Dave Davia
On behalf of Colorado Concernâs 137 business leaders, who collectively represent every industry in our great state, I wrote Coloradoâs Washington delegation members urging swift federal action to address the migrant crisis facing our capital city, our state, our customers, our employees and our community.
Since 2022, Denver has received more than 38,000 migrants, with approximately 200 new arrivals daily. Denver is carrying a disproportionate per-capita burden from other major cities. We cannot sustain this load, yet the buses of migrants keep arriving. Denver anticipates the migrant crisis will cost the city $180 million in 2024, and it is currently hemorrhaging more than $2 million a week. This spending rate is unsustainable, and the cuts to city services and vital programs have already begun. These cuts are happening even amid Gov. Jared Polis’s administration’s generous support. I told our leaders in Washington we cannot wait until the next election to solve this crisis.
A central contributing factor to Denver’s fiscal crisis is migrants cannot legally support themselves due to federal restrictions on work authorization and the backlog of those seeking asylum and the required hearing. Colorado Concern is eager to do our part. In this tight labor market, we have countless unfilled roles these migrants can fill.
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Without the employment our members are not legally allowed to provide, these new arrivals are not able to support themselves or contribute to the workforce or our local economy. They will be unable to secure housing on their own, and will have no other option than relying on public support. This public support from the city and the state is already running low due to the large influx of migrants to Denver and surrounding communities.
We called on members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Colorado to unleash the power of the free market to solve this crisis â by allowing anyone who has arrived in this country with an A-number to work while waiting for their scheduled hearing. This cannot happen without their action.
It is time to expand funding to expedite adjudication and work-authorization approvals. Migrants cannot wait six months or more, and our cities cannot support them during this unnecessarily lengthy waiting period. The Colorado business community could help solve this crisis if every newcomer who arrives in our city had a work authorization approved within 30 days. We cannot allow government bureaucracy and political discord to strangle our great city.
The Denver metro region and the Centennial State are facing a humanitarian crisis; we need federal action. Colorado Concern and our robust network of employers stand ready to work together to solve this crisis in a dignified manner for both our migrants and local government partners.
Dave Davia is president and CEO of Colorado Concern.