Legislation
Senate Committee Mark-up Of Immigration Bill Begins With Border Security Amendments
The Senate Judiciary Committee’s mark-up of S. 744, the “Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act” put forward by the bipartisan Gang of 8 group of senators, began on Thursday in front of a packed hearing room and with all 18 committee members in attendance. Senators offered 32 amendments (out of the 300 filed), all relating to issues in the introduction and Title 1 of the bill. Of the amendments considered, the committee accepted 21 of them, with bipartisan support for all but one, while four were withdrawn. The primary change was to broaden the scope of the border security provisions. And as they had previously indicated, the four “Gang of Eight” members on the committee—Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin (IL) and Chuck Schumer (NY) and GOP Sens. Jeff Flake (AZ) and Lindsey Graham (SC)—voted together against any amendment that undermined the bill’s core goals. Read More
The Important Role of Immigrants in America’s Innovation Economy
This week, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation weighed in on immigration reform with a hearing on the role of immigrants in America’s innovation economy. Remarks from Sens. Rockefeller (D-WV) and Thune (R-SD) noted the contributions of immigrant innovators and entrepreneurs. Immigrants in the United States were named as inventors or co-inventors on 25.6 percent of international patent applications filed from the U.S. in 2006. Furthermore, temporary workers and permanent residents made contributions to over half of the international patents filed by several large, multi-national companies. Temporary and permanent foreign-born workers represent at least 24 percent of the nation’s scientists and 47 percent of engineers with doctoral degrees. Read More
Social Security Administration Says Immigration Reform Will Increase Tax Revenue, Boost Economy
Will the immigration reform bill create millions of jobs, boost GDP, and help balance the budget? A new report by the Social Security Administration says that it will, by putting undocumented immigrants on the tax rolls and allowing them to participate fully and legally in the U.S. economy. Read More
How to Accurately Estimate the Economic Impact of the Senate Immigration Reform Bill
One of the most important questions being asked about the Senate immigration reform bill (S. 744) is how it will impact the economy. There is already a broad consensus among economic experts that immigration reform would be a net economic benefit in terms of jobs, wage levels, tax revenue, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). As reported in Politico on May 8, for instance, a new study by the Social Security Administration estimates that “by 2024, the immigration bill will have created 3.22 million jobs, and boost GDP by 1.63 percent.” However, the most widely awaited estimate is that of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which will soon be “scoring” the bill in terms of its fiscal consequences. Read More
Senate Legislative Process Must Maintain Spirit of Compromise
Washington D.C. – Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee begins “mark-up” of S. 744, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act. In an unprecedented move by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy and Ranking Member Charles Grassley, all amendments have been made publicly available in order to make the… Read More
Senate Immigration Bill Mark-Up: What to Expect
Tomorrow, the Senate Judiciary Committee will begin the long awaited mark-up of S. 744, the “Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act,” the 844 page bill designed to overhaul our broken immigration system. We can expect some genuine efforts to improve the bill from both sides, but we can also expect a lot of theatrics and grandstanding. That’s the nature of a big committee mark-up, especially on an issue that hasn’t had this kind of exposure in the Senate since the mark-up of the 2006 bill. What can we expect? Read More
President Obama’ Trip to Latin America Highlights Important Mutual Economic and Security Ties
President Obama spent three days last week traveling to Mexico as well as Costa Rica—his first second-term trip to Latin America. Mexico is the United States’ third largest trading partner, behind Canada and China, in terms of total goods, and the U.S. is Mexico’s largest trading partner. In addition, the largest share of immigrants who come to the U.S. are from Mexico. The President’s trip is a reminder of what an important partner Mexico, and much of Latin America, is to the U.S. Keeping these dynamics in mind is key particularly at a time when some in Congress want to spend more and more at the southern border in an attempt to seal the U.S. off completely from one of our largest economic partners. It’s no wonder then that the President used the trip to discuss both the economic and immigration ties between our nations. Read More
New Heritage Report Ignores Broad Consensus on Economic Benefits of Reform
Today, the Heritage Foundation released a report that attempts to assess the fiscal costs associated with legalizing the 11 million unauthorized individuals living in the United States. The new report is similar to a 2007 study, which was widely criticized at the time of publication and continues to be refuted today by conservatives like Republican budget hawk Paul Ryan, former head of the Congressional Budget Office under President Bush, Douglas Holtz-Eaken, anti-tax activist Grover Norquist and the libertarian Cato Institute. In addition, the Bi-Partisan Policy Institute’s Immigration Task Force (which includes Condoleeza Rice and Haley Barbour) remarked on the report after its release noting, “we strongly believe that this study’s modeling and assumptions are fundamentally flawed because they do not account for the many contributions that an appropriately reformed immigration system can afford our economy and our country.” Read More
Keeping U.S. High-Skilled Temporary Worker Visa Programs Workable
When analyzing higher-skilled guest worker visa programs, such as the H-1B and L-1 programs, critics often fail to acknowledge the very different and important purposes that these programs were designed to serve, and the complicated requirements already in place to protect against abuse or exploitation. There is no denying that we can and should improve these programs and the strategies used to enforce them. However, given the well-established economic benefits of these programs, and the challenges employers face finding highly skilled workers, particularly in technical fields, it is essential that any proposed reforms not impose restrictions that may make these programs completely unworkable. Read More
Immigration Activists Take to the Streets in May Day Rallies Around the Nation
Tens of thousands of people across the country—from New York to Vermont to California and Arizona—gathered at rallies and marches yesterday to demand immigration reform. Immigrants and advocates joined with labor groups, lawmakers, and other organizations for the May Day, also known as International Worker’s Day, demonstrations in dozens of cities. And their message was clear: Congress must pass immigration reform. Read More
Make a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
