Nebraska politicians are in an ongoing debate involving immigration and centers helping out immigrants with things like food and finding work.

Congressional candidate Jim Esch, a Democrat, worries an immigration bill in the U.S. House of Representatives would turn that help into a crime.

"The provision HR4437 would make it illegal to help out anyone who is assisting people to meet even they're most basic needs potentially, and they could face up to five years in prison, said Esch. "Now I don't believe this is right."

Republican Congressman Lee Terry believes that what is not right is Esch's understanding of the bill.

"That's not my impression of what the bill says," said Terry. "The bill makes it a felony to engage in human trafficking, to be a coyote, to bring people over the border, to smuggle them in."

Section 202 of the House bill is at the center of the debate; it lists criminal offenses like whoever "assists…encourages…directs or induces a person to reside in or remain in the Unites States…knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such person is an alien."

Whether illegal immigrants should be considered felony criminals is another subject that Esch and Terry do not agree on.

"I think by further criminalizing the situation, you just drive people even further underground, and to me is just against everything America stands for," said Esch. "I mean we're a country built on immigration."

Terry disagrees with Esch and argues for legal immigration.

"The difference between us is amnesty, he wants amnesty, I've stayed fairly firm against amnesty," said Terry. "That's the one main difference between the Senate bill and the House bill."

Both men do agree on one issue concerning immigration bills, they both say the Senate and House need to work out some compromises to fix immigration systems in need of repair.