Senators James Lankford (R-Oklahoma) and Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) introduced on Monday the GOP’s legislative answer to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which the White House announced earlier this month it would end.
The bill, dubbed the SUCCEED Act, would provide a path to citizenship for undocumented teenagers who were brought to the United States before 2012, and before they turned 16. Tillis said the bill was “merit-based” and would ensure that “there’s no skipping in line” to receive full citizenship.
The SUCCEED Act would require those teens to fill an extensive and difficult litany of requirements: Applicants would have to maintain continuous employment for 10 years, in addition to receiving a college degree or serving in the military, before being eligible to even apply for a green card. Five years after receiving a green card, beneficiaries could apply for full citizenship.
The bill would also ban family members who achieve legal status from sponsoring other family members. The measure is designed to prevent “chain migration.”
