Support for Temporary Protected Status for Haitian Nationals (S. 4814)

June 29, 2026

The Honorable John Hickenlooper United States Senate

Dear Senator Hickenlooper,

I write to respectfully urge you to join Senator Michael Bennet as a co-sponsor of S. 4814, legislation to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals. At this critical moment, your leadership would send a powerful message that Colorado stands firmly on the side of humanitarian protection, family unity, and the values that have long defined our nation.

First, I want to express my sincere appreciation to Senator Bennet for his leadership as an original co-sponsor of S. 4814. His early support demonstrates Colorado's commitment to protecting vulnerable families and ensuring that our immigration system reflects both compassion and the rule of law.

I also want to thank Congressman Joe Neguse for his long standing support of Haitian communities and for co-sponsoring the House companion legislation, H.R.1689. I hope he will continue to use his leadership in the House to advocate for this legislation and for broader immigration reforms that recognize both our humanitarian obligations and our nation's economic interests.

Temporary Protected Status is not an amnesty program. Congress created TPS in 1990 as a humanitarian protection for individuals whose home countries are experiencing armed conflict, environmental disasters, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions that make safe return impossible. TPS allows eligible individuals to remain lawfully in the United States, obtain work authorization, support their families, and contribute to their communities until conditions improve.

Today, Haiti remains in one of the most severe humanitarian crises in the Western Hemisphere. According to the United Nations, more than 6.4 million Haitians require humanitarian assistance, nearly six million people face acute food insecurity, and almost 1.5 million people have been displaced by escalating violence. Armed gangs control large portions of the country, public institutions have collapsed in many areas, and access to food, healthcare, and basic security continues to deteriorate.

The U.S. Department of State currently warns Americans not to travel to Haiti because of widespread violent crime, kidnappings, terrorist activity, and the inability of local law enforcement to provide adequate protection. Hospitals lack basic resources, medical care is severely limited, and protests and armed violence continue to destabilize communities. Under these conditions, forcing TPS holders to return would expose many families to extraordinary danger and would undermine the very humanitarian purpose Congress intended when it created the TPS program.

Colorado's Haitian community is an important part of our state's economic and civic life. Haitian Coloradans are entrepreneurs, healthcare workers, educators, caregivers, construction workers, students, and small business owners who strengthen our communities every day. Across the country, Haitians have become indispensable contributors to the American economy, creating businesses, paying taxes, filling essential workforce needs, and supporting local communities.

The economic contributions of Haitian immigrants are substantial. Haitian-owned businesses across the United States generate billions of dollars in economic activity while employing thousands of Americans. In Colorado and throughout the country, Haitian workers have helped address labor shortages in critical industries. For example, approximately 1,000 Haitians currently make up a significant portion of the workforce at the JBS processing plant, illustrating the essential role Haitian workers play in supporting American agriculture and food production. These are our neighbors, coworkers, taxpayers, and community leaders, not temporary visitors.

This moment also presents an opportunity for moral leadership. Throughout our history, fear and xenophobia have too often shaped our nation's response to newcomers. Many immigrant communities, including Irish, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Jewish, Mexican, Haitian, and countless others, have faced discrimination before ultimately becoming integral parts of the American story. We should not repeat those mistakes.

Black Americans played an indispensable role in building this nation, often through unimaginable sacrifice and injustice. Likewise, generations of immigrants have helped build, sustain, and strengthen the United States through their labor, entrepreneurship, military service, and civic participation. Our history teaches us that America is strongest when we reject fear, embrace our shared humanity, and recognize that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths.

As policymakers, we have a responsibility to reject policies rooted in fear and exclusion. At a time when the Trump Administration has sought to narrow humanitarian protections for vulnerable populations, Congress has an opportunity to affirm that the United States remains committed to protecting those fleeing extraordinary danger while recognizing the invaluable contributions immigrants make to our nation.

Extending TPS for Haiti is an essential first step, but it cannot be the final one. Congress must also pursue comprehensive immigration reform that creates a fair, orderly, and humane immigration system, one that strengthens our economy, keeps families together, protects due process, expands lawful pathways, and provides long-term certainty for individuals who have contributed to our communities for years.

Returning Haitian TPS holders to a country experiencing widespread violence, mass displacement, institutional collapse, and humanitarian catastrophe would not only worsen an already devastating crisis, but would also conflict with the humanitarian principles that Congress embraced when it enacted the TPS statute. We should not force families into conditions where their lives and safety cannot reasonably be protected.

I respectfully ask you to join Senator Bennet as a co-sponsor of S. 4814 and to continue working with Colorado's congressional delegation, including Representative Neguse, to advance meaningful immigration reform that reflects our values, strengthens our economy, and honors our humanitarian obligations.

Thank you for your continued service to Colorado and for your thoughtful consideration of this urgent request.

Sincerely,