The Dignity Act of 2025: Another Disguised Amnesty

In the contentious immigration debate, one constant is always present — an amnesty push. No matter how many bills have been defeated or how often the voting public resists rewarding illegal aliens with affirmative benefits, congressional immigration advocates are always willing to try again.

This time, U.S. Representatives Maria Salazar, Veronica Escobar, and Salud Carbajal are the driving forces behind the Dignity Act of 2025, HR 4393. The bill was originally introduced in 2023 but went nowhere. The same dead-end fate awaits the 2025 version.

Salazar, the daughter of Cuban exiles and a former three-decade veteran journalist who reported for Telemundo, CNN Español, and Univision, is a Republican who represents Florida’s 75% Hispanic 27th district. Escobar is a Democrat from Texas’ 81% Hispanic El Paso district. Mexico-born Carbajal was last seen doxxing an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent at the violent, rock-throwing protest at Carpinteria’s Glass House cannabis greenhouse. The agent was bloodied and hospitalized.

The bill has 21 cosponsors, including ten Republicans: Mario Rafael Diaz-Balart (Florida), Brian Fitzpatrick (Pennsylvania), Mike Lawler (New York), Dan Newhouse (Washington), David Valadao
(California), Mike Kelly (Pennsylvania), Gabe Evans (Colorado), Marlin Stutzman (Indiana), Don Bacon (Nebraska), and Young Kim (California).

Because Salazar, Escobar, and Carbajal insist that the Dignity Act is not amnesty, their prospective legislation has sparked interest on Capitol Hill. From Congress’s past failures on comprehensive immigration reform, the three immigration expansion representatives know that no word is more poisonous to voters than “amnesty.”

However, when Immigration Accountability Project analysts conducted a deep dive into the bill’s text, they found major anti-American and anti-American worker provisions, including some that voters have rejected countless times.

Key Provisions of Concern

The DREAM Act Component: First introduced in 2001 by retiring 80-year-old Illinois Democrat
Richard Durbin and now-deceased Utah Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, the legislation, in its numerous iterations, has failed. But under the Dignity Act, 2.5 million DREAMers would be granted amnesty with a direct path to citizenship. DREAMers don’t necessarily have to be outstanding citizenship candidates. Illegal alien Dignity Act applicants can have committedmultiple misdemeanors, crimes involving moral turpitude, controlled substance violations, controlled
substance trafficking, prostitution and commercialized vice, alien smuggling, student visa abuse, and unlawful voting. Deportation is frozen for aliens deemed prima facie eligible.

Enforcement Restrictions: The bill severely restricts enforcement. Actions in so-called protected areas like schools, public gatherings, bus stops, and social services buildings would require prior approval from high-ranking congressional officials.

Hidden Amnesty Path: Although the legislators vow that their bill is not amnesty, analysts came to a different conclusion. While the Dignity Act does not provide a direct path to citizenship for the illegal alien population present before 2021, it includes a two-year deportation freeze for eligible candidates who will also receive seven-year renewable status, which can be adjusted to green card status and is therefore a path to citizenship.

Impact on American Workers: The Dignity Act is a disaster for American workers. The bill would more than double employment-based visa totals from one million to two million annually. All foreign
students who arrive mainly on F-1 visas would be automatically allowed to remain in the U.S. Worse, the Optional Training Program (OPT), never congressionally approved, would be codified. OPT is the largest employment program; it dwarfs H-1B.

The Broader Impact

In every paragraph, the bill rewards illegal aliens and harms taxpaying Americans who must subsidize the giveaways. Chain migration and birthright citizenship will soar — a negative consequence that Salazar, Escobar, and Carbajal ignored.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has repeatedly said that President Trump will not sign any bill that has amnesty provisions. President Trump has made public statements confirming
Leavitt’s statements. The only explanation for this DOA legislation is that Salazar, Escobar, and Carbajal, looking ahead to 2026, are pandering to their heavily Hispanic constituents. Salazar insists that President Trump will sign her bill. But if the Dignity Act ever gets to President Trump’s desk — a big if — he’s certain to veto it.

A Flawed Premise

The Dignity Act is wrong on its premises. Salazar claims that her legislation will dignify illegal aliens. But dignity, honor, and respect cannot be conferred through legislation; they must be earned
through a lifetime of good deeds.

Joe Guzzardi is an Institute for Sound Public Policy analyst. Contact him at jguzzardi@ifspp.org