Immigration Reform Bill’s Big Question is Path to Citizenship
Should the 11 million immigrants living undocumented in the U.S. get a path to citizenship?
That is the big question as Congress prepares to debate immigration reform & citizenship in the next few weeks.
While some House Republicans agree that undocumented immigrants should get some form of legal status, most disagree with the Senate’s plan.
The Senate immigration reform bill proposes to create a path to citizenship called Registered Provisional Immigrant (RPI).
RPI would give undocumented immigrants legal status valid for six years with an option for renewal. After 10 years of lawful status, the RPI immigrants would be eligible for permanent residency, green card status.They would have to remain green card holders for three years and then they would be eligible for citizenship. The path to citizenship from RPI status to citizenship would take at least 13 years.
House Republicans say people who are living in the U.S. without authorization because they either illegally crossed the border or overstayed their visas should not be rewarded a special path to American citizenship. They say it is unfair to millions of people who are waiting in line for a green card through the current legal process.
Congress will return from its summer break the week of Sept. 9. All the focus will be on the Republican-led House of Representatives. It’s likely that the House will reject the Senate’s bill. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said recently the he did not support the bill: “We think a legal status in the United States, but not a special pathway to citizenship, might be appropriate.”
The Senate bill passed in June and aside from the path to citizenship provision, it includes provisions to increase border security and streamline the legal immigration system.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Immigration Reform
There are no sounds for immigration reform coming from the Federal government. The White House is quiet on the matter. The U.S. Congress does not want to deal with it. It appears that when re-elections are concerned, the talk of Immigration Reform disappears into the darkness. So what happens? States decide to take the matter into their own hands. And the results are at times devastating for proponents of Immigration Reform. Take for example Arizona. They have led the country in putting forth their idea of what Immigration Reform is by enacting the controversial immigration law, SB-1070. This law makes failure to carry immigration documents a crime. It also extends the authority of police to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally.
But Arizona is not alone in this anti-immigrant sentiment. The Georgia Legislature is currently debating an immigration reform bill that makes the Arizona one appear benevolent. If enacted into law, anyone caught using fake documents to get a job would face up to 10 years in prison and a $100,000 dollar fine for the first offense, 15 years and a $250,000 dollar fine for a second offense. It would also allow hearsay evidence against an accused illegal immigrant. The Florida Legislature is debating bill SB 2040 that would authorize sheriffs to enter agreements with federal officials allowing them to function as immigration agents. And the Legislatures in Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia are considering measures that permit the police to check the immigration status of anyone that is stopped for a traffic violation. read more here ……. Immigration Reform
OTHER RELATED IMMIGRATION REFORM ARTICLES
- Newsletter March 2011- Janus Legislation: The Two Faces of Immigration Reform
- Newsletter May 2011 – Immigration Reform
- Immigration reform stalls in Florida Senate
- California Latino Leaders Hope Immigration Reform Bills Receive Political Support
- Bloomberg Advocates Immigration Reform in Washington, D.C.
IMMIGRATION REFORM VIDEOS
Source: President Obama Immigration Reform Speech El Paso Texas (May 10, 2011) [3/3]
Source: President Obama El Paso Speech On Immigration pt.2
Source: Shields and Gerson on Immigration Reform, Gingrich’s 2012 Bid
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Immigration Reform
Democratic Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez (IL) introduced a new bill in Congress yesterday – “the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America’s Security and Prosperity Act of 2009” or “CIR ASAP” for short. Mr. Gutierrez, who is chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Immigration Task Force, has described the bill as the product of months of collaboration with civil rights advocates, labor organizations, and members of Congress. More than 80 co-sponsors have already signed on to the legislation.
The bill is geared to promote family unification and includes a component relating to the Dream Act. (For those who are not aware, the Dream Act would provide certain undocumented immigrants who graduate from a U.S. high school the opportunity to earn conditional permanent residency - the bill is intended to alleviate the hardship faced by children who accompanied undocumented parents into the U.S.) The bill also creates a legalization program for other categories of undocumented immigrants and their spouses and children. In addition, the bill includes provisions calling for enhanced border security, improved detention conditions, increased due process requirements for foreign nationals, and increased employment verification requirements.
Mary Delgado
Immigrate In USA 