Sen. Edward Kennedy then introduced Senate Bill 1348 and the floor debate has begun.
Although the Senate bill has attracted critics from both sides of the political aisle, one thing most people agree on is that the time for action on comprehensive immigration reform is now. As the debate moves forward over the next couple of weeks and months, Reeves and Associates will continue to provide a detailed analysis, not only of what the proposal includes, but, perhaps, more importantly, who the proposal includes.
I will give you a good look of Senate Bill 1348, the current framework for comprehensive immigration reform.
Immigration Enforcement. It should be of little surprise that the grand bargain reached by the group of senators included strong enforcement measures. True to form, the Senate bill devotes three of the seven titles to enforcement, specifically enforcement of borders, interior enforcement and work place enforcement.
Regarding border enforcement, the Senate bill proposes to increase the total number of custom and border patrol officers, construct additional fencing along the southern border and invest in technological measures, such as unmanned aerial vehicles, cameras and sensors.
To strengthen interior enforcement, the Senate bill proposes to increase the number of immigration personnel, such as immigration adjudicating officers, trial attorneys and immigration judges, and stiffen the penalties relating to aliens failing to comply with removal orders and criminal activities, including gang violence and immigration fraud offenses.
One of the more interesting proposals found in the Senate bill is the possibility of a reduction in the period of inadmissibility for unlawful presence if the alien agrees to voluntarily depart the US.
The final enforcement measure deals with work place verification and enforcement. Under the Senate bill, the government will establish an electronic eligibility verification system.
Once in place, employers will be required to register with the system and submit employee’s names, social security numbers and alien numbers.
Legalization through the “Z” Visa. Just as any comprehensive proposal naturally includes enforcement provisions, comprehensive immigration reform must also include legalization for undocumented aliens.
The Senate bill does just that by creating a new four-year renewable “Z” visa. Although most of the Senate bill’s provisions are subject to “triggers,” it is important to note that the new “Z” visa will be available to applicants soon after enactment. Furthermore, a “Z” visa applicant may include his spouse, elderly parents and/or his minor children with his application.
To be eligible, illegal aliens must have been continuously physically present in the US since Jan. 1, admissible under the immigration law and working. The Senate bill contains a number of exceptions to the admissibility requirement for “Z” visa applicants, including exceptions to the bars for unlawful presence, failure to attend a removal proceeding and falsely claiming being a US citizen.
Although the “Z” visa is initially valid for four years, it may be extended indefinitely until the applicant applies for lawful permanent resident status or a green card.
The government will begin to accept applications for permanent residence from “Z” visa holders once the current visa backlogs have been cleared. Under the Senate bill, only the principal “Z” visa holder will be subject to the “touchback” provision—requiring him or her to return to his or her home country to apply.
Guest Worker Program. In cooperation with the White House, the Senate bill includes the president’s temporary guest worker program, also known as a “Y” visa. Under the Senate’s proposal, temporary workers will be allowed to enter the US to work for up to three two-year periods, with at least a year spent outside the US between each period. The Senate bill allows immediate family members to join the guest worker in the US, provided the guest worker has the financial means to support them and they are covered under health insurance.
Merit Based System. Perhaps, one of the most interesting, although hotly debated, proposals in the Senate bill is the plan to shift the current immigrant visa system to a merit-based system. Specifically, the Senate bill proposes to “rebalance” the current visa allocations and then “restructure” the current system to a merit-based system.
The proposal attempts to rebalance the visa allocations by dedicating 440,000 visas of the 557,000 visas available exclusively to backlog reduction, seeking to eliminate the backlog within eight years. The rebalancing will also include specific designations for guest worker visas.
The Senate bill also proposes to restructure the current visa system to a merit-based system. Merit points are assigned according to employment, educational attainment, knowledge in English and civics and family ties in the US.
Although the restructuring of the current immigrant visa system may eliminate certain family preferences, the Senate bill provides a number of hardship based immigrant visas for individuals that would qualify under the current system.
