Author

Ariana Figueroa

Ariana Figueroa

Ariana covers the nation's capital for States Newsroom. Her areas of coverage include politics and policy, lobbying, elections and campaign finance.

DACA dreamers

Lengthy timeline for DACA legal fight puts lives on hold for years

By: - January 27, 2023

WASHINGTON — Karen Judith Briseno Ortiz mailed in her application for a program meant to protect undocumented children from deportation, one day after her twin sister’s application. Her sister was accepted into the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, but Briseno Ortiz, who grew up in Dallas, was not. Now her application is in limbo […]

New federal student loan repayment plan aimed at low-income borrowers

By: - January 10, 2023

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Education unveiled a proposal Tuesday that would overhaul a federal student loan income-driven repayment plan, and, if implemented, could help millions of low-income borrowers. However, it’s unclear how the agency would be able to finance the program. Many student debt relief advocates also criticized the proposal for leaving out […]

Biden administration to rapidly expel more migrants at the border, add legal pathways

By: and - January 5, 2023

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden on Thursday announced dual immigration strategies that would increase expulsions of migrants who attempt to cross the Southern border, while also expanding opportunities for migrants from several countries to legally enter the United States. But the sweeping new immigration plan brought condemnation from advocates who said he should not broaden […]

Trump coup attempt

Bowers will be honored with award for courage as D.C. nears Jan. 6 anniversary

By: - January 5, 2023

WASHINGTON – On the eve of the second anniversary of the U.S. Capitol insurrection, congressional Democrats and dozens of veterans on Thursday in a press conference called on incoming House Republican leaders to condemn political violence and hold their members who supported the attack accountable for their actions. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden is scheduled on […]

Kyrsten Sinema

Kyrsten Sinema has left the Democratic Party, registered as an independent

By: , and - December 9, 2022

Kyrsten Sinema, Arizona’s senior U.S. senator, has left the Democratic Party and re-registered as an independent. “Nothing will change about my values or my behavior,” she told Politico, which broke the news Friday morning. The first-term senator wrote in an opinion piece for the Arizona Republic that she does not intend to change the way she legislates […]

DACA dreamers

Talks over protecting Dreamers pick up in Congress, but agreement still elusive

By: - December 6, 2022

WASHINGTON — In a last-minute push, U.S. senators are working on a bipartisan agreement to create a pathway to citizenship for undocumented people who were brought to the United States as children. But the success of any major immigration deal appears unlikely, as a lame-duck session of Congress dwindles into its last days. Democrats are […]

U.S. Supreme Court to review Biden student debt relief plan in February

By: - December 2, 2022

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court said Thursday it will hear oral arguments in February over a legal challenge by six Republican-led states to the Biden administration student borrower relief plan. Until the arguments are heard and the court issues a ruling, the $400 billion Biden plan is on hold due to a nationwide injunction […]

At tribal summit, Biden pledges federal commitment to Indian Country

By: - December 1, 2022

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Wednesday said he is poised to designate Avi Kwa Ame, a sacred site for Native American tribes in southern Nevada, as a national monument that would ensure the preservation of ancestral lands for those 12 tribes.  “I’m committed to protecting this sacred place that is central to the creation […]

Student loan repayment pause extended by White House amid legal battles over relief plan

By: - November 22, 2022

WASHINGTON — The Department of Education announced on Tuesday it is extending the pandemic-era pause on federal student loan repayments until June 30 while legal challenges to the administration’s student debt relief program are fought over in the courts. The agency said if the student debt relief program has not been put in place by […]

Congressional Hispanic Caucus welcomes new House members, reflects on Latino vote

By: - November 18, 2022

The campaign arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus welcomed the highest number of Democratic Latino lawmakers elected to Congress, during a Friday event at the Democratic National Committee headquarters. CHC BOLD PAC chair, Democratic U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego of Arizona, said continuing to reach out to Latino communities and young voters will be key to […]

DACA dreamers

U.S. Senate Democrats make a last-ditch push for a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers

By: - November 16, 2022

WASHINGTON —  Democratic U.S. senators have set a December deadline for passing bipartisan legislation that would create a pathway to citizenship for more than 600,000 undocumented people who were brought into the country as children — but they don’t yet have enough Senate Republican votes to make it a reality. During a Wednesday press conference […]

Biden student debt relief plan thrown out by Texas judge; new applications halted

By: - November 11, 2022

WASHINGTON — Late Thursday a federal judge in Texas struck down the Biden administration’s student debt relief plan, ruling that the program is unlawful, in a blow to 16 million student debt borrowers already approved for relief. The U.S. Department of Education now is no longer accepting applications for the program, according to the student […]