how they sued? I mean, did they just calculate the cost?

Director Tom Homan:

Well, there’s, there’s a lot of, you know, they sue them for the cost of the states. You know, the burden of cost that your, your, the state of Georgia is having because of this influx, and, and that, you know, failure to insecure the border has cost your state how much money? Whether it’s, you know, you know, hospitals are owed million of dollars or your school systems, or your social services system, or police services.

Um, I’m not a lawyer. I can just tell you that, uh, when I wrote affidavits for the state of Texas more like, more about, you know, criminal aliens in their state and how many crimes they committed, and, and how they got into the United States, and the failure of, of, of the administration to take custody of them. So, um, I can certainly put you in touch with the right people who can talk to your attorney general and find out what options he has.

Sen. Colton Moore, Chairman:

Mr. Homan, we’d appreciate that and we’d also appreciate the, uh, the stats. Uh, we will put them, uh, into the record of this committee as well. Um, thank you for making a trip here. I know you were in, in Washington yesterday. So we certainly appreciate that.

Um, to the two senators, uh, who participated in this hearing I wanna, uh, give my sincere gratitude to you, uh, for, uh, asking questions in a bipartisan way so that we may have a better understanding, uh, of this, this human cost in crisis, uh, that faces our state.

So, uh, with that this, uh, committee is adjourned. And, um, look forward to seeing you in the future.”

GOP Gov. Brian Kemp (center) at the CRSA “New Americans” celebration event in the GA Capitol, Feb, 2023

SB 264 (and HB 640) would allow foreign nationals who are Refugees, “Special Visa Immigrants” and recipients of “Humanitarian Parole” (see also Biden’s parole scam) to move to Georgia and immediately access instate tuition rates. Americans migrating to our state would still be required to be residents for a year before they are allowed to pay instate tuition in our public colleges. The same bill died last year as HB 932. We had hoped the House would let us see who would vote for it.

Please read Inger’s terrific column from that adventure here.

Related: Federal court rules the Biden parole scam was illegal. And Biden won’t appeal.

We may want SB 264 to go to the Republican-controlled Senate floor next year – in order to see who votes “yes” in an election year. But we don’t want it to be used as a floor amendment this year because even the Republican co-sponsors of the Democrat bill don’t understand it. They do seem to know the Georgia Chamber of Commerce wants it passed.

Related: For academic year 2020-2021, the average tuition & fees for Colleges in Georgia was $4,739.00 for in-state and $17,008.00 for out-of-state. Americans who relocate here would pay the higher amount in their first year of residence. The foreigners there catagories listed above would pay the lower amount. That is a difference of $12,260.90.

Here are the sponsors of SB 264:

1. Jackson, Kim (D)	41st
2.	Dugan, Mike (R)	30th
3.	Butler, Gloria (D)	55th
4.	Payne, Chuck (R)	54th
5.	Hickman, Billy (R)	4th
6.	Halpern, Sonya (D)	39th

The below transcript from the March 16, Senate Higher Education committee hearing on SB 264 which was dropped after Crossover Day, 2023. There is a companion bill, HB 640.

Video here. See March 16, 2023

Transcript by Rev.com

My cost $50.00 and about 3 hours.
Note: The Coalition of Refugee Services (CRSA) sent out an action alert on March 20, 2023 telling their supporters to contact the senate and ask this bill be passed. You can sign up for alerts from the CRSA here.

Sen. Kim Jackson (L) SB 264 sponsor – Darlene Lynch, Coalition of Refugee Services (CRSA) & Chair of Business and Immigration for Georgia (BIG).

Begin bill presentation in Senate Higher Education committee:

Sen. Kim Jackson (D- bill sponsor)

Uh, and we were working off of Senate bill 264, which is LC500510.

Senate Higher Ed committee Chairman, Sen. Billy Hickman

You’re totally good.

Sen Jackson:

All right, thank you. And I- I want to begin by thanking the chairman for allowing us to have this hearing. This is, um, such an important conversation for us to begin. And so, um, as you can see from the sign that was there, uh, many people who are very much interested and invested in this issue. Um, so very briefly, what this bill does is that it allows people who are resettled here in Georgia via a special immigration status, so what we’re talking about specifically are people who served, um, and helped our military in Afghanistan. Um, people who have been, um, clearly on our side when it’s come to those wars.

They’ve come here with special immigrant status and this bill would allow them to receive in-state tuition, uh, upon being resettled here. I think it’s important to note that none of those folks that have come here have come from another state. They don’t have another state where they could get in-state tuition, right? Oftentimes, this is what we’re thinking about. We’re like, “Oh, we don’t want somebody who lives in South Carolina, say, um, where they could get in-state South Carolina tuition, we don’t want them coming to Georgia and getting our in-state tuition.”

For people who come here who are resettled by our federal government, folks who have been our friends, who have gone through extreme amounts of trauma and yet still been dedicated to, uh, this country, people who are resettled here, this is their home state. This is in-state for them. And so, this bill would allow those who have a Humanitarian Parole status, a special immigrant status, to be able to continue their education and to do that in a way that’s affordable by receiving in-state tuition. If, with that, there are a lot of people who signed up. And so I- I’m happy to yield as much time, um, to them, if that would be helpful, Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Hickman:

Can I ask a, ask a quick question?

Sen. Jackson

Oh, please.

Chairman Hickman:

Um, uh, s- I think, um, maybe Senator Payne and I had a conversation about Dalton, Georgia, and, you know, the Hispanic population, adult and- and- and so forth, and the parents of refugees, but children… I guess the children are also refugees in the school system out there. And [inaudible 00:02:27] when they graduate from the school system, they don’t qualify for in-state tuition. Is- is that a part of all this?

Sen Jackson:

So actually, that’s a separate bill, um, so, and- and one certainly that I hope many of us will support in the future. Um, so, ch- the children that you’re referring to, um, often have DACA status. So, um, they are children who- who came with parents of their own- no- no accord of their own, right? These children are… these young adults, these are, these are young adults or- or children, they’re coming here, um, with legal status from day one.

Um, they, on day one, uh, not only did they come here with legal status on day one, they were picked out, right, from Afghanistan, from the countries that they were, um, and recognized and acknowledged as having either assisted the US military a- as interpreters or, um, being people who are extreme in danger of being harmed because of their, um, support to the US military. So these folks arrived on day one with legal status in our state as a special immigrant, um, whereas the folks that you’re talking about don’t have legal status.

Chairman Hickman

Ok..[inaudible 00:03:35].

Sen. Jackson:

So this bill would be very clear, very specific, um, to folks with legal status to be here in the state, and this is their home.

Chairman Hickman:

Senator Payne?

Senator Chuck Payne:

Yes. Uh, this, would this apply to, um, my question is, ’cause I- I’m in the military, I- I remember we had a gentleman that was actually, uh, from Nicaragua, and he was serving in, next to us in the first 504th Second Airborne Division. And you know, was s- and I come to realize since then that we have a lot of noncitizens that are serving in our military. And so, would this… For those who are living here, this would allow them, if they were living in Georgia and states [inaudible 00:04:21] and for, that- that would bene- that would help those to access-

Sen. Jackson

I- I’m gonna bring my specialist here. I- I don’t think that’s accurate. I have a different bill, um, f- to allow those folks to become peace officers in our state. But, um, this is Darlene Lynch. She really is my expert who can answer that question definitively.

Senator Payne:

Okay, thank you.

Chairman Hickman,

So again, tell us who you are and-

Darlene Lynch – (Coalition of refugee Services (CRSA):

Sure.

Chairman Hickman:

… then who you represent.

Darlene Lynch:

I’m Darlene Lynch, and I’m a lawyer here in Georgia, and I represent the Business and Immigration for Georgia Partnership. It’s a partnership of, um, refugee and immigrant serving agencies in the business community, um, and so to answer your question, uh, as- as Senator Jackson said, it’s not possible to become eligible after you’re here. You have to be admitted to the United States as a special immigrant visa holder. So a- an interpreter from, um-

Senator Payne:

Oh…[inaudible 00:05:15].

Darlene Lynch:

… Nicaragua would not have that, w- would- would not have that ability. They’d have to be from Afghanistan or Iraq. However, if they were a Humanitarian Parolee, um, approved before coming to Georgia, yes. They- they’d be-

Senator Payne:

Okay. So this is specifically for those in Afghanistan and Iraq?

Darlene Lynch:

And for others who have Humanitarian Parolee, other special immigrant status.

Senator Payne:

Okay. Okay.

Darlene Lynch:

But it’s not something you can-

Senator Payne:

The reason I identified that, because this was [inaudible 00:05:42] Nicaragua was our [inaudible 00:05:44] (laughs).

Darlene Lynch:

[inaudible 00:05:46].

Senator Payne:

And that is always one of those questions that… He- he fled Nicaragua in a very t- tough time and- and joined the military to serve our country.

Darlene Lynch:

Mm-hmm.

Chairman Hickman:

Senator Moore.

Senator Colton Moore:

Uh, thank you, Mr. Chairman. So I’m just trying to understand what a special immigration status is.

Sen. Jackson:

Sure.

Senator Moore:

And, um, if I, if I read it off the US Citizenship and Immigration Services Homeland Security website, it says, “Special immigrant is a noncitizen who qualifies for a green card after meeting certain criteria. So, it doesn’t say anything about assisting the US or the state of Georgia, for that matter.

Sen Moore:

Do you want to [inaudible 00:06:27]?

Darlene Lynch:

So the… We’re… this bill addresses three categories of people: refugees, I think most folks are familiar with the US refugee program that dates back from the Vietnam War, and the Un- and Georgia’s program dates back four decades. Special immigrant visa holders are… There’s three programs that the US government have set up. The oldest program, they’re all referenced in the bill, would apply to interpreters from Iraq and from, um, Afghanistan who served as interpreters and translators for certain periods of time and applied for an SIV and then came here.

The more recent programs, there’s another one for Iraqis, and the most recent one for Afghans, who had supported or acted in a trusted role with the US government. They have to get approved by the- the head of mission, um, and then they apply for an SIV, uh, uh, permit. They wait many, many years, up to three years now, to get that. And then they come. So, all three of those SIV programs are for people who supported the US military or the US mission in those countries. And then the last program is for Humanitarian Parolees.

Sen Jackson:

And just to hopefully alleviate some of your concerns, we do spell out the exact code section in the federal law. If you look in lines, uh, 19, starting line 18 through 22. So we’re not, um, we’re not talking about just special immigrants, but we do specify the exact, um, types of special immigrants that, um, Ms. Lynch just a- Attorney Council Lynch just referred to.

Senator Moore:

Okay. Yeah, I’ll certainly have to go read those. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Hickman:

Okay. Senator Burns?

Senator Burns:

Um, thank you, Mr. Chairman. And- and, uh, thank you to the author and to those who support the legislation. I certainly support the concept. Uh, I think, um, it’s a, it’s worthy for us to acknowledge the service of those who’ve helped our country. A few quick questions. Are other states offering similar benefits? Could you, could you, uh, could you share that and kind of give me an idea of what other states might have chosen to do?

Sen Jackson:

Yes. So, uh, there are other states. Tennessee, um, specifically, uh, Council Lynch might be able to add some more. Um, so, some of this is about clarifying the law. If you, if you look there, um, there is a sentence, um, I’ll see if I can refer to the line, where the Board of Regents is given some opportunity to determine. So if you look at, um, I think line, uh, it started on line 12. 12 through 14, um, the Board of Regents has some leeway already written into the law, and so in other states like Tennessee, um, they’ve actually chosen to interpret, um, that those who come as Humanitarian Parolees, who come with these SIVs, that they’re, that they qualify.

They didn’t necessarily… They then interpreted that and decided to have that kind of generous read already. So I know that’s one example, if, uh, Councilor Lynch can offer more.

Darlene Lynch:

Right. And so, different states are doing it different ways, but right now, there are 10 states who passed similar legislations. And some of them include Colorado, V- Virginia, Ohio, Wisconsin, Vermont, both Democrat, Republican states, and now there are five pending, including in Utah as the most recent one. Um, similar legislation to this bill.

Senator Burns:

And thank you. Uh, another followup, Mr.- Mr. Chairman? Uh, how many students do you feel would be a part of this qualifying group?

Sen Jackson:

Yeah, thank you so much for that question, and- and that’s something we’re trying to kind of get a han- handle on. And we’re not, we’re not 100% sure. But we believe it’ll be somewhere in the hundreds. So two, three-

Senator Burns:

You said we’re talking hundreds, not thousands, probably?

Sen Jackson:

We’re not talking, we’re not talking thousands at all. We’re talking somewhere in the hundreds.

Senator Burns:

All right. And then one more. I apologize, Mr. Chairman. But, uh, have you had these discussions with USG and TCSG?

Sen Jackson:

Absolutely. And those s-

Senator Burns:

And are- are they… I- I would… Their response, how do they feel about it?

Sen Jackson:

We- we’re continuing in those conversations.

Senator Burns:

[inaudible 00:10:26].

Sen jackson:

So those discussions have been ongoing. Um, this legislation, I think the fact that we’re having this conversation, this is a bipartisan piece of legislation that many of you, um, on the majority side have signed on. Um, I think will help us in that conversation.

Senator Burns:

Yeah, yeah, it w- it would impact their tuition, but, uh, I recognize that, uh, um, the- they just need to be a part of the conversation. That’s all I ask.

Sen Jackson:

And- and they are. They absolutely are. Would you like to answer that?

Darlene Lynch:

No, [inaudible 00:10:51].

Sen Jackson:

Okay.

Senator Burns:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Hickman:

Okay. Why- why don’t we bring the company speakers so that they would… Let them have about a minute and a half each.

Sen Jackson:

Excellent.

Chairman Hickman:

And so I’ll- I’ll let you choose.

Sen Jackson:

Um, do you have the list?

Chairman Hickman:

I do.

Sen Jackson:

Actually, I’ve got another list. Do you wanna pick?

Darlene Lynch:

Um, sure.

Sen Jackson:

Which, who’s gonna speak? I think if we have Yonas come first?

Darlene Lynch:

Yes. [inaudible 00:11:13].

Sen Jackson:

Yeah, did you want to testify? (laughs).

Darlene Lynch:

[inaudible 00:11:14].

Sen Jackson:

Well, we’ll begin with Darlene, and then we’ll have Yonas speak.

Darlene Lynch:

[inaudible 00:11:18].

Sen Jackson:

Where do you want them to testify from, Mr. Chairman?

Chairman Hickman:

Yeah?

Sen Jackson:

Where- where would you like… Do you want them to do it from here?

Chairman Hickman:

Oh, sure, right there. Yeah. Go ahead.

Sen Jackson:

Yeah? Yeah. Okay. I’ll switch with you (laughs).

Darlene Lynch:

Um, thank you all, and, uh, for the opportunity to share our support for this bill. Um, and thank you for the sponsors of this bill on this committee. Again, my name’s Darlene Lynch, chair of the Business and Immigration for Georgia Partnership. I want to, um, start by saying this bill arose out of months of work on the House side of a bipartisan study committee on how to maximize Georgia’s global talent. And what we recognized is that one in 10 Georgians is foreign born today. One-tenth of our population. Um, one-seventh of our workforce is foreign born. And yet we have so much talent that we have yet to tape.

And so the Global Talent Study Committee, um, looked at what are the barriers? How can remove the, we remove those barriers? And the number one recommendation was to address the barriers to admission to Georgia public colleges. That was the number one recommendation for really strengthening our workforce. Um, and every member of that committee, both Republicans and Democrats, sponsored the- the bill, the version of the, of the bill you have before you today in the House last year. And that was HB932.

So today, we continue the work, and we have a companion bipartisan bill in the House as well. And that bill is sponsored by Sen- uh, Representative Holcomb and Hitchens, both US veterans. Um, so there’s a lot of support for this bill, um, we’ve been doing a lot of education around this bill. And as I said, it’s part of a national effort to recognize the support that people from other countries have given to our country overseas. I just wanna, uh, clarify a little bit about Georgia’s history, uh, in this, uh, regard. Georgia has a-

Chairman Hickman:

30 seconds.

Darlene Lynch:

Okay. Proud history dating back four decades of welcoming refugees. Um, they’re vetted, screened, and approved by the US, and then resettled with the state of Georgia’s help. We have a state refugee program. And so we resettle a few thousand people every year, including many children and youth who had their education, um, disrupted. The bill makes a very small change, um, as we said, um, to ensure that they are treated as in-state students as soon as they are resettled here, because they have no other state, uh, to go. I’ll end by saying this bill addresses several challenges at once.

Chairman Hickman:

Yes, ma’am. Thank you. That- that’s it. I’m sorry.

Darlene Lynch:

[inaudible 00:13:58]. Okay (laughs). Thank you.

Chairman Hickman:

Sorry. Um, we are short on time…[inaudible 00:14:05]…

Sen Jackson:

Yeah. Um, Yonas, if you could [inaudible 00:14:05].

Chairman Hickman:

Thank you, ma’am. I appreciate that. Give us your name and what you do.

Yonas Abraha:

Yes, sir. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Senator Kim-

Chairman Hickman:

Mm-hmm.

Yonas Abraha – Coalition of Refugee Services (CRSA):

… and Senators, thank you. My name is Yonas Abraha. I am the co-chair for CRSA, which is the Coalition of Refugee, uh, Resettlement, uh, Service Agencies. So CRSA helps the refugee when they arrive here, and the coalition has about 23, uh, different organizations. And before that, if you allow me, I was just sitting here thinking if this would be an opportunity where I come from, I would not have been refugee. So thank you for that. Because most of us end up refugees, leaving our school, our family, everything behind, because of this opportunity democracy offers. So for that, thank you.

So, um, our organization, our coalition supports this bill. The reason we support this bill is as soon as, um, some of the a- agencies receive, they welcome the refugees when they arrive here at the Atlanta Airport. That’s the first airport that they come. Once they come to the airport, the first thing they ask is if they left their school, uh, “I wanna continue my education. I wanna continue my education,” because by doing that is the way for them to give back to the country that has given them opportunity.

And for us to tell them, “Hey, you c- you can’t, you can’t afford it because y- you are considered out of state,” it’s very difficult to explain that, because this is the only state that they have. And a lot of them, they have, s- especially like the Afghanis and now the U- the Ukrainians, they have left s- like, they have certification that they need in order to continue with their career. So for all that reasons, we say this is a fair bill. This is a necessary bill that we needed, because Georgia is one of the best state. I came as a refugee. I’m a [inaudible 00:16:04] refugee.

I came here, went to Cross Hill High School. I went to West Georgia. I went under my undergrad. I like it so much there, I got my master’s from West Georgia. I was even thinking about becoming a professional student, which was not possible, but I like [inaudible 00:16:18]. So, for that, most of Georgians, you know, they help us. For me, for those from my school, for my teachers, all those things I would not have gotten. So we, as the coalition, we are asking for this bill as soon as possible, if it’s possible. Thank you.

Chairman Hickman:

Yes, sir. Thank you. Senator Jackson, one- one more person.

Sen Jackson:

[inaudible 00:16:38]. Just one?

Chairman Hickman:

Yeah. We- we’re running out of time.

Sen Jackson:

[inaudible 00:16:45].

Chairman Hickman:

It’s a great- great presentation. We appreciate them.

Sen Jackson:

[inaudible 00:16:48] fixed here.

Chairman Hickman:

You need to listen up then.

Hassene Alacuzi:

So, thank you.

Chairman Hickman:

Yes, ma’am.

Hassene Alacuzi:

It’s honor to be here and talk about the positive [inaudible 00:17:03]-

Chairman Hickman:

You need to a little louder [inaudible 00:17:03].

Hassene Alacuzi:

… on this bill. I’m Hassene Alacuzi one of the new [inaudible 00:17:08] Afghan refugee in Georgia. I’ve been here for one year and my family relocated here after the Taliban take over the country. Most of my family members are here and we are all excited and motivated to track our career back here. And also we are excited that what the youth provide for us, especially for me as a woman from Afghanistan. Before the Taliban seized in Afghanistan, the number of children out of the school were 3.7. When the Taliban seized in Afghanistan, the Taliban banned women from education.

So the number moved to 6.2 million peoples or children. Today, Afghanistan is the only country that forbidden half of its population from education, which are girls and women. So, the new [inaudible 00:17:59] Afghan and the USA are the only hope of my country. I’m optimistic that one day they leave the country, they break the chain of human right violation, and this inequality of mine, in my country. However, beginning a new life in USA is not easy. We face many challenges.

Since coming to USA or to Georgia, I have been looking for opportunities to obtain my master’s degree in public health in Georgia, and also to support my family financially at the same time. But I couldn’t make this in Georgia. So I didn’t give up. And I lo- I have been, I began looking for opportunities in other state. Uh, happily I made it, and now I’m awarded the prestigious, uh, scholarship of Peter Salama with the School of Johns Hopkins, uh, School of Public Health. And, uh, so, I’m leaving Georgia, but I’m optimistic one day I can be productive to the economy of this country.

Chairman Hickman:

[inaudible 00:19:05].

Hassene Alacuzi:

My second homeland [inaudible 00:19:07].

Chairman Hickman:

Thank you, ma’am. Great. Thank you. Thank you so very much for being here. Um, [inaudible 00:19:12]-

Senator Burns:

Just a, just a quick- quick question, please. First, uh, thank you, thank you for coming and thank you for sharing. Um, where did you, uh, what is your undergraduate work in?

Hassene Alacuzi:

So I did my under-… Ah, yes. I did my undergrad in [inaudible 00:19:23] B- Bachelor of Public Health.

Senator Burns:

Very good.

Hassene Alacuzi:

And then I start working with Minister of Public Health of Afghanistan and then I continue my career with UNICEF or United National Children Emergency Fund as a nutrition officer. And I work with the, uh, Nutrition Emergency and Development program for around five years.

Senator Burns:

Thank you. And- and- and currently, are you employed? Do you have the opportunity to work?

Hassene Alacuzi:

Yes. I’m working as an interpreter with the Department of Public Health of Georgia.

Senator Burns:

Mm-hmm.

Hassene Alacuzi:

With the d-… Yes, thank you so much.

Senator Burns:

Thank you.

Hassene Alacuzi:

Yeah. With the DeKalb County Board of Health Refugee Program.

Senator Burns:

Thank you very much. I appreciate you.

Speaker 2:

Yeah.

Senator Burns:

Thanks for being here.

Hassene Alacuzi:

Thank you. Thank you for the [inaudible 00:20:03].

Chairman Hickman:

Thank you, Senator Burns, for the question. Let’s do one more.

Sen Jackson:

May I have one moment?

Chairman Hickman:

One more please.

Sen Jackson:

Uh, one more speaker or may I close?

Chairman Hickman:

One more, no, one more speaker.

Sen Jackson:

Yeah, oh, well, great. Um-

Chairman Hickman:

I wish we had more time. This is very interesting. But we don’t.

Sen Jackson:

No, that’s- that’s okay. Um, [inaudible 00:20:18].

Speaker 9 (*?):

[inaudible 00:20:18].

Sen Jackson:

David? Um, if David Garcia from GALEO?

Chairman Jackson:

Tell us your name and tell us your, where you come from and tell us what you’re doing now.

David Garcia:

Uh, uh, sure. Thank you for having me. I’m David Garcia. I work for an organization named GALEO Impact Fund. And we advocate for the Latino/Hispanic community throughout Georgia. I’m also a first generation US citizen, uh, Georgia resident, college graduate, and military veteran. Um, I graduated from Marietta High School and joined the Marine Corps shortly after. I served as a US embassy guard in Peru, China, and Serbia, and I also worked as a contractor for the US Department of State in Mexico, Bosnia, and Iraq.

And throughout my time in service, I had the privilege of working closely alongside many host country nationals who- who were vital to- to advancing US entrance worldwide. Uh, during my time in Iraq, I routinely worked with many young Iraqis who had committed most of their lives to supporting our efforts there, and their support, warmth, and commitment to our mission was vital to- to our success. And the same can be said for the thousands of Afghan citizens who’ve supported our efforts out there as well. Um, I currently live in Decatur, Georgia, which is very close to Clarkston, where I volunteer with many refugee serving agencies, including Clarkston Community Center, Refugee Coffee, Friends of, Friends of Refugees, and Clarkston United Methodist Church.

I’ve met many refugees and special immigrant visa holders in Clarkston who served alongside US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. And according to the US t- according to the Atlanta History Center, uh, more than 1,500 Afghans have resettled in Georgia over the past two years. Uh, to me this bill is about supporting a group of- of people undergoing major life transitions and- and I can relate to many of the challenges that they face. Um, adjusting, uh, to life after living abroad was very difficult. Um, my first year back in the US after- after serving abroad was- was very challenging, and- and having structure is key in- in transitioning successfully.

Higher education and the opportunities that come with being a student on a college campus can- can help immensely in easing one’s transition, and I think that making higher education more accessible for a group of people who have supported our country and our foreign policies is the least that we can do. And I ask for your support in this bill.

Chairman Hickman:

Timing was just right. Thank you.

David Garcia:

Thank you.

Chairman Hickman:

Thank you for your service, sir. Appreciate it.

David Garcia:

Thank you.

Chairman Hickman:

Yes, sir. Um, we have, um, oh. Senator Hufstetler?

Senator Hufstetler:

Uh, I can do this later, but I guess I wanna make one point. Obviously it’s finance, y’all working incentives and trying to get people, trying to make the state better. The biggest problem we have in the state right now is workers. The limiting factor on our economy in Georgia is workers. And, um, these people are here legally. So I’ll stop there.

Chairman Hickman:

Thank you. Senator Oorock?

Sen Oorock:

Thank you. Uh, uh, I certainly was gonna lo- start with, um, Mr. Chairman, with the- the- the point of our workforce shortage. But number two, we’ve heard from the chancellor of our great university system about the decline in enrollment, and- and the need he states urgently in our budget hearing. So the need to step up, uh, uh, enrollment figures in our university system. And so we certainly have the slots there, uh, uh, and I think the case has been strongly made, uh, [inaudible 00:23:40] for, uh, moving ahead with this initiative. And let’s catch up with Tennessee.

Chairman Hickman:

Thank you. Uh, I think… I think Senator Williams has a statement.

Speaker 13:

No, I’m just [inaudible 00:23:57].

Chairman Hickman:

Y- you had a previous, uh, what? What number are you? Uh, what number is it?

Speaker 13:

[inaudible 00:24:02].

Chairman Hickman:

S- Senator Jackson. Thank you so much. I wish I- I could listen to this for a long time. I appreciate- appreciate your passion and I know the committee appreciates your passion on this. And thank y’all for being here. You know, we, um, let- let- let’s- let’s move it forward. And not next week, but next session, okay?

Sen Jackson:

May I make one closing statement?

Chairman Hickman:

Yes, ma’am.

Sen Jackson:

Uh, so I do wanna thank you so much for having this hearing. I wanna acknowledge that there’s a family that’s come, um, here that’s from Ukraine, um, they came to witness our democracy-

Chairman Hickman:

Oh, wow, cool.

Sen Jackson:

… to be a part of this conversation. Uh, and so, um, I- I understand we’re on a time limit. But I- I wanted to at least acknowledge their presence and, um, and I do hope that we can continue this conversation.

Chairman Hickman:

We will.

Sen Jackson:

Thank you so much.

Chairman Hickman:

Thank you. Thank y’all very much…….

End of bill intro