Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday, June
4, 2021 is now posted.

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

[link removed]

All the best,

Danilo 

**LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN - Friday, June 4, 2021**BILLS INTRODUCED AND
CONSIDERED

LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR

UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS

THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK

GOVERNMENT REPORTS

SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES

**BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED**H.R. 3557

**The Homeland Security Improvement Act**

The bill establishes new oversight of the U.S. Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) by creating an ombudsman office to focus on border and
immigration issues, forming a commission to investigate the treatment of
migrants along the Southern border, and requiring Border Patrol agents
to use body-worn cameras, among other provisions.

Sponsored by Representative Veronica Escobar (D-Texas) (2

cosponsors - 2 Democrats, 0 Republicans)

05/28/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Escobar

05/28/2021 Referred to the House Committees on Homeland Security, Ways
and Means, and on the Judiciary

H.R. 3621

**The Neighbors Not Enemies Act**

The bill would repeal the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which would allow
the President of the United States to apprehend, restrain, secure, and
remove foreign nationals without due process while America is at war.
The Alien Enemies Act is one of the four Alien and Sedition Acts signed
into law by President John Adams in 1798.

Sponsored by Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) (40

cosponsors - 40 Democrats, 0 Republicans)

05/28/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Omar

05/28/2201 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R. 3634

**The Taiwan Diplomatic Review Act**

The bill would institute a number of reforms regarding the United
States' relationship with Taiwan, including creating a new visa
category that can be used by Taiwanese officials and diplomats.

Sponsored by Representative Brad Sherman (D-California) (5

cosponsors - 3 Republicans, 2 Democrats)

05/28/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Sherman

05/28/2021 Referred to the House Committees on Foreign Affairs and on
the Judiciary.

H.R. 3648

**The Equal Access to Green cards for Legal Employment (EAGLE) Act**

The bill would equalize the green card backlog by phasing out
categorical per-country caps for employment-based visas and raising
per-country caps for family-based visas. The bill also includes several
reforms to the H-1B visa application process and would provide
additional flexibility for those currently in the green card backlog.

Sponsored by Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-California) (19

cosponsors - 16 Democrats, 3 Republicans)

06/01/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Lofgren

06/01/2021 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R. 3659

**Migrant Resettlement Transparency Act**

The bill would require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS)
and Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to consult with state and local
officials before resettling, transporting, and relocating migrants in
their jurisdictions. The bill is a companion to S. 1865
.

Sponsored by Representative Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tennessee) (0
cosponsors)

06/01/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Fleischmann

06/02/2021 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**The U.S. Senate will be in session the
week of Monday, June 7, 2021.

The House of Representatives will not be in session the week of Monday,
June 7, 2021.

**UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS**Hearings to Examine Proposed Budget
Estimates and Justification for Fiscal Year 2022 for the Department of
Health and Human Services

**Date:**Wednesday, June 9, 2021 at 10:00 am ET (Senate Appropriations
Committee)

**Location:**Dirksen Senate Office Building SD-124

**Witnesses:**

Xavier Becerra, Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services

A Humane Response: Prioritizing the Well-Being of Unaccompanied Children

**Date:**Wednesday, June 9, 2021 at 11:30am ET (House Committee on
Energy and Commerce)

**Location:**Virtual

**Witnesses:** TBA

Unaccompanied Children at the Border: Federal Response and the Way
Forward

**Date:**Thursday, June 10, 2021 at 2:00pm ET (House Homeland Security
Committee)

**Location:**Virtual

**Witnesses:**

David Shahoulian, Assistant Secretary, Border Security and Immigration,
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Benjamine Huffman, Executive Assistant Commissioner, Enterprise
Services, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of
Homeland Security

Katherine D. Dueholm, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Western
Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Patrick J Lechleitner, Acting Executive Associate Director, Homeland
Security Investigations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S.
Department of Homeland Security

**THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK**

****Federal****

****Abbott Attempts to Prevent Texas Shelters from Housing Thousands of
Unaccompanied Migrant Children****In a May 31 declaration, Governor Greg
Abbott (R-Texas) instructed

the state Department of Public Safety (DPS) to revoke the licenses of
shelters housing unaccompanied migrant children who have recently
arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border seeking protection. The order could
lead
 to
the closure of over 50 state-licensed shelters

and displace more than 4,000 children, who would likely be transferred
to unlicensed emergency shelters as they wait to be reunited with family
or other sponsors in the United States.

The declaration requires shelters to wind down contracts with the
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to house migrant children
by the end of August. An HHS spokesperson responded

to the order by stating that the department is assessing the
governor's declaration but that it had no plans to close any
facilities.

Abbott justified the action in the form of a disaster declaration, in
which he wrote

that the recent increase in migration at the Texas-Mexico border "poses
an ongoing and imminent threat of widespread and severe damage, injury,
and loss of life and property."

Immigrant advocates have expressed concern about the potential impact of
the declaration, warning that it may result in more children held in
inadequate conditions in unlicensed emergency shelters. "Texas-based
shelters comprise a significant portion of U.S. capacity, this order
could do real damage, and to the serious detriment of children's
well-being," said
 Krish
O'Mara Vignarajah, head of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service.

As of June 2, approximately 17,000 migrant children were being in HHS
custody. As of May 13, approximately 37%

of the children in HHS custody were held in licensed shelters, and 63%
were held in unlicensed emergency shelters.

****White House Plans Significant Asylum Changes****According to a May
28 report
,
the Biden administration is planning significant reforms to the U.S.
asylum system in order to expedite the lengthy backlog of asylum cases.
According to the report, the plan involves streamlining the asylum
process at the U.S.-Mexico border by allowing U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS) asylum officers to adjudicate a portion of
the cases of newly arriving asylum seekers. Asylum officers already
adjudicate thousands of "affirmative" asylum cases each year, made by
those who are already in the U.S. and not in removal proceedings. The
process would include multiple appeal stages and applicants would also
be eligible for other forms of humanitarian protection beyond asylum
status. The plan estimates the USCIS asylum officers could adjudicate
approximately 300,000 cases each year.

In addition to the planned changes, according to a May 30 report
,
the White House is also considering re-implementing a rapid adjudication
process known as "expedited removal" for arriving migrant families.
Under expedited removal, certain migrants may be deported in as little
as a single day without a hearing before an immigration judge. While the
administration is not currently using expedited removal for arriving
migrants, many arriving migrant families - including those seeking
humanitarian protection - continue to be rapidly expelled

under a pandemic-era rule called Title 42.

The immigration court backlog currently sits at over 1.3 million cases
, and asylum
seekers are left in limbo for an average of over three years before
their cases are decided.

****Biden Plan for Reforming Legal Immigration System Leaked****On May
31, the New York Times obtained

a draft blueprint of President Biden's plans to expand the U.S. legal
immigration system. The leaked document-titled "D.H.S. Plan to Restore
Trust in Our Legal Immigration System"- reportedly lists a series of
initiatives intended to rebuild immigration levels. In addition to
proactive measures, the document calls for the reversal of several Trump
administration policies that have significantly hindered legal
immigrants.

According to the New York Times, the blueprint
 includes
proposals that would bolster the ability of high-skilled workers,
international entrepreneurs, trafficking victims, families of Americans
living abroad, refugees, asylum-seekers, and farmworkers to immigrate
legally to the U.S. The blueprint also highlights strategies to tackle
backlogs in the system, such as increasing the availability of virtual
interviews and electronic filing and limiting requests for evidence from
applicants.

Most of the initiatives described in the report can be accomplished via
administrative action and would not require Congress to act.

****Biden Administration Formally Terminates Migrant Protection
Protocols****On June 1, the Biden administration officially ended

the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), a policy from the Trump
administration that left thousands of asylum seekers stranded in Mexico
while awaiting their court cases. President Biden ordered a pause on the
program shortly after taking office to allow the administration time to
review it.

After his review, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary
Alejandro Mayorkas determined that in addition to resulting in
significant humanitarian concerns, the use of MPP did not "adequately or
sustainably enhance border security."

Starting February 19, the administration had already begun

slowly processing into the U.S. the 25,000 individuals who were waiting
in Mexico under MPP and who still had open asylum cases. Over 11,000
migrants have been allowed to continue their asylum claims from within
the U.S. under this process.

****Administration Releases 2022 Budget Request with Border, Immigration
Enforcement Priorities****On May 28, the Biden administration submitted
a funding request for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 to Congress. The $6 trillion
budget plan - which includes a number of immigration-related items
- provides Congress with the administration's priorities and expands
on a "skinny budget" proposal

that was submitted on April 9.

The budget

contains several provisions concerning the U.S.-Mexico border, including
$3.3 billion to care for arriving unaccompanied migrant children, and
additional funds to boost staffing and capacity to process and
adjudicate asylum claims and to assist in reuniting migrant families who
were separated under the Trump administration. The budget also includes
$1.2 billion in border security infrastructure, but it does not include
any money for additional physical border barriers. The budget also
includes $345 million allocated for USCIS to address asylum,
naturalization, and other legal immigration backlogs, and $660 million
for CBP to modernize ports of entry.

The overall budget for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) calls
for $52.2 billion in funding, which would fund the agency at the same
level

as FY 2021. While Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detentions
and deportations have declined significantly in the first months of
Biden's presidency, the budget does not call

for significant changes to ICE funding levels. The request includes
funding for 32,500 detention beds, just 1,500 fewer than was allocated
for FY 2021.

****Bipartisan Group of Lawmakers Visit Border, Tout Solutions****On
June 2, a bipartisan group of four lawmakers visited

the Texas-Mexico border and spoke with local officials and law
enforcement officers. During the visit, the group toured the Donna
Temporary Processing Center in the Rio Grande Valley, where a record
number of unaccompanied migrant children have been processed in recent
months. The group also toured the McAllen-Hidalgo International Bridge,
a local port of entry into the U.S.

The lawmakers included Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Kyrsten Sinema
(D-Arizona), as well as Representatives Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) and Tony
Gonzalez (R-Texas). The four lawmakers are the original cosponsors of
the Bipartisan Border Solutions Act
,
legislation introduced in April which aims to streamline border and
asylum processing and improve access to legal services for arriving
migrants.

In a joint press conference following the border visit, the lawmakers
touted the benefits of the legislation. Senator Cornyn said
,
"We simply want to make sure that people who do have legitimate claims
for asylum can get in front of a judge." The group also called

for the full re-opening of international bridges to trade and commerce,
noting the economic benefits to border communities.

****USCIS Reaches Supplemental H-2B Cap for Returning Workers****On June
3, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced

it had received enough petitions to fill the 16,000 supplemental H-2B
seasonal nonagricultural work visa slots that had been added to the
existing ceiling for the second half of Fiscal Year (FY) 2021. In April,
USCIS announced it would raise the H-2B ceiling by 22,000 to help meet
workforce needs, allocating 16,000 visas for returning workers and an
additional 6,000 visas for workers from the Northern Triangle countries
of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.

In the June 3 announcement, USCIS encouraged employers still in need of
labor to refile for workers from the Northern Triangle, as that
supplemental allocation has not yet been reached.

The annual H-2B ceiling starts at 66,000 total visas, 33,000 for those
starting positions from October through March, and 33,000 for those
starting positions from April through September. However, despite strict
qualification requirements, visa demand often far outstrips supply
,
and Congress regularly permits

the administration to raise the cap by as much as 64,000 in annual
appropriations bills.

The H-2B visa program is used