Issues
Immigration
Today, California’s population exceeds 36 million people and one in four people in the state is an immigrant. Since 2000, more than 40% of the state’s population growth has been from immigrants.
Immigrants play a central role in the success of California's economy: according to studies, immigrants pay an estimated $30 billion in federal taxes, $5.2 billion in state income taxes, and $4.6 billion in sales taxes each year. And in 2002, businesses in traditional immigrant communities were highly productive: California’s 427,678 Latino-owned businesses had sales and receipts of $57.2 billion and employed 445,820 people while the state’s 371,530 Asian-owned businesses had sales and receipts of $125.8 billion and employed 745,874 people according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2002 Survey of Business Owners.
States and cities have had to deal with the Federal Government’s inability to create meaningful immigration reform. As Governor, Newsom will work to make sure the Federal Government passes comprehensive immigration reform that is both sensible and humane. Newsom knows we have to stop demagoguing about the immigration issue, stop attacking immigrants and start solving the problem of a broken immigration system.
San Francisco is a city of immigrants, with one of the highest percentages of immigrants of any city in California. Mayor Gavin Newsom has established policies to save money, stimulate the economy and improve public health and safety by bringing immigrants out of the shadows of society and into the mainstream.
Bank on San Francisco: Mayor Newsom launched the first comprehensive program in the U.S. to help people without bank accounts open a low-cost, starter bank account. The “unbanked”, often members of the immigrant community, were losing as much as 5% of their net income on unnecessary fees, more likely to be victims of a crime and lacked the ability to save and build assets. Bank on San Francisco now has 24,000 open accounts and is a model being replicated in cities throughout the country.
Healthy San Francisco: Healthy San Francisco provides universal, comprehensive, affordable health care to uninsured adults regardless of the person’s immigration status. Healthy SF saves the city money by reducing the number of emergency room visits by the previously uninsured who were often members of the immigrant community.
Sanctuary City Policy: San Francisco’s sanctuary city policy, going back nearly 30 years and five San Francisco mayors, serves primarily to protect public safety. The policy is designed to maintain public health and safety by reassuring the city's undocumented residents that they can call for police or fire department assistance or seek emergency medical help without fear of being deported.
City ID Card: Mayor Newsom launched the San Francisco City ID Card program, which offers residents a photo identification card that streamlines access to city programs and connects residents to local businesses. The ID card makes it easier for all San Franciscans to see a doctor, open a bank account and enroll their kids in preschool.
Join Our Policy Team: Gavin Newsom believes that the best plan is a better idea. If you would like to share your ideas and insights on how to reshape California's Immigration policy, please email us at issues@gavinnewsom.com.
