Immigration Update: Senate Republicans, Democrats deal with the White House

05/17/07 

Dear PICC members and friends,
 
Senator Kennedy announced in a press conference early this afternoon that a deal had been reached between the White House and key Senators. Some information is in the article below, but we still don't know too much about the details. In very broad strokes: The current family sponsorship system would be replaced with a point system, where education and skills would be prioritized. Family ties alone would not be enough for most people to obtain a visa under this system. At least some of the undocumented could participate in a legalization program, the “Z visa” which includes a $5000 fine and a touchback by heads of household in their home country.  

However, the Z visa would not be implemented until after certain security “triggers” are met.  These triggers include border enforcement and a worker verification system. During the interim, undocumented people could get a probationary card with work authorization.  
As more details and analysis become available, I will forward this information along to you.
 
The bill is headed to the Senate floor.   During next week, amendments will be fast and furious - some critically needed to improve flaws in the Senate/White House agreement, others to further strip down legalization and other positive components.   Some amendments will resurface from last year’s Senate debate.  Please take action now to protect against an expected amendment to strip social security benefits.

Last year, Senator John Ensign (R-NV) offered an amendment that would have denied future legalized immigrants and naturalized citizens the Social Security benefits they earned through their hard work and payroll taxes, by confiscating earnings credited to their accounts prior to legalizing their status.  Last year Senator Specter spoke out against the amendment on the Senate floor and it was defeated by a single vote!  We definitely expect to see a similar amendment this year.  If such an amendment were to pass, the impact would be felt when these workers retire, become disabled or die.  They and their families would not be able to access Social Security benefits based on the money that they paid into the system before they legalized.  

For more information on this issue, read the NILC issue brief at http://www.nilc.org/immlawpolicy/CIR/socialsecurity_confcontrib_2007-05-01_iru.pdf
The National Council of La Raza is circulating a sign-on letter now, in order to be prepared to fight this amendment.  We need your support - Please email Luisa Grillo-Chope at lchope@nclr.org by the close of business Friday, May 18, to sign-on your organization.
 
Best,
 
Regan Cooper
Executive Director
Pennsylvania Immigration and Citizenship Coalition
Advocating for Immigrants, Migrants and Refugees
 
PICC
2100 Arch Street, 7th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: (215) 832-0809
Fax: (215) 832-0919
Email: < piccpa@yahoo.com>
 
Associated Press
May 17, 2007
 
 
WASHINGTON -- Key senators and the White House reached agreement today on an immigration overhaul that would grant quick legal status to millions of illegal immigrants already in the U.S. and fortify the border.

The plan would create a temporary worker program to bring new arrivals to the U.S. A separate program would cover agricultural workers. New high-tech enforcement measures also would be instituted to verify that workers are here legally.

The compromise came after weeks of painstaking closed-door negotiations that brought the most liberal Democrats and the most conservative Republicans together with President Bush's Cabinet officers to produce a highly complex measure that carries heavy political consequences.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., said he expects Bush to endorse the agreement.

The accord sets the stage for what promises to be a bruising battle next week in the Senate on one of Bush's top non-war priorities.

The key breakthrough came when negotiators struck a bargain on a so-called "point system" that would for the first time prioritize immigrants' education and skill level over family connections in deciding how to award green cards.

The draft bill "gives a path out of the shadows and toward legal status for those who are currently here" illegally, said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California spokesman for Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., one of his party's key players in the talks, confirmed that the group had reached agreement.

The proposed agreement would allow illegal immigrants to come forward and obtain a "Z visa" and -- after paying fees and a $5,000 fine -- ultimately get on track for permanent residency, which could take between eight and 13 years. Heads of household would have to return to their home countries first.

They could come forward right away to claim a probationary card that would let them live and work legally in the U.S., but could not begin the path to permanent residency or citizenship until border security improvements and the high-tech worker identification program were completed.

A new temporary guest worker program would also have to wait until those so-called "triggers" had been activated.

Those workers would have to return home after work stints of two years, with little opportunity to gain permanent legal status or ever become U.S. citizens. They could renew their guest worker visas twice, but would be required to leave for a year in between each time.

Democrats had pressed instead for guest workers to be permitted to stay and work indefinitely in the U.S.

In perhaps the most hotly debated change, the proposed plan would shift from an immigration system primarily weighted toward family ties toward one with preferences for people with advanced degrees and sophisticated skills. Republicans have long sought such revisions, which they say are needed to end "chain migration" that harms the economy, while some Democrats and liberal groups say it's an unfair system that rips families apart.

Family connections alone would no longer be enough to qualify for a green card -- except for spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens.

New limits would apply to U.S. citizens seeking to bring foreign-born parents into the country.