Senate Advances Legislation Permitting DACA Recipients to Obtain Professional Licenses
(MADISON)—Today, Senator Tim Carpenter (D-Milwaukee) issued the following statement in response to the Senate’s unexpected action yesterday to pass 2025 Assembly Bill 759, which would expand eligibility to receive occupational credentials to recipients of deferred action under the federal Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, also known as “Dreamers”:
“The passage of legislation to extend access to occupational licenses for DACA recipients is a great achievement for our state. These American Dreamers want to help solve Wisconsin’s workforce challenges. Wisconsin businesses have asked us to pass this legislation to open up a committed source of employees.
“This legislation would permit Dreamers to obtain occupational licenses in Wisconsin, allowing them to work as doctors, nurses, dentists, teachers, EMS providers, trades workers, and other high demand occupations where our state faces workforce shortages. There are over 5,000 DACA recipients in Wisconsin, and we have been depriving them and our state’s economy of their full potential.
“Recent estimates indicate Wisconsin has over 130,000 job openings but only about 90,000 people looking for work. This challenging labor market is a big part of the reason Wisconsin is struggling to find enough workers in many critical professions.
“Dreamers came to our nation as children, brought by their parents because America has long held itself to be the land of opportunity. That is the same reason that many proud Americans live freely in our great nation today, because our ancestors once had that same dream of building a better life for their children.”
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
Mentioned in This Press Release
Recent Press Releases by State Sen. Tim Carpenter
Sen. Carpenter statement on removal from committee assignment
Oct 3rd, 2025 by State Sen. Tim CarpenterRepublicans are afraid of open debate
