With regard to the first of his ten principles, which calls for a pathway for undocumented workers, Representative Gutierrez said that "[i]mmigration reform will not work unless it takes a practical approach to dealing with the 12 million undocumented immigrants living, working, and raising families in the United States.  We need a bill that says if you come here to hurt our communities, we will not support you. But if you are here to work hard—if you are here to make a better life for your family—you will have the opportunity to earn your citizenship."  The Congressman continued, saying that "[o]ur immigrants are hardworking, and they are up to the challenge. Give them the opportunity to earn their citizenship, and they will go through the background checks; they will pay their fair share of taxes; and they will learn English.  It’s not an easy process, but it is a fair process." 

Representative Gutierrez also emphasized the importance of families and the legal immigration system in his ten principles, saying that "[f]amily is the bedrock of our society, and immigration reform must support strong, united families and treat all immigrant families fairly and equally. Right now, our broken immigration system keeps too many American families apart for years and even decades, when they have done everything legally. We need a system predicated on family values by developing laws that better value families — a system that keeps families strong and, most importantly, keeps husbands and wives, parents and children together."

Representative Gutierrez pledged during a September 17, 2009, National Citizenship Day celebration in Washington, DC to introduce the bill in the coming weeks. However, that timetable has slipped. 

Upon announcing in September that he was planning to introduce a comprehensive immigration reform bill, Representative Gutierrez said, "I am overwhelmed by the support of immigrant, faith-based and community-based organizations in urging me to introduce comprehensive immigration legislation. We simply cannot wait any longer for a bill that keeps our families together, protects our workers and allows a pathway to legalization for those who have earned it. Saying immigration is a priority for this Administration or this Congress is not the same as seeing tangible action, and the longer we wait, the more every single piece of legislation we debate will be obstructed by our failure to pass comprehensive reform."

The Congressman went on to say in his September statement that, "[w]e need a bill that says if you come here to hurt our communities, we will not support you; but if you are here to work hard and to make a better life for your family, you will have the opportunity to earn your citizenship. We need a law that says it is un-American for a mother to be torn from her child, and it is unacceptable to undermine our workforce by driving the most vulnerable among us further into the shadows."

Gutierrez asserted in his September statement his belief that "the support base for this kind of compassionate and comprehensive legislation is strong and far reaching." He contended that there are sufficient votes to pass such a measure, saying "I have always said that immigration reform will not be easy; but it is time we had a workable plan working its way through Congress that recognizes the vast contributions of immigrants to this country and that honors the American Dream."

It is unclear at the time of this writing how closely the bill that Representative Gutierrez is drafting will hue to the provisions in H.R. 1645, comprehensive immigration reform legislation that Gutierrez introduced during the 110th Congress along with Representative Jeff Flake (R-A).  That bill was known as the "Security Through Regularized Immigration and a Vibrant Economy Act of 2007" Act, or the STRIVE Act.