Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill Introducted in House

A comprehensive immigration reform bill was introduced in Congress on December 15, 2009, by Representative Luis Gutierrez, Democrat of Illinois. Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) has been a hot topic of discussion in Congress since the last presidency. Despite support by President Bush and some Republic members of Congress, no immigration reform bill was enacted. After President Obama took office, he also made CIR a priority on his agenda, although his first year of presidency was preoccupied by an economic crisis, wars in the Middle East, and health care reform.

This bill, like other proposals for CIR, provides an opportunity for the millions of undocumented foreigners in the U.S. to apply for legal status, in addition to strengthening homeland security and beefing up law enforcement. It is a premise of CIR that effective immigration reform must include both law enforcement measures and ways for the undocumented immigrants to be legalized. This bill by Rep. Gutierrez, entitled Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America's Security and
Prosperity Act of 2009 (CIR ASAP), allows qualified undocumented persons and their spouses and children to stay conditionally for six years if they:

(1) Establish they have been in the U.S. illegally before December 15, 2009.
(2) Attest to having made contributions to the U.S. through employment, education, military service, or other volunteer/community service (with exemptions for minors, persons with disabilities, the elderly, or other unusual circumstances).
(3) Pay an application fee and a $500 fine.
(4) Not have any convictions for a felony or for three or more misdemeanors.

This bill allows certain foreign nationals who have been or are in removal proceedings to apply for legalization. Some other immigration bars would also be waived. The applicants will receive a conditional visa and must wait for six years before they would have an opportunity to apply for a green card unless the current visa backlog is eliminated. Their status will not be counted against the current worldwide numerical visa caps.

For those who were brought to the U.S. before the age of 16, they will also be eligible to apply. They will not have to pay fines and would be eligible for accelerated LPR status upon graduation from high school, and completion of two years of college, military service, or employment.

This bill does not require foreigners to return to their home country before they may be allowed to apply for legal status.

As expected, the bill was not welcome by some Republicans in Congress and some conservative Democrats. Their concern is that the new law would generate a large influx of migrants in the already anemic U.S. labor market, which is suffering from a 10 percent unemployment rate. Other critics also express concerns that the bill does not address the future labor demand of the U.S. as it lacks a temporary worker program.

Another major part of the bill aims at the reduction of visa backlog in the current family and employment immigration system. It exempts immediate relatives from the annual cap on the number of immigrant visas, and increases the number of visas which may be issued per country per year.
Qualified workers will be authorized to work after their employment based petition was filed until a visa becomes available. The bill also exempts from skilled worker numerical cap U.S. educated foreign nationals who receive science, technology, engineering and math degrees and other critical workforce graduates. Most importantly, it reclassifies spouses and children of lawful permanent residents as immediate relatives so that they will not have to wait for many years before they can be united.

The other provisions of the bill include more inhumane treatment of refugees and detainees, creation of a Southern Border Security Task Force, modernizing ports of entry, targeting smuggling of illegal immigrants, and enhanced employment verification.

(Warning: A bill introduced in Congress is only a proposed law. It will not take legal effect and become law unless and until it is passed by Congress and signed by the President.)