Commission on Immigrant Affairs Regular Meeting of the Commission on Immigrant Affairs

Agenda — original pdf

COMMISSION ON IMMIGRANT AFFAIRS MONDAY, June 6th, 2022 6:30 PM AUSTIN CITY HALL ROOM 1101 301 W 2ND STREET AUSTIN, TEXAS Some members of the Commission on Immigrant Affairs may be participating by videoconference. Public comment will be allowed in-person or remotely by telephone. Speakers may only register to speak on an item once either in-person or remotely and will be allowed up to three minutes to provide their comments. Registration no later than noon the day before the meeting is required for remote participation. To register, please contact Sarah Williams at sarah.williams@austintexas.gov or 512-972-5123. CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS: Juan Vences-Benitez, Chair Krystal Gomez, Vice-Chair Sara Becker Karen Crawford Adrian De La Rosa Aditi Joshi Rennison Lalgee Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch AGENDA Nicole Merritt Joseph Ramirez-Hernandez Glenn Rosales Karen Reyes CALL TO ORDER PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first 10 speakers who register to speak no later than noon the day before the meeting will be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. 1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – April 4, 2022; May 2, 2022 2. NEW BUSINESS a. Lucio Del Toro, Travis County Attorney’s Office, briefing and discussion on U-Visa certification process b. Updates from Rocio Villalobos on her work with the Equity Office c. Commission on Immigrant Affairs 2022 Annual Report 3. OLD BUSINESS a. Budget updates – Karen i. Joint Inclusion Committee Report b. Joint Inclusion Committee meeting updates – Karen c. Report back from ISNA and the RST quarterly consultations – Juan and Rennison ANNOUNCEMENTS  APD Office of Police Oversight Town Hall on Public Safety, focusing on the experiences of people living with disabilities with law enforcement. June 25, 2022, from 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m., virtually or in-person.  Project Connect Anti-Displacement work led by the Housing and Planning Department - City of Austin announced $20 million is available for Community Initiated Solutions to address transit-induced displacement related to Project Connect. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS  July Meeting: process o Lieutenant Chamout discussion on APD’s internal U-Visa review panel o Conversation with Rocio Villalobos on the Immigrant Affairs Office o 2023 Goals Discussion ADJOURNMENT The City of Austin is committed to compliance with the American with Disabilities Act. Reasonable modifications and equal access to communications will be provided upon request. Meeting locations are planned with wheelchair access. If requiring Sign Language Interpreters or alternative formats, please give notice at least 2 days (48 hours) …

Approved Minutes — original pdf

COMMISSION ON IMMIGRANT AFFAIRS REGULAR MEETING MONDAY, June 6th, 2022 6:30PM Boards Members in Attendance: Meeting Minutes Juan Vences‐Benitez, Chair Adrian De La Rosa Kate Lincoln‐Goldfinch Krystal Gomez, Vice‐Chair Aditi Joshi Karen Crawford Rennison Lalgee Board Members not in Attendance: Sara Becker Nicole Merritt Joseph Ramirez‐Hernandez Karen Reyes Glenn Rosales Sarah Williams, Acting Staff Liaison, Administrative Sr for the Health Equity Unit, Austin Public Health Staff in Attendance: CALL TO ORDER Chair Juan Vences-Benitez called the Commission Meeting to order at 6:44 p.m. 1) APPROVAL OF MINUTES – April 4, 2022; May 2, 2022 a) The minutes from the meeting of 4/4/2022 were approved on Commissioner Karen’s motion, Commissioner Krystal seconded, all in favor. b) The minutes from the meeting of 5/2/2022 were approved with edits on Commissioner Aditi’s motion, Commissioner Krystal seconded, all in favor. 2) NEW BUSINESS: DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTIONS: a) Lucio Del Toro, First Assistant at the Travis County Attorney’s Office, briefing and discussion on U-Visa certification process i) Delia Garza has been in office as the County Attorney for about a year and a half. They handle only misdemeanors, criminal prosecutions, and represent the County in civil matters. They are one of the largest law firms in the city. Lucio Del Toro is directly over the criminal division. ii) There is not a formal written policy for the U-Visa process, they are handled on a case-by- case basis. Most people applying for U-Visas are victims of domestic violence. Lucio has been working on modernizing the process and increasing efficiency. iii) Lucio reviews all U-Visa applications. They do not look to disqualify anyone because by- and-large, they should qualify. The biggest delay is communication between their office and the lawyers, as the lawyers are often not very familiar with this specific process. The application is incredibly important and must be filled out correctly to verify they meet the basic requirements. iv) They have been getting consultations and feedback on their process from American Gateway and the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. They have not created a formal policy because they have more flexibility without one. Formal policy can actually hurt the people during the process because it does not account for their individual circumstances. Stricter policy means there are more reasons to disqualify someone. v) There has not been a tracking system for the process or data collection in the past for the office. They are one …