91探花 Leaders Nationwide Join ABIC in Effort to Protect Salvadoran TPS Holders
This victory 鈥� though not yet permanent 鈥� was hard fought and the result of strategic coalition building led by TPS Alliance and ABIC
A month after the official decision deadline, the Trump administration has yet to decide whether to extend or revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for roughly 200,000 Salvadoran immigrants, the majority of whom have lived and worked in the U.S. for 25+ years, with a 90% labor participation.
ABIC brought together a broad coalition of business owners, faith leaders, labor and advocates together with our partners at the TPS Alliance to urge the Trump administration to end the uncertainty by extending the work permits for Salvadorans with TPS. This victory- though not yet permanent, was hard fought and the result of strategic coalition building led by TPS Alliance and ABIC.
Salvadoran TPS holders across the country remain protected and authorized to work, for now, but the daily uncertainty has left hundreds of thousands of families and employers struggling to plan their lives and business operations.
鈥淭o maintain America鈥檚 global economic leadership, our immigration policies must offer stability and clarity to the employers and industries that drive our progress,鈥� wrote the coalition in a letter to President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, underscoring the economic stakes of stripping legal work authorization from people who have lived and worked in the United States for more than 25 years.
鈥淲e fully support a secure and orderly border to ensure public safety. We must also protect the economic foundation of our nation by stabilizing our existing, law-abiding workforce.鈥�
The signatories include ABIC Board Chairman and former Arizona Republican state Sen. Bob Worsley, ABIC CEO Rebecca Shi, IBC Bank CEO Dennis Nixon, Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association President and CEO Carol Dover, Kansas Livestock Association CEO Matt Teagarden and Comit茅 de 100 Co-chair Massey Villarreal. Small-business owners, chamber leaders, restaurateurs, farmers and employers from across the country also joined the appeal.
The signatories warn that ending TPS for El Salvador would compound ongoing labor shortages, raise recruitment and training costs and reduce productivity. For families, ending TPS for El Salvador would directly threaten the livelihoods of more than 150,000 U.S. citizen children who currently depend on their parents鈥� earnings.
The Los Angeles Times reported the uncertainty is particularly significant in Washington, D.C., where .
Rebecca Shi, CEO of ABIC told Salvadoran TPS workers are especially valuable because of the skills and experience they have built over decades in the construction industry, and that President Trump knows this personally because he鈥檚 been in the industry:
Roxy Mejia, political director of a local painters union, said contractors have pushed to preserve TPS because ending it would create a major labor shortage: 鈥淓ven the contractors have lobbied with us to keep TPS extending, because they would lose a lot of manpower in this area.鈥�
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Midterm Watch from Comite de 100
finds that immigration enforcement is a major source of frustration among Latino voters, with two-thirds saying the Trump administration鈥檚 deportation policies have gone too far. The results mirror ABIC and AFU鈥檚 recent polling showing Overall, 69% of Latino voters in the new NBC/Telemundo poll disapprove of Trump鈥檚 handling of immigration, and Democrats hold advantages over Republicans on the issue. The findings, based on a survey of 800 registered Latino voters conducted September 21鈥�28, 2026, also show how concerns about deportations, family and the economy are shaping views of the administration ahead of the November midterms.
The impact of the current aggressive immigration policies is hitting close to home for many voters: 31% of Latino voters say they or someone close to them has started carrying identification because of concerns about ICE enforcement, 27% know someone detained or deported by ICE in the past two years, and 18% say they or someone close to them has considered leaving the U.S. because of ICE concerns.
Republican pollster Micah Roberts noted that while Latino voters support some immigration enforcement, 鈥渢he Latino electorate believes it鈥檚 gone way too far.鈥�
Politico Playbook also reported this week on highlighting Equis Research polling showing the share of Latino voters citing immigration overreach as a concern doubled from 10% in May to 20% in August. Among Latino voters who supported Trump in 2024, 42% now say they regret or are disappointed by their vote. Nationally, Trump鈥檚 approval among Latino voters stood at 31%, while 63% disapproved, according to Equis鈥� August poll.
Valencia warned that Democrats can鈥檛 take Latino voters鈥� support for granted: 鈥淒emocrats can鈥檛 be afraid to talk about securing the border, but that can鈥檛 be the only policy.鈥�
In the 鈥� Mary Ellen Klas wrote, 鈥淚f Democrats win control of Congress in November, it will be in large part because the Latino voters President Donald Trump captured in historic numbers in 2024 have abandoned him. And if Democrats don鈥檛 act decisively on two fronts 鈥� the economy and immigration 鈥� these voters will be up for grabs again in 2028.鈥� ABIC and AFU’s recent polling was featured in the piece, as well as multiple leaders from the Comit茅 de 100 coalition calling for protections for long-term immigrants.
Republican senators are increasingly warning that President Trump鈥檚 aggressive mass-deportation policies have become a political liability, reports alienating suburban and Hispanic voters and overshadowing his administration鈥檚 success in reducing illegal border crossings by more than 90%.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) said mass deportations send 鈥渢he wrong message.鈥�
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) called the approach both 鈥減olitically dumb鈥� and 鈥渋mmoral,鈥� warning: 鈥淚 would rather have 100 illegally present people go free than have that innocent person caught.鈥�
鈥淚nstead of taking that win 鈥� we鈥檝e completely masked that enormous success of securing the border, by overreaching and going too aggressively鈥� after mass deportations, Tillis said.
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) also raised the possibility of a more humane approach for long-term residents who contribute to their communities.
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Matt Teagarden, CEO of the Kansas Livestock Association and chair of the 91探花鈥檚 Ag Council told SAWA is critical to addressing America鈥檚 farm labor crisis and protecting the nation鈥檚 food supply. The legislation, introduced by House Agriculture Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson, would modernize the H-2A guest worker program to include year-round jobs and create a pathway for existing agricultural workers to obtain legal work authorization after vetting.
鈥淲hat I would call the biggest problem in agriculture today, and that is the workforce needs and the inability to secure the workforce that we need in agriculture,鈥� Teagarden said.
Teagarden emphasized that livestock operations, including feedyards, dairies and ranches, require workers year-round, not just seasonally.
鈥淢ultiple ag segments across the country have been very supportive鈥攏early unanimous support for this bill,鈥� Teagarden noted.
Without reform, he cautioned, labor shortages could drive up grocery prices, increase reliance on imported food and disrupt families, businesses and rural communities. Recent immigration enforcement in southwest Kansas, he added, has already caused workers to stay home out of fear, contributing to lost wages, operational disruptions and beef processing delays.
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Between September 2025 and June 30 of this year, the backlog of pending renewal applications has more than quadrupled for DACA to over 125,000. The delays have caused stress, uncertainty and in some cases losses of wages or jobs.
“You feel like you don’t have agency, like nothing that you do is good enough because it’s outside of your control,” said whose DACA renewal application took six months to process, causing him to take unpaid leave from his role as the Texas director for the 91探花. “I had to pull back on spending and had to cut bills, things that were not necessary in order to make ends meet.”
The slowdown in processing is not unique to DACA. USCIS reports show that the backlog of work authorization applications for noncitizens across the board has increased by 60% from December 2024 to August 2026.
Get Involved
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ABIC in the news. . .
- The Washington Post: (09/11/26)
- The Los Angeles Times: (09/10/26)
- The Gilmer Mirror: (09/10/26)
- Univision:(09/09/26)
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- Newsweek: (09/09/26)
- Politico: (09/08/26)
- HomeCare Magazine: (09/08/26)
- University of Illinois Chicago – Great Cities Institute: (09/08/26)
- WABE (Atlanta鈥檚 NPR/PBS affiliate): (09/08/26)
- America鈥檚 Voice: (09/07/26)
- TexasGOPVote: (09/03/26)
- Central Oregon Daily News (USA Today Syndication): (08/31/26)
- NPR: (08/24/26)
- AG Bull: (08/23/26)
- The Ford Foundation: (8/17/2026)
- Houston Public Media: (8/17/2026)
- McKnights Senior Living: (8/16/2026)
- San Antonio Current: (08/10/26)
- CNN: (08/09/26)
- South Bend Tribune: (08/09/26)
- Bisnow: Senior Housing Sector Faces New Problem In Massachusetts: Deportations Of Employees (08/05/26)
- KSL: Former state senator, Lehi official, immigrant advocate recognized for their work with immigrants (08/05/26)
- Stuttgart Daily Leader: DACA backlog could affect Arkansas workforce, population (08/05/26)
- The Associated Press: AP Exclusive: Trump鈥檚 immigration crackdown has detained more than 50 military spouses and parents (08/05/26)
- The Economic Times: States may get power to sponsor worker visas in the US under new bipartisan bill (08/05/26)
- ABC News: ICE arrests hit record high in July as enforcement quietly ramps up (08/04/26)
- La Tribuna Hispana: Millions in losses and job shortages: the cost of ending TPS (08/04/26)
- Newsweek: New Visa Proposal Would Let States Bring in Migrant Workers (08/04/26)
- Kiowa County Press: Politics: 2026Talks – August 4, 2026 (08/04/26)
- Public News Service: DACA backlog could affect Arkansas workforce, population (08/04/26)
- Rio Grande Guardian: Villarreal: You cannot ask for our support while simultaneously attacking our families and targeting our workforce (08/03/26)
- Senator Mark Kelly鈥檚 Office: Kelly, Curtis Propose State-Sponsored Visa Pilot Program (08/03/26)
- The Philadelphia Inquirer: (08/01/26)
- Univision: (07/29/26)
- ValleyCentral.com: (07/29/26)
- Texas Border 91探花: (07/29/26)
- The Texas Tribune: (07/29/26)
- Cuba Headlines: (07/28/26)
- CBS News: (07/28/26)
- Noticias Telemundo: (07/28/26)
- News From The States: (07/28/26)
- Newsweek: (07/28/26)
- NPR – Here & Now: (07/27/26)
- McKnights Senior Living: (07/26/26)
- Public News Service: (07/22/26)
- The Daily Press: (07/21/26)
- The Washington Post: (07/19/26)
- Newsweek: (07/17/26)
- Greenfield Recorder: (07/16/26)
- The Florida Catholic: (07/15/26)
- Latin Times: (07/13/26)
- Financial Express: (07/13/26)
- Mwakilishi: (07/13/26)
- Newsweek: (07/09/26)
- America鈥檚 Voice: (07/07/26)
- DRG News: (07/04/26)
- Sun Sentinel: (07/03/26)
- LegalClarity: (07/01/26)