Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello y'all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday,
November 3, 2023, is now posted.

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

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All the best,

Ally 

**LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN - Friday, November 3, 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:

DEVELOPMENTS IN IMMIGRATION THIS WEEK

BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED

LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR

UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS

GOVERNMENT REPORTS

SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES

**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.-Mexico Border: Mayorkas Calls for Funding as Biden Administration
Weighs Asylum Deal **On October 30, in anopinion piece

for the Washington Post, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas
called on Congress to increase border security funding by passing the
Biden administration's supplemental budget request.

The additional cash flow would go toward more detention beds, support
for border cities struggling to provide resources to migrants, staffing
increases, and other measures to beef up enforcement at the United
States-Mexico border while responding to migrants who are already here.

"Too many elected officials believe that making cable TV appearances to
decry a broken system is better for their politics than equipping our
nation's front-line officers with the resources they need to carry out
their difficult jobs," Mayorkas wrote. 

"Ensuring the safety and security of the American people is more than
just a talking point. It is a national imperative."

To garner support for the supplemental package - which, on top of
border security, includes funding for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan
- reports indicate

the Biden administration is considering whether to agree to substantive
policy changes to asylum law. It's unclear what a compromise would
involve, though according to Politico, one of the talking points is a
shift in the credible fear standard for asylum seekers in expedited
removal. 

These discussions come as large-scale humanitarian migration at the
U.S.-Mexico border has become increasingly global, including from
nations as far flung as India. In fiscal year 2023, around42,000
migrants

from India irregularly crossed the southern border into the U.S., more
than double the number from fiscal year 2022. 

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi'sHindu nationalist policies

have driven many from their homes, while others are arriving for
economic reasons.

Meanwhile, as migrants from around the world make the trek to the
U.S.'s southern border, Mexico's immigration system has in turn
beenoverwhelmed
,
resulting in long delays for refugee or exit visas. 

On Monday, a group of around 5,000 migrants started marching from near
Mexico's southern border toward the U.S., tired of waiting to be
officially processed and allowed to transit the country. The caravan has
since grown to
around 7,000 people. 

**President Biden Hosts Hemispheric Summit; Migration Initiatives
Announced** On November 3, President Joe Biden hosted
the presidents and prime
ministers of Barbados, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the
Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, and Uruguay - as well as
Mexico's Minister of Foreign Affairs - for the inaugural Americas
Partnership for Economic Prosperity Leaders' (APEP) Summit. 

The Summit, focused on economic integration and growth in the Americas,
also had a migration-oriented goal: tackling the underlying economic
drivers of irregular migration. During the opening remarks of the APEP
Summit, Biden announced
three joint initiatives to manage the challenges of unprecedented
migration flows across the Western Hemisphere:

First, he highlighted the U.S.'s commitment to ensuring communities
welcoming migrants and refugees across the hemisphere can afford to care
for them. As part of that commitment, he announced that the U.S.,
Canada, and Spain are contributing to the Inter-American Development
Bank's Migration Grant Fund
,
created to help countries integrate migrants into local communities and
contribute to their development.

Second, Biden announced that APEP leaders are committed to expanding
legal migration pathways and providing permits to migrant workers. He
emphasized that migrant workers are a "critical asset to all of our
countries."

Third, he highlighted the importance of enforcing immigration laws
humanely and effectively to "deter dangerous and irregular migration." 

Biden closed his opening remarks by saying
, "our region is knit
together by the close bonds of family and enduring friendship." He
highlighted that the U.S. is a "country of immigrants" that is home to
more than 63 million Latinos and millions more with roots in the
Caribbean. He also pointed out that the U.S. has the fourth largest
Spanish-speaking population in the world, and about a quarter of the
children in American schools are Hispanic.

**Biden Administration Issues Executive Order on Artificial
Intelligence; Immigration Provisions Included **On October 30, the
Biden administration issued

an executive order to regulate the development and use of artificial
intelligence (AI) in the United States. Among its many and varied
provisions, the executive order includes the following
immigration-related elements:

The executive order mandates the State Department (DOS) and the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to streamline visa applications
for foreign nationals working in AI research or other critical emerging
technologies. The order mandates the Department of Labor to consider
updates to Schedule A
to
include AI and other STEM-related occupations for which there is an
insufficient number of American workers.

It also orders DOS to start a rulemaking process to establish new
criteria to designate countries and skills on the Department of
State's Exchange Visitor Skills List. This process should include
modernizing the two-year foreign residence requirement for certain J-1
visa holders whose skills are critical to the U.S.

The order also mandates DOS to consider implementing a stateside visa
renewal program to allow highly skilled immigrants and international
students who obtain a degree in science, technology, engineering, or
mathematics (STEM) to continue their work in the U.S. without
unnecessary interruption.

It also orders DOS to establish a program to identify and attract top
talent in AI and other STEM fields to come to American universities and
research institutions.

Finally, the order mandates DHS to modernize immigration pathways for
experts in AI and other critical and emerging technologies.

**Haiti Suspends Flights to Nicaragua Amid Claims that Ortega Is
'Weaponizing' Migration**On October 30, the Haitian government
halted

all flights to Nicaragua amid accusations that Nicaragua President
Daniel Ortega is deliberately allowing migrants to transit through his
country in order to force the United States into easing sanctions
against his autocratic regime. 

Since August, Haitians have been flying directly into Nicaragua en route
to the U.S., bypassing the treacherous Darién Gap jungle. The number of
daily flights between the two countries had reached as many as 15 per
day, with more than 260
arriving
in Nicaragua over the last few months. Tickets cost thousands of
dollars. 

At the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Haiti, a reporter
from the Miami Herald

counted over a thousand passengers who were waiting for flights on
Monday, despite an earlier "Notice to Airmen" signaling the suspensions.
Some passengers who had boarded a flight headed for Managua were even
forced to deplane. 

"The government has to tell us what plan they have for Haiti," said a
man who had paid $3,000 for airfare. "There is no life in Haiti.
That's one of the reasons why everyone is here, everyone has decided
to leave."

****Legal****

**Judge Sides With Texas, Orders Federal Immigration Officials to Stop
Removing Concertina Wire**

** **On October 30, a federal judge

ordered U.S. immigration officials to stop removing razor wire along the
Texas-Mexico border after the Texas Military Department had spent $11
million over three years to fund the hazards in an attempt to deter
migration.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) sued the Biden administration,
claiming that U.S. Border Patrol agents illegally destroyed state
property by damaging the wire to "assist" migrants. U.S. District Judge
Alia Moses granted Texas a temporary restraining order but carved out
anexception

for certain situations involving medical emergencies.

The concertina wire has provoked widespread backlash amid reports that
it has caused serious injuries to migrants crossing the Rio Grande.

Paxton's office and the Biden administration will present arguments in
the case onNovember 7
,
while as of now, the temporary bar on cutting and removing wire is set
to expire on November 13. 

****State and Local ****

**As Shelter Space Runs Out, Massachusetts Hosts Work Authorization
Clinic, New York Offers One-Way Tickets Elsewhere **While New York City
and Massachusetts respond to large numbers of migrants asking for
housing under their right-to-shelter laws, local and state officials are
implementing disparate measures as they warn that available space is
running low. 

Beginning

November 13, Massachusetts will host a work authorization clinic in
coordination with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), even as the
state says its shelter system for families is nearing capacity. On
Wednesday, a judge
greenlit
a plan to cap available shelter space at 7,500 families, despite the
state's right-to-shelter laws. 

"Many shelter residents want to work but face significant barriers to
getting their work authorizations,"said

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey (D). "This clinic will be critical for
building on the work that our administration has already been leading to
connect more migrants with work opportunities, which will help them
support their families and move out of emergency shelter into more
stable housing options."

New York is also holding work authorization clinics

in collaboration with the Biden administration. But meanwhile, migrants
in New York City searching for available shelter beds are instead being
redirected to a"reticketing center
,"
where they're offered one-way tickets to anywhere in the world, as
long as they leave. 

"They told me here they would help me with a shelter. I got here and
it's a lie," Franklin Sosa told The City
.
"They're giving out bad information. It's hard to talk because
I'll cry."

In a letter over

the weekend, New York Mayor Eric Adams (D) was among five city leaders
who called on President Joe Biden to set "an urgent meeting" to discuss
the needs in their communities amid large-scale migration. 

"We believe we have a unique opportunity to work with the White House
and Congress over these next few weeks to create an immigration and
asylum system that will treat our newcomers with dignity and be fair and
equitable to cities and neighborhoods across the country," the five
mayors wrote. 

On Thursday, two of the mayors

- Mike Johnston of Denver (D) and Brandon Johnson of Chicago (D) -
traveled to Washington to broach the migrant situation with senior White
House officials and lawmakers
. 

**BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED**It can be challenging to keep up with
the constant barrage of proposed legislation in Congress. So, every
week, we round up new bills. This list includes federal legislative
proposals that have recently been introduced and that are relevant to
immigration policy. 

Please follow this link

to find new relevant bills, as well as proposed legislation from past
weeks. 

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**The U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of
Representatives are expected to be in session from Monday, November 6
through Thursday, November 9, 2023.

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

**A Review of the President's Supplemental Request for the Departments
of Health and Human Services and Homeland Security**

**Date:**Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 9:00 a.m. EST (Senate
Appropriations)

**Location:**Dirksen Senate Office Building 106, Washington, D.C.

**Witnesses:**

**The Honorable Xavier Becerra,**Secretary, U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services

**The Honorable Alejandro Mayorkas,**Secretary, U.S. Department of
Homeland Security

**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. 

**DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG);****CBP Did Not Fully Implement
the Requirements of the Synthetic Opioid Exposure Prevention and
Training Act**

**; Published October 26, 2023**This report details how U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) failed to implement certain measures from the
Synthetic Opioid Exposure Prevention and Training Act, such as providing
naloxone to personnel who might be exposed to opioids and requiring
training on opioid exposure.

**DHS Office of Inspector General;****Management Alert - ICE Management
and Oversight of Mobile Applications (REDACTED)**

**; Published October 30, 2023**This report outlines "urgent issues"
involving user-installed mobile applications on U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) mobile devices, which pose threats to the
agency's security.

**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: 

**Fact Sheet: Temporary Protected Status (TPS)**
This
fact sheet explores Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which gives
beneficiaries access to deportation protections and work authorization.
The resource was updated on October 3 with recent developments. 

**Illicit Fentanyl and Drug Smuggling at the U.S.-Mexico Border: An
Overview**
This
paper gives a detailed overview of fentanyl and drug smuggling at the
U.S.-Mexico border, including that "most illicit fentanyl encountered by
CBP is smuggled through POEs [ports of entry]."

**The Reasons Behind the Increased Migration from Venezuela, Cuba, and
Nicaragua**
This
paper explores the reasons behind the increased migration from
Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua. While irregular migration from these
three countries ruled by autocratic governments is not new, the
situation has worsened in recent years. Commonalities include domestic
political crises, weakening economies, Covid-19, natural disasters, and
strict U.S.-led economic sanctions. Facing precarious conditions and the
threat of political persecution, a growing number of people from these
nations have opted to seek safety in the United States.

* * *

*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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