So this is a different sort of story of immigration because they’re not people who came to America with a plan or even a dream,” an immigration attorney said.

The Bobolink Project pays owners of fields, often farmers, to conduct bird-friendly practices. The birds get time and habitat to nest while the landowners get some compensation for letting them do so.

It’s the second federal request for Vermont’s guard troops the Republican governor has rebuked in recent weeks.

An internal memo from a top official sent to all state employees last Friday addressed concerns raised by Gov. Phil Scott’s public comments on the issue the day before.