Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday, April
7, 2023, is now posted.

You can find the online version of the bulletin
here: [link removed]
<[link removed]>

All the best,

Alexandra 

**LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN - Friday, April 7, 2023**Welcome to the National
Immigration Forum's weekly bulletin! Every Friday, our policy team
rounds up key developments around immigration policy in Washington and
across the country. The bulletin includes items on the legislative,
executive, and judicial branches, as well as some coverage at the state
and local levels. 

Here's a breakdown of the bulletin's sections:

BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED <#bills-introduced-and-considered>

LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR <#legislative-floor-calendar>

UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS <#upcoming-hearings-and-markups>

DEVELOPMENTS IN IMMIGRATION THIS WEEK <#Themes-In-Washington-This-week>

GOVERNMENT REPORTS <#government-reports>

SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES
<#spotlight-on-national-immigration-forum-resources>

**BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED**Both the U.S. House of
Representatives and the U.S. Senate have been in recess the week of
April 3, 2023. So, instead of rounding up new immigration bills this
week, the Forum has used this space to flag a number of especially
noteworthy pieces of legislation from past weeks. This list is not
intended to be comprehensive, but it may provide a glimpse into the
current legislative landscape surrounding immigration policy. 

S.255
<[link removed]>Asylum
Seeker Work Authorization Act of 2023

This bill would allow individuals seeking asylum at ports of entry to be
eligible for work authorization starting 30 days after they apply for
asylum, provided their applications are not frivolous, they are not
detained, and their identities have been verified.

Sponsored by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) (2
<[link removed]>
cosponsors- 2 Independents, 0 Republicans, 0 Democrats)

02/02/2023 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Susan Collins

02/02/2023 Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

S.365
<[link removed]>Dream
Act of 2023

This bill would allow Dreamers to earn lawful permanent residence and
eventually become American citizens. A Dreamer is an undocumented
immigrant who came to the United States as a child.

Sponsored by Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Illinois) (1
<[link removed]>
cosponsor- 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)

02/09/2023 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Richard Durbin

02/09/2023 Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

S.637
<[link removed]>Child
Labor Prevention Act

This bill
<[link removed]>
would increase civil penalties and create criminal penalties for
violations of child labor laws. It would also protect all working
children under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In addition, the
bill would index penalties to the Consumer Price Index for All Urban
Consumers.

Sponsored by Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) (10
<[link removed]>
cosponsors - 0 Republicans, 10 Democrats)

03/02/2023 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Brian Schatz

03/02/2023 Referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions

H.R.29
<[link removed]>Border
Safety and Security Act of 2023

This bill
<[link removed]>
would grant discretionary authority to the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) to suspend the entry of foreign nationals to the United
States at ports of entry whenever DHS deems necessary that such a
measure would help to achieve operational control over the border. The
bill would further mandate the suspension of the entry of foreign
nationals at ports of entry if certain conditions are not met.

Sponsored by Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) (68
<[link removed]>
cosponsors- 68 Republicans, 0 Democrats)

01/09/2023 Introduced in the House by Rep. Chip Roy

01/09/2023 Referred to the House Committees on Homeland Security and the
Judiciary

H.R.319
<[link removed]>Legal
Workforce Act

This bill
<[link removed]>
would require employers to check the work eligibility of all future
hires through the E-Verify system. E-Verify, operated by USCIS, checks
the social security numbers of newly hired employees against Social
Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security records to
help ensure that they are eligible to work in the U.S.

Sponsored by Rep. Ken Calvert (R-California)  (9
<[link removed]>
cosponsors - 8 Republicans, 1 Democrat)

01/12/2023 Introduced in the House by Rep. Ken Calvert

01/12/2023 Referred to the House Committees on the Judiciary, on Ways
and Means, and Education and the Workforce

​​H.R.1183
<[link removed]>The
Asylum Reform and Border Protection Act

This bill would heighten the credible fear standard to require that
asylum seekers demonstrate that persecution is more probable than not,
allow the Department of Homeland Security to remove asylum seekers to
third countries absent bilateral agreements, and terminate asylum for
those who return to their home country unless there's a change in
country conditions.

Sponsored by Rep. Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) (0
<[link removed]>
cosponsors)

02/24/2023 Introduced in the House by Rep. Mike Johnson

02/24/2023 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R.1325
<[link removed]>Asylum
Seeker Work Authorization Act

This bill
<[link removed]>
would shorten waiting periods for asylum seekers to be eligible for work
authorization, allow asylum seekers to apply for authorization once
they've filed an asylum claim, and do away with the two-year renewal
schedule.

Sponsored by Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) (6
<[link removed]>
cosponsors - 0 Republicans, 6 Democrats)

03/01/2023 Introduced in the House by Rep. Chellie Pingree

03/01/2023 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R.1535
<[link removed]>Eliminating
Backlogs Act of 2023

This bill
<[link removed]>
would provide greater flexibility around existing allotments of
employment-based visas. 

Sponsored by Rep. Larry Bucshon (R-Indiana)  (1
<[link removed]>
cosponsor - 0 Republicans, 1 Democrat)

03/10/2023 Introduced in the House by Rep. Larry Bucshon

03/10/2023 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R.1698
<[link removed]>American
Families United Act

This bill would provide greater access to existing waivers for spouses
and children of U.S. citizens who are inadmissible.

Sponsored by Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas) (20
<[link removed]>
cosponsors - 1 Republican, 19 Democrats)

03/22/2023 Introduced in the House by Rep. Veronica Escobar

03/22/2023 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**Neither the U.S. Senate nor the U.S. House
of Representatives will be in session from Monday, April 10, through
Friday, April 14, 2023.

**UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS**Here, we round up congressional
hearings and markups happening in the field or in Washington. 

There are no upcoming hearings or markups concerning immigration policy
the week of April 10.

**DEVELOPMENTS IN IMMIGRATION THIS WEEK**Immigration policy is a dynamic
field subject to constant change. Here, we summarize some of the most
important recent developments in immigration policy on the federal,
legal, state, and local levels. 

Content warning: This section sometimes includes events and information
that can prove disturbing. 

****Federal ****

**U.S. Resettled Highest Monthly Number of Refugees in March Since FY
2017**The United States resettled
<[link removed]> 6,122 refugees in
March, a 99% increase over the 3,069 refugees resettled in February and
a promising sign for the U.S.'s recently beleaguered refugee
program. 

The last time more than 6,000 refugees were resettled in one month was
in fiscal year 2017. Since then, the U.S.'s refugee program has
struggled with significant instability, resource depletion, and
logistical obstacles amid the Trump administration and the Covid-19
pandemic. 

Six months into fiscal year 2023, the U.S. has resettled 18,429 refugees
out of President Joe Biden's annual determination
<[link removed]>of
125,000. At the current rate, the U.S. is on target to resettle
approximately 36,858 refugees this fiscal year. Or, if officials were to
resettle 6,122 refugees for the next six months, the U.S. would instead
welcome 55,161 refugees in fiscal year 2023 - a major improvement
over the past five years, but still far short of the cap set by the
Biden administration.

To achieve the goal of 125,000 refugees in fiscal year 2023, the U.S.
would now need to resettle 17,762 refugees every month for the next six
months. Such a high monthly goal has not been achieved in the past 20
years of U.S. refugee resettlement, let alone consecutively over an
extended period of time.

**USCIS Staffs New Virtual Service Center to Target Humanitarian
Backlogs **U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)has begun
to staff
<[link removed]>
a new virtual service center intended to reduce immigration backlogs by
processing four types of requests for humanitarian relief. 

The Humanitarian, Adjustment, Removing Conditions and Travel Documents
Service Center (HART) will focus on requests that currently have longer
processing times, including those by crime victims for U visas and by
domestic abuse survivors under the Violence Against Women Act. The
center will also process refugee applications to bring relatives from
abroad, as well as requests to waive unlawful presence and become
permanent residents for certain undocumented immigrants.

"We took a look at what was going on, and we realized we need greater
focus here," USCIS Director Ur Jaddou said. 

Immigration advocates believe the new center - which is expected to
be nearly fully staffed by the end of fiscal year 2024 - and its
trained and dedicated workforce will have a major impact on abuse
survivors awaiting immigration relief. 

News of the center follows years of financial constraints at USCIS,
which is primarily funded by immigrants and their employers through
immigration application fees. Although the agency has received more
money from Congress in recent years, House Democrats recently called
<[link removed]>
to double President Joe Biden's fiscal year 2024 budget request in
order to efficiently continue reducing backlogs. 

**8 Migrants Dead After Trying to Cross the Canada-U.S. Border**Last
week, two migrant families - including young children
<[link removed]>,
ages 1 and 2 - died while trying to cross the Canada-U.S. border
<[link removed]>
by boat. 

Canadian authorities recovered eight bodies of Romanian and Indian
migrants in the St. Lawrence River on Thursday and Friday
<[link removed]>.
Among them were Cristina (Monalisa) Zenaida Iordache, Florin Iordache,
and their two toddlers Evelin and Elyen, who had risked the dangerous
journey south after learning their Canadian refugee claim had been
denied and they would be deported on March 31. 

The family's attorney, Peter Ivanyi, said that Florin had been
desperate to raise his children in Canada where they would be safe,
instead of returning to "the misery"  members of the Roma minority like
them experience in Romania. 

"Everything he did in Canada was for his kids," Ivanyi told the National
Post
<[link removed]>.
"He made it crystal clear that this was the most important thing for
him, to be able to raise his Canadian children in Canada."

Pravin Chaudhary, his wife Diksha, and their two adult children Meet and
Vidhi were also among the dead. BBC Gujarati reported that "the sounds
of wailing women could be heard in the distance" as news of the tragedy
shocked family and friends of the deceased in their native Manekpur
Dabhala village back in India. 

Pravin was a farmer whose neighbors thought he was doing well, with a
friendly family who led a life that was both happy and decent. The
Chaudharys had gone to Canada on visitor visas in February, and even
their relatives did not know they had planned to travel onward to the
U.S.

"We are just waiting for their bodies to reach here so that we can see
all of them one last time," Jasubhai Chaudhary, Pravin's cousin, told
BBC Gujarati. <[link removed]> 

The tragedy comes in the immediate aftermath of the U.S. and Canada's
announcement that they have amended
<[link removed]>
their Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) to extend across the entirety
of the U.S.-Canada border, including areas between official ports of
entry that were not previously covered. Under the long-standing
agreement, asylum seekers from third countries who cross from Canada to
the U.S. in search of asylum can be sent back across the border, and
vice versa. 

In Canada, some advocates
<[link removed]>
are linking the Iordaches' and the Chaudharys' deaths to the
STCA's recent expansion, arguing that such policies of deterrence push
migrants and asylum seekers into more dangerous crossings. On Tuesday,
dozens of protesters outside of the Canadian Public Safety Minister
Marco Mendicino's office in Toronto asked for an end to the STCA, backed
by a petition with thousands of signatures, Reuters reported. 
<[link removed]>

"What more evidence do you need to present within days of strengthening
the agreement?" said Shalini Konanur, a lawyer with the South Asian
Legal Clinic of Ontario. "Eight people died. We know that this won't
be the last time unless we do something about it."

**U.S. Companies Offshore Jobs Because of H-1B Visa
Barriers**Restrictions placed on H-1B visas cause U.S. companies to hire
talent abroad, impacting research- and development-intensive jobs the
most, a new academic article shows. 
<[link removed]>

H-1B visas are used by U.S. businesses and organizations to employ
foreign nationals who have often attained high levels of education in
specialized fields, bringing knowledge and skills that are desperately
needed into the U.S. economy. But according to Britta Glennon
<[link removed]>,
an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania, restrictions
such as limits on the number of visas issued make U.S. firms "go abroad,
setting up new foreign affiliates and hiring talent there instead of in
the U.S." 

Glennon's research also suggests that the movement of jobs and talent
abroad has major implications for U.S. competitiveness -  and
potentially even the country's innovative capacity. 

A separate national survey
<[link removed]>
conducted by Envoy Global and Cint supported the study's results,
finding that visa-related uncertainties led 86% of surveyed companies to
hire outside the country for roles intended to be U.S.-based. 

**H-2B Visa Cap Reached for Returning Workers**On March 31, U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a statement
<[link removed]>
saying it had received enough petitions to reach the 16,500 H-2B visa
cap for returning workers during the early second half of the 2023
fiscal year. 

The agency will continue to accept petitions for those who are exempt
from the congressionally required cap, as well as for workers from
Haiti, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, who have been allocated
additional visas for this fiscal year. 

USCIS will start accepting petitions on April 13 for returning workers
during the late second half of the 2023 fiscal year.

****State and Local****

**Faith Leaders Speak Out Against Restrictive Florida Bills Targeting
Immigrants**On March 30, faith leaders expressed serious concerns that
an immigration proposal advancing through the Florida legislature could
infringe on their religious freedoms and criminalize churches for
providing services to undocumented immigrants. 

Senate Bill 1718
<[link removed]>, led
by Republican state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, would expose Floridians to
felony charges for transporting someone they knew - or reasonably
should have known - entered the U.S. unauthorized and without
inspection by federal officials. In practice, religious stakeholders
<[link removed]>
say they're worried the bill could render illegal their regular acts
of service, such as driving an elderly neighbor to church, taking a
teenager to a church activity, or even driving a bus of Christian school
students for sports.

"If this bill were enacted as currently drafted, it would place
Florida's Christians and churches in an untenable decision, having to
decide between obeying biblical commands or facing criminal penalties
for showing biblical compassion," said Gary Shultz Jr
<[link removed]>.,
senior pastor at First Baptist Church in Tallahassee. 

SB 1718, together with a related bill
<[link removed]>in
the Florida House, would also invalidate the use of driver's licenses
issued to undocumented immigrants by other states, require hospitals to
collect data on their patients' immigration status, and enact other
sweeping changes to crack down on unauthorized immigrants in Florida. 

"We've heard the same thing over and over again, where we're demonizing
immigrants, we're demonizing migrants. That is not the case. We are
demonizing illegal immigrants," Ingoglia told a Senate panel
<[link removed]>
last month. 

Myal Greene, President and CEO of World Relief, portrayed the
legislation
<[link removed]>
as "a proposal that would criminalize sharing the love of Jesus with
some of the most vulnerable people in society."

**GOVERNMENT REPORTS**Reports by bodies such as the U.S. Government
Accountability Office, the Congressional Research Service, and the
Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General provide
invaluable information on immigration policy and practice. Here, we give
brief summaries of new immigration-related reports, with links to the
resources themselves in case you want to learn more. 

**Congressional Research Service (CRS);****DHS Budget Request Analysis:
FY2024** <[link removed]>

**; April 4, 2023**This report analyzes the Biden administration's
fiscal year 2024 budget request for the Department of Homeland Security,
the third largest federal agency based on civilian personnel.

**U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS);****Immigration and
Citizenship Data**
<[link removed]>

**; April 5, 2023**USCIS released a number of useful resources this
week, with data on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA),
Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) classification, and more. 

**SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES**The Forum is
constantly publishing new policy-focused resources that engage with some
of the most topical issues around immigration today. Here are a few that
are particularly relevant this week: 

**Bill Analysis: Eliminating Backlogs Act of 2023**
<[link removed]>This
bill analysis details the provisions in H.R. 1535, a bipartisan bill
introduced by Rep. Larry Bucshon (R-Indiana) and co-sponsored by Rep.
Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Illinois) that would recapture unused
employment-based green cards and exempt them from per-country caps.

**The Relationship Between English Proficiency and Naturalization**
<[link removed]>This
paper details the relationship between English language proficiency and
naturalization rates in the United States. It also provides related
policy recommendations.

**Bill Summary: The American Families United Act**
<[link removed]>This
bill summary has been updated to reflect the 118th Congress's version
of the American Families United Act, H.R. 1698
<[link removed]>,
a bipartisan piece of legislation that would encourage family unity by
providing the Attorney General and the Department of Homeland Security
with further discretion during certain immigration-related
adjudications. 

* * * *This Bulletin is not intended to be comprehensive. Please contact
Alexandra Villarreal, Policy and Advocacy Associate at the National
Immigration Forum, with comments and suggestions of additional items to
be included. Alexandra can be reached at
[email protected]. Thank you.

 

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