LEGISLATIVE
UPDATE
Vol. 4, No. 12
November 21, 2000
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Looking Toward the 107th
Congress in a Lame-Duck Session World
Who would have guessed
that we would be where we are today? Weeks after the
Presidential elections we still do not know the identity of the
next President of the United States, nor exactly how or when we
will know. Pro-immigration advocates are asking if a
President Bush would translate campaign rhetoric into reality and
succeed in steering the Republican Party away from the
restrictionist forces that have held sway for so long. Advocates
also wonder if a President Gore would include a pro-immigration
agenda in his top priorities. Just as the outcome of the
Presidential election is unclear, so too is the end game for the
106th Congress. With two key
issues hanging in the balance, the Latino and Immigrant Fairness
Act and a down payment on due process reform in H.R. 5062,
advocates cannot rest during these next few weeks. We need to
continue our efforts in support of these important measures.
Please look on InfoNet for information about these important
issues, and contact the Advocacy Department with any questions.
While there is much now
we do not know, several facts have emerged. We know that
this election probably did not produce a mandate for either
Party. If there was one, it is that both parties need to
stop bickering and get things done! However, given recent
history, conflict rather than accommodation appears the more
likely response. We also know that Republican control over
both Houses of Congress will be even more challenged in the 107th
Congress than it has been in the 106th,
with the Senate split either 50/50 or 51/49 (depending on the
outcome of the Washington state Senate race) and the House split
221-212, with several races still outstanding. Observers
offer differing opinions about whether these close margins will
lead to conflict or accommodation.
Pro-immigration
advocates are closely watching whom Republican leadership will
name to chair the Senate and House Immigration Subcommittees.
With term limits in the House, Representative Lamar Smith no
longer will chair the House Subcommittee. At the time of
this writing, three candidates have emerged, Representatives
Gallegly (CA), Barr (GA), and Cannon (UT). Representatives
Gallegly and Barr share Lamar Smith’s views on immigration.
In contrast, Representative Cannon has supported the restoration
of Section 245(i) and the H-1B visa increase. While the
chairmanship of the subcommittee is still in play, it appears
that Representative James Sensenbrenner (WI), who does not
support our pro-immigration agenda, will chair the full Judiciary
Committee. Less is known about the Senate, other than
that the defeat of Senator Spencer Abraham leaves the
subcommittee chairmanship open. Possible candidates include
Senators Specter (PA), or a Senator newly appointed to the
Subcommittee. Senator Orrin Hatch (UT), the current chair
and chief sponsor of the LIFE Act (the Republican
counter-proposal to LIFA) will remain as chair of the full
Judiciary Committee.
We also know that while
immigration was not the lightening rod it was in the 1996
elections, immigrant voters are here to stay and in this election
were supportive of Democratic candidates. In fact polling
data shows that Republican opposition to the Latino and Immigrant
Fairness Act (LIFA) ended up hurting both George Bush and
Republicans in high profile House races. Republican
candidate George W. Bush’s outreach to the Hispanic
community had been paying off until opposition to LIFA cut into
his support among Latinos during the campaign’s final days,
according to Hispanic Trends, a Miami-based polling and research
firm. For example, among foreign-born Latino voters who were
naturalized in the 1980s, Governor Bush went from a five-point
lead in the week before the election to a 17-point deficit.
And in the several competitive California House races (in which
Democrats defeated Republicans), Latino voters constituted from
7% to 38% of the electorate.
Overall, Latinos
nationally supported Gore 62%, versus 35% for Bush. The
Latino vote was central to Gore victories in California, New
York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and (depending on the
outcome) New Mexico. The Asian –Pacific American vote
shows similar trends. A poll conducted by the Asian Pacific
American Legal Center in more than a dozen Southern California
communities found that 62 % of Asian –Pacific Americans
voted for Gore, while 35% voted for Bush. The poll found
that in this election 48% were registered Democrats, while 30%
were Republicans, versus 36% Democratic and 40% Republican in
1996.
These last few weeks
have confirmed other facts as well. The 2000 elections underscore
that immigrants vote their interests, that the Hispanic and other
immigrant voters are here to stay, and that while this vote is
concentrated in the five states with the largest number of
electoral votes (California, Texas, New York, Florida, and
Illinois), the immigrant vote is significant in other states and
in Congressional districts throughout this country.
What else do we know?
That immigrants continue to help the American economy due to
labor shortages that the Bureau of Labor Statistics project will
last for two decades. These shortages underscore the need
for pro-immigration advocates to reach out to new partners in the
business community, many of whom now are members of the
Washington-based Essential Worker Immigration Coalition.
Public opinion also has
become more favorable to immigrants. A survey undertaken
for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) found that a
majority of voters believe that immigration is critical to
sustaining our country’s economic prosperity and that a
large part of our nation’s success is owed to the diversity
that comes with immigration.
We also know that
restrictionists will continue their efforts. One point must be
made very clear. They cannot, although they will try to,
take credit for Senator Abraham’s defeat. In fact,
Michigan polls registered increased support for the Senator after
their attacks. Senator Abraham was defeated by a combination of
union, minority and women’s support for Senator-elect
Stabenow. Restrictionists also will continue to try to link
immigration negatively to quality-of-life issues that Americans
hold dear, like the environment, urban sprawl, and education.
Please contact the Advocacy department if such efforts surface in
your communities.
As reported in the October 30
Legislative Update newsflash, the Congressionally-passed FY 2001
Commerce, State, Justice (CSJ) appropriations bill authorizes the
INS to collect a "premium processing fee" of $1,000 on
business immigration petitions (I-129s and I-140s). This
provision authorizes the INS to collect this voluntary fee in
exchange for expedited service, by which a decision or a request
for additional evidence (RFE) is sent within a certain period.
The INS has discussed this fee in the context of a 15-day
turn-around time. However, the statutory language includes no set
time frame, leading some to doubt whether INS will be held to a
15-day turn-around time. The President has threatened to veto
this bill because it does not include the Latino and Immigrant
Fairness Act provisions. However, because the
Administration supports the premium-processing fee it most likely
will be included in a renegotiated bill. To date, most business
groups also support this fee.
Lobbyists oppose this fee and has
articulated our concerns with the White House and Members of
Congress. These concerns include: the potential negative impact
of this service on the processing of other applications and
petitions; the difficulty of fairly implementing this expedited
service for H-1B cases, which, by law, must be processed on a
first-come, first-serve basis; and the use of frivolous RFEs to
meet the deadline. The Congressionally passed language does
nothing to address these concerns.
Lobbyists
should contact their Members of Congress and the White House to
voice their opposition to this fee. Please call the Capitol
Switchboard at 202-224-3121 or the White House comment line at
202-456-1111.
Legislation Recently Signed
Into Law
The
following is a list and brief summary of immigration-related
legislation signed into law since the last update.
H.R.
2883, the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 (Public Law No. 106-395) was signed on 10/30/00.
Under this law, any foreign-born child under the age of 18 who
has one citizen parent, resides in the custody of that citizen
parent and is residing in the US as a permanent resident
automatically becomes a citizen. The law applies to both natural
and adopted children. The law also allows citizen parents to
petition for the naturalization of noncitizen children who do not
meet the qualifications of automatic citizenship. Lastly, the law
provides a very limited waiver for false claims to US citizenship
or unlawful voting if the individual is a long term resident,
both parents are citizens, and reasonably believed they were a
citizen.
H.R.
2961, the International Patients Act of 2000 (Public Law No. 106-406) was signed on 11/01/00.
This law creates a three-year pilot program, which extends
voluntary departure for up to three years for people who enter
the US under the visa waiver program and are receiving medical
treatment. This law is limited to 300 people per year.
H.R.
3244, the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of
2000 (Public Law No.
106-386) was signed on 10/28/00. This law creates
nonimmigrant visas for women and child victims of human
trafficking with an annual limit of 5,000 visas. There are also
provisions to improve the Violence Against Women Act for battered
immigrant women and children.
H.R.
3767, the Visa Waiver Permanent Program (Public Law No.106-396) was signed on 10/30/00.
This law makes the Visa Waiver Pilot Program permanent. It
also: eases the requirements for filing an amended H1-B petition
due to corporate restructuring, extends the immigrant investor
(EB-5) pilot program until September 30, 2003, and creates a
special immigration status for employees of INTELSAT, a satellite
communications company that is in the process of privatizing, to
maintain valid nonimmigrant status after the company change.
H.R.
4068, the Religious Workers Act of 2000 (Public Law No. 106-409) was signed on 10/31/00.
This law extends the special immigrant religious worker visa
program until September 30, 2003.
H.R.
4681 (Public Law No. 106-378) legislation that
provides relief for Syrian Jews was signed on 10/27/00. This law
allows up to 2000 Syrian Jews who came to the United States in
the early '80s and '90s and were granted asylum to adjust their
status to permanent residence within one year of the date of
enactment. It also allows adjustment for the spouses and children
of these applicants.
H.R.
4811 (Public Law, No. 106-429) the Foreign Operations,
Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act for
2001 contains an amendment which provides authority for the
Attorney General to adjust the status of certain Indochinese
parolees to lawful permanent residence. Section 586 of the Act
makes any national of Vietnam, Cambodia, or Laos who was paroled
into the United States before October 1, 1997, and who are
otherwise eligible to receive an immigrant visa, eligible to
apply for adjustment of status. The number of aliens who may be
provided adjustment of status under this provision shall not
exceed 5,000.
H.R.
5234 (Public Law No.106-415) legislation to aid widows of the
Hmong Veterans Naturalization Act, was signed on
11/01/00. This law amends the Hmong Veterans Naturalization Act
to make widows of veterans eligible for citizenship. The law
exempts applicants from the English language requirement.
S.
2812, (Public Law No. 106-448) disability oath waiver legislation
was signed by the President on 11/06/00. This bill provides a
waiver of the oath of allegiance, which is normally required for
naturalization, for those applicants whose disability prevents
them for understanding the oath.
S.
3239, The International Broadcasters Act, was passed
in Congress on 10/31/00 and has yet to be sent to the President:
This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide
special immigrant status for certain United States international
broadcasting employees.