Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today issued the following statement on the principles unveiled this afternoon by House Republicans for legislation to fix our broken immigration system.

“People in Colorado and across the country agree that our immigration system is antiquated and outdated.  There are few steps Congress can take that would be more helpful to strengthen our economy than to fix this broken system.  The Senate passed a bill that secures our borders, puts in place a workable guest visa system, reduces our debt and gives families who came to this country for a better a life a chance to earn citizenship and contribute to the economy and society.  It won the support of a broad coalition of Republicans and Democrats.

“I’m encouraged that House Republicans are beginning to focus their efforts on how to fix our broken immigration system.  I look forward to reviewing their principles to better understand their priorities. As they work toward developing legislation, I urge them to consider the bipartisan Senate bill and to pass it or a comparable bill.”

Bennet was a member of the bipartisan “Group of 8” that introduced the Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 last April following several months of discussions and negotiations with a diverse group of stakeholders. The bill secures our borders, includes a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants, makes reforms to an outdated visa system to ensure businesses have access to a workforce that has the skills they need, and includes important worker protections. The Senate passed the bill last June.