Obama Administration’s Immigration Policy

The Obama Administration is making plans to make changes in the U.S. immigration system and policy. The Administration is announcing initiatives that pave the way for immigration reform. Just recently, the Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, testified about her plans to protect our borders and enforce our immigration laws in smarter and more effective ways. Ms. Napolitano is Arizona’s former governor and is very familiar with immigration issues especially border security issues. In 2005, she declared a state of emergency along her state’s border with Mexico. To get funding for immigration reform, the Obama Administration released a $27 billion plan for border and transportation security, part of the 2010 budget he is presenting to Congress.

The administration’s new plan will emphasize several areas of law enforcement, including using agency resources to catch the most dangerous alien criminals in this country; enhancing employment-verification systems that are currently being piloted; hiring additional agents and beefing up security at air and seaports; and expanded screening for dangerous criminals in jails. When testifying before Congress, Secretary Napolitano recognized the human issues involved in enforcement of immigration laws and expressed her support for the DREAM Act. The administration also expressed that humanitarian guidelines will be used more in enforcing immigration laws.

One focus that the Obama Administration has repeatedly emphasized is employer compliance. Employers who hire unauthorized workers or who fail to comply with immigration regulations and maintain proper documentation will be penalized. This is a shift from the worksite enforcement policies targeting at authorized workers during the Bush era. To enforce the new policy, the E-Verify system will be upgraded and further promoted to the business community.

To have a comprehensive reform of the immigration system, the administration policy also includes additional benefits for immigrants. For example, the 2010 budget increased funding to reduce the application fees and reduce the processing times of immigration applications. The filing fees for immigration fees were increased substantially in 2007. For example, the current filing fee for naturalization is $675. An immigrant-integration office at U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services will also be created to provide grants to community groups that help immigrants prepare for citizenship tests and learn English. To alleviate the severe backlog of pending deportation cases, additional funding will create jobs for 28 new immigration judges nationwide.

Although the administration did mention that it’s comprehensive immigration reform plan may include a path for the millions of undocumented aliens to gain legal status, no specifics have been released yet. The administration will schedule hearings to gather expert opinions before making any concrete proposal in this area. It is expected that the issue will generate intensive debates.