Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday, March
25, 2022, is now posted.

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

[link removed]

All the best,

Arturo 

**LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN - Friday, March 25, 2022**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**

S. 3868

**U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Retirement Technical
Corrections Act**

The bill would provide access to enhanced retirement and annuity
benefits to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers who
entered into duty on or after July 6, 2008.

Sponsored by Senator Gary Peters (D-Michigan) (3

cosponsors- 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)

03/17/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Peters

03/17/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs

S. 3869

**A bill to add Ireland to the E-3 nonimmigrant visa program**

The bill would add Ireland to the E-3 nonimmigrant visa program, which
currently only allows Australian nationals to work in the U.S. in
occupations that require theoretical and practical highly specialized
knowledge and the attainment of a bachelor's or higher degree.

Sponsored by Senator Richard Durbin (D-Illinois) (1

cosponsor- 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)

03/17/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Durbin

03/17/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

S. 3874

**Border Patrol Pay Security Act of 2022**

The bill would require U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to
compensate border patrol agents with premium payments for overtime hours
for work periods of 14 consecutive days.

Sponsored by Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) (3

cosponsors- 1 Republican, 2 Democrats)

03/17/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Cornyn

03/17/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions

S. 3903

**A bill to require the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection to establish procedures for conducting maintenance projects
at ports of entry at which the Office of Field Operations conducts
certain enforcement and facilitation activities.**

Sponsored by Senator James Lankford (R-Oklahoma) (0

cosponsors)

03/22/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Lankford

03/22/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs

H.R. 6965

**Visit America Act**

The bill would formally authorize the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory
Board and create an assistant secretary position within the Department
of Commerce to coordinate America's travel and tourism industry across
federal agencies.

Sponsored by Representative Dina Titus (D-Nevada) (2

cosponsors- 1 Republican, 1 Democrat)

03/17/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Titus

03/17/2022 Referred to the House Committees on Energy and Commerce,
Foreign Affairs, and the Judiciary

H.R. 7163

**Sanctioning Putin's Enablers Act**

The bill, among various provisions, would revoke and prohibit the
issuance of any type of visas to government officials of Russia and
Belarus who directly enabled Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February
24, 2022.

Sponsored by Representative Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Missouri) (0

cosponsors)

03/18/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Luetkemeyer

03/18/2022 Referred to the House Committees on Foreign Affairs,
Financial Services, and the Judiciary

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**The U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of
Representatives will be in session the week of Monday, March 28, 2022.

**UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS**

**Hearing: The President's Fiscal Year 2023 Budget**

**Date:**Tuesday, March 29, 2022 at 10:00 am E.T. (House Committee on
the Budget)

**Location:** 210 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, D.C.

**Witness:** The Honorable Shalanda Young, Director of the Office of
Management and Budget

**Hearing: To examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal
year 2023**

**Date:**Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at 11:00 am E.T. (Senate Committee on
the Budget)

**Location:** 608 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C.

**Witness:**The Honorable Shalanda Young, Director of the Office of
Management and Budget

**Hearing: FY 2023 Budget Request for the Department of Health and Human
Services**

**Date:**Thursday, March 31, 2022 at 10:00 am E.T. (Senate Committee on
the Budget)

**Location:** Virtual hearing

**Witness:**The Honorable Xavier Becerra, Secretary of Health and Human
Services

**THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK**

****Federal****

****Biden Administration Announces Plan to Resettle 100,000 Ukrainian
Refugees in the US****On March 24, the Biden

administration announced

that it intends for the U.S. to accept 100,000

forced migrants from Ukraine and will provide $1 billion in humanitarian
assistance for those displaced by the Russian invasion. The
administration has stated it is considering a range of legal pathways to
welcome Ukrainians, reportedly including the refugee resettlement
program, expedited visa pathways, and humanitarian parole. The
administration did not provide a timeline for resettlement or a
breakdown of the intended pathways to be used in its announcement.

The announcement comes as the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program has
struggled to quickly resettle even those Ukrainians already in the
resettlement pipeline. According to a Reuter's report just seven

Ukrainians have been resettled in the U.S. between March 1 and 16. This
is partially because resettlement operations in the region needed to be
quickly moved

out of Ukraine, but also because the entire system remains decimated
from COVID-19 and Trump-era restrictions. Despite an overall
resettlement ceiling set at 125,000 for Fiscal Year 2022, the
administration is currently on track
to resettle
approximately 16,000 refugees.

Since the start of the invasion, over 3.4
million Ukrainians have
fled to find refuge outside of the country. On March 20, the high
commissioner for the U.N. Refugee Agency stated
that "The
war in Ukraine is so devastating that 10 million have fled-either
displaced inside the country or as refugees abroad."

Recent polls have found a large degree of support for the U.S. to take
in Ukrainian refugees, with a March 4 Ipsos poll

showing 74% of Americans in favor, a March 21 AP poll

finding that 67% of Americans are in favor, and a March 24 Premise poll

finding 79% in favor.

****Immigration Provisions of America COMPETES Act Clear Their First
Hurdle in the US Senate****On March 23, the U.S. Senate voted

to move forward with resolving differences between two bills drafted by
the House of Representatives and the Senate, respectively, to spur
American competitiveness and innovation. The final, reconciled bill,
which has gone by a number of different names ("USICA
"
in the Senate, "America COMPETES
"
in the House, and recently the Bipartisan Innovation Act), could contain
a number of immigration provisions that initially passed the House
iteration.

Among other provisions, the language from the House bill would establish
a new class of nonimmigrant visas (W) for international entrepreneurs
and essential employees affiliated with start-up entities. The bill
would also exempt from annual green card limits individuals with PhDs in
STEM fields. The bill also includes provisions designed to protect
refugees from Hong Kong and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR)
who have been persecuted in China. Moreover, the bill provides access to
citizenship for certain individuals adopted by a U.S. citizen.

On March 23, Senators Todd Young (R-Indiana) and John Cornyn (R-Texas)
expressed

openness to keeping such immigration provisions in the final bill as
long as there is broad bipartisan support.

****Biden Administration Posts New Interim Final Rule to Enhance Asylum
Process****On March 22, the Biden administration posted a new interim
final rule
intended
to improve and expedite the processing of asylum claims made by
noncitizens subject to expedited removal at the border. The rule will
allow U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) asylum officers
to adjudicate asylum applications of certain recent border-crossers,
alleviating the immigration court case backlog and lessening the wait
time for families to have their cases heard.

The final rule also includes several changes

from a version that was first proposed in August 2021, including
alterations that address some due process concerns. For example, the
rule allows asylum seekers more room to request reconsideration and to
provide additional evidence for their cases. The rule also clarifies the
expedited timeline for asylum claims under the new process, which may
make it difficult for asylum seekers to access legal representation.

Under the rule, asylum seekers at the border who pass initial "credible
fear interviews" will be placed into a non-adversarial, timely asylum
adjudication process conducted by USCIS asylum officers.

The rule will go into effect 60 days from its publication in the federal
register, scheduled for March 29.

****New Report Shows that At Least 9,886 Migrants Expelled Under Title
42 Have Been Victims of Violent Attacks****On March 17, a Human Rights
First report

- published three days before the second anniversary of the
implementation of Title 42 - revealed that at least 9,886

migrants expelled at the U.S.-Mexico border under Title 42 had been
victims of kidnapping, torture, rape, and other violent attacks. Title
42 is a pandemic-era order that both the Trump and Biden administrations
have used to rapidly expel arriving migrants without providing them the
opportunity to seek asylum.

A March 24 CBS report

highlighted that the Biden administration had launched a deportation
operation to Colombia - which had not been previously reported -
amid a sharp increase in arrivals of migrants from that country to the
U.S.-Mexico border. According to the report, before the operation -
which started on March 4 - the vast majority of Colombian migrants
were allowed to stay and seek asylum in the U.S.

Advocacy groups and international organizations have widely criticized
 the
policy. They argue
 that
deportations under Title 42 are inconsistent with international norms
and fail to uphold the fundamental human rights of migrants. According
to numerous
 reports
,
the Biden administration is considering rolling back or ending Title 42
when it next comes up for CDC reauthorization in early April. On March
24, Senators Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) and Mark Kelly (D-Arizona).

****Report: March Border Data Reveals Seasonal Increase in
Encounters****According to a March 24 Washington Post report
,
leaked data from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) show that the
agency is on pace to encounter more than 200,000 migrants along the
Southwest border in March. If confirmed, the number would represent a
significant 18% increase from the 164,973 reported encounters in
February.

According to the report, the uptick of migrant encounters has resulted
in CBP border stations and tent facilities reaching capacity. They now
hold more than 15,000 migrants per day. Last month, CBP averaged fewer
than 7,500 in custody per day, according to the latest agency records
.

The increase of migrant encounters across the border may be driven in
part by seasonal trends, as the warmer spring months typically result in
increased numbers at the border. Another factor could be a high number
of repeat crossers - in February recidivism

rates reached a months-long high of 30% across all encounters. The high
recidivism rate is driven in part by the immediate expulsion of migrants
under a pandemic-era rule called Title 42, which denies migrants access
to the asylum system.

****DHS Inspector General Calls for Immediate Relocation of Detainees
from ICE Facility, Citing Unsanitary Conditions****On March 16, the U.S.
Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG)
recommended

the immediate relocation of all U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) detainees located at the Torrance County Detention Facility in
Estancia, New Mexico, citing

staffing shortages that have led to "excessive and avoidable unsanitary
conditions."

The OIG conducted an unannounced inspection in early February 2022 to
the Torrance Detention Facility. The inspection found

that while the facility should be staffed with at least 245 people, only
133 staff members were present while the visit occurred. In addition,
the OIG report highlights that 53% of detainee cells contained sinks and
toilets that were out of service, clogged, moldy, and filled with human
waste. Such inconveniences resulted in detainees sourcing drinking water
from a communal faucet meant to be utilized for filling mop buckets.

In response to the report, ICE Acting Chief of Staff Jason Houser
disagreed

with the OIG conclusions and stressed that the agency is "fiercely
committed to ensuring that noncitizens in its custody reside in safe,
secure, and humane environments."

****Report Finds Population Loss in Two-Thirds of U.S. Counties ****On
March 24, the U.S. Census Bureau reported

that more than 73% of U.S. counties experienced a population loss in
2021. According to the agency, the population loss can be attributed

to decreased net international migration, decreased fertility, and
increased mortality due in part to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Census Bureau also reported

that in 2021 the United States' population only grew by 392,665, or 0.1%
- the lowest rate since the nation's founding. Additionally, 2021
represented the year with the lowest

net immigration levels in decades. Even at reduced levels, immigration
made up a majority of the population growth. The latest report

from the Census Bureau showed a net gain of 244,000 new residents from
immigration in 2021. In other words, immigrants represent around 62% of
the latest annual population growth.

****Legal****

****Ohio Federal Court Partially Blocks Biden Administration's
Immigration Enforcement Priorities****On March 22, a federal judge in
Ohio blocked

some provisions of the Department of Homeland Security's Guidelines for
the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Law
.
The guidelines ⁠- which took effect on November 29, 2021 ⁠-
instruct U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers to
exercise prosecutorial discretion and prioritize enforcement against
immigrants who pose threats to national security, public safety, and
border security.

The Ohio Federal Court argued

that immigrants subject to mandatory detention and those with pending
orders to be deported within 90 days could not be exempted from
enforcement. In the Court's opinion
, DHS's
immigration enforcement guidelines ran afoul of congressional intent,
violated federal policymaking rules, and placed an unfair burden on
state budgets.

The breadth

of the order's impact was not immediately clear, but it did not appear
to make all undocumented immigrants in the United States an equal target
for arrest. Instead, the judge laid out specific instances in which the
priorities may not apply.

****As Part of Court Settlement, USCIS Agrees to Restore Path to
Permanent Residency for TPS Holders****On March 21, U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS) agreed

to reopen and dismiss removal proceedings against certain Temporary
Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries and restore a path to permanent
residency for TPS holders with immediate relatives and who meet the
requirement to have been "inspected and admitted" into the U.S.

The agreement results from a new settlement in CARECEN v. Cuccinelli
,
a lawsuit filed in August 2020 by seven TPS holders and the Central
American Resource Center (CARECEN), who sued

the Trump administration for denying certain TPS beneficiaries the
opportunity to adjust their immigration status and become permanent
residents.

**GOVERNMENT REPORTS**

**Department of Homeland Security - Office of the Inspector General
(OIG): ****Management Alert - Immediate Removal of All Detainees from
the Torrance County Detention Facility**

**; March 16, 2022**This OIG report recommends the immediate relocation
of all U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees located
at the Torrance County Detention Facility in Estancia, New Mexico, due
to unsafe, insecure, and unsanitary conditions.

**SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES****Explainer:
Humanitarian Parole**
This
explainer focuses on humanitarian parole, a tool that allows certain
individuals to enter the U.S. and temporarily stay without an immigrant
or non-immigrant visa due to urgent humanitarian reasons or significant
public benefits.

**Biometrics at the Border**
This
paper explores the U.S. system for tracking entries, exits, and visa
overstays, and discusses why - although it has been federally mandated
for 26 years - we have been unable to fully implement a comprehensive
entry/exit tracking system. The paper also describes some of the pros
and cons of biometric data collection and issues a series of
recommendations for the entry/exit system moving forward.

**Analysis on OIG's U-Visa Report**

This resource analyzes the report from the Department of Homeland
Security's (DHS), Office of Inspector General (OIG), issued on January
6, 2022, which raises concerns about USCIS's management of the U-visa
program and questions whether the program is fulfilling its intended
purpose.

* * *

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

 

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