Lawmakers Plan Immigration Summit

None by KCPW

(KCPW News) Tired of wrestling with a slew of immigration-related bills every year, the Utah legislature is planning a one-day summit to determine what the state can do about illegal immigration:

"I don't think there needs to be a lot of rancor or blame laying," says State Senator Howard Stephenson. "This is, as far as I can tell, the biggest unfunded mandate in the history of our nation. And yet we're not having the discussion on the solutions, we're just complaining about the symptoms."

Stephenson proposed the summit and will organize it to take place later this year. He expects all of Utah's congressional delegation and the entire Utah Legislature to attend. A legislative audit is currently underway to determine the costs of educating undocumented children in Utah. Lawmakers hope the summit will at least yield some facts on those costs, and how undocumented workers contribute to the state's economy. But Representative Glenn Donnelson doubts the summit will stop him from leading the charge to repeal in-state tuition and driving privileges for illegal immigrants in Utah next year.

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