Our communities can’t keep living in immigration limbo

The views expressed by contributors are their own and not the view of The Hill

Five months ago, I wrote in the Miami Herald that Congress needed to stop governing temporary protected status through temporary extensions, executive actions and courtroom battles. Since then, the Supreme Court has weighed in, the legal landscape has shifted once again, and one thing has become even clearer: Our immigration system is still being governed by uncertainty instead of legislation.

As a Florida state representative, I represent one of the most diverse districts in America. Immigration policy is not just a political debate where I live. It affects families trying to plan for tomorrow, employers trying to keep their businesses running, schools serving children, churches serving their communities and local governments trying to respond to changing federal policies.

Whether someone agrees or disagrees with the Supreme Court’s decision is almost beside the point. The larger problem remains exactly where it has always been. Congress has failed to provide a lasting legislative solution.

That failure has consequences.

Every time a temporary protected status designation approaches expiration, families wonder whether they will be allowed to keep working. Employers wonder whether valued employees will suddenly lose work authorization. State and local governments prepare for another round of uncertainty while lawsuits race through the courts.

This is no way to govern.

Temporary protected status exists for an important humanitarian reason. It protects people from being returned to countries facing war, natural disasters or other extraordinary conditions. But Congress never intended for temporary policy to become permanent uncertainty.

Instead, we have created a cycle that repeats itself every few years. One administration extends the status, another attempts to end it. Lawsuits follow. Courts intervene. Deadlines move. Families wait. Employers wait. Communities wait.

Meanwhile, Congress waits the longest.

For too long, both parties have found political value in the status quo. Some are comfortable extending temporary status indefinitely without creating a permanent legal framework. Others are comfortable trying to terminate it without addressing the reality that many recipients have lived and worked legally in the U.S. for years.

Neither approach solves the underlying problem.

The people paying the price are not politicians. They are the law-abiding individuals who have built lives here under rules established by the federal government. They are employers trying to follow the law. They are communities like mine that experience the consequences of federal indecision every single day.

Congress should stop allowing immigration policy to be written through executive orders and court decisions. It should write the law.

First, Congress should establish a clear statutory timeline for reviewing, extending or ending TPS designations. The American people deserve consistency instead of last-minute decisions driven by politics or litigation.

Second, if temporary protected status is going to end for a particular country, Congress should require an orderly transition period. Employers, families and state governments deserve adequate notice and clear guidance instead of sudden uncertainty.

Third, Congress should establish a lawful transition status for long-term temporary protected status recipients who have consistently obeyed the law, worked, paid taxes and contributed to their communities. This is not an automatic path to permanent residency. It is a structured legal process that provides stability while final immigration decisions are made.

Finally, enforcement should remain focused where the American people are largely united: securing our borders, removing dangerous criminals, stopping fraud and maintaining the integrity of our immigration system. America can enforce its laws while treating people with dignity. Those ideas are not mutually exclusive.

Reasonable people will continue to disagree about immigration policy. That is healthy in a democracy. What should not be controversial is expecting Congress to do the job the Constitution assigned to it.

The Supreme Court has spoken. Future administrations will come and go. More lawsuits will almost certainly follow.

But none of that changes the basic reality. Only Congress can provide the certainty that families, employers and communities deserve. Our communities cannot keep living in immigration limbo. Congress should finally take the lead.

The American people deserve an immigration system that is lawful, orderly and, above all, certain.

State Rep. Fabian Basabe (R-Fla.) represents Florida House District 106 in Miami-Dade County — one of the nation’s most diverse districts. He is the son of an immigrant.

Our communities can’t keep living in immigration limbo

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