House

The bill would suspend the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) (which now allows citizens of 27 countries to travel to the United States for up to 90 days without a visa, and, because there is little scrutiny of VWP “travelers,” has provided easy entry for terrorists and created a black market for stolen or forged passports from such countries) until DHS certifies to Congress that: (1) the US-VISIT entry-exit system is fully implemented; (2) all U.S. ports of entry are equipped with functional biometric machine readers; and (3) all nonimmigrants are processed through US-VISIT.

H.R. 1430, the SAFE for America Act, would end the visa lottery, which gives out 50,000 green cards each year and does not take into account humanitarian need, family connections, or potential contribution to the United States.

The bill would grant DHS the authority to waive the Visa Waiver Program’s (VWP) “low nonimmigrant visa refusal rate” requirements with respect to a country’s participation in the VWP (i.e., have a low nonimmigrant visa refusal rate for two years [averaging no more than two percent over both years, not exceeding 2.5 percent in any one year] or no more than a three percent refusal rate for the most recent fiscal year) if: (1) DHS determines that the country has mitigated security risks to the point that participation in the VWP would not compromise U.S.

H.R. 938, the Nuclear Family Priority Act, would end chain migration by restricting allocation of family-sponsored immigrant visas so that only spouses or children of a lawful permanent resident (LPR) alien can obtain such visas. Furthermore, it would reduce the number of family-sponsored immigrant visas available per fiscal year to 88,000 minus the number of aliens who were paroled into the United States for humanitarian reasons in the second preceding fiscal year.

To implement the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative and other registered traveler programs of the Department of Homeland Security.

To amend section 218 of the Immigration and Nationality Act to modify the method of calculating the wages to be paid to H-2A workers.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend certain benefits applicable to the Gulf Opportunity Zone, and for other purposes.

The bill would grant an immigration judge the discretion to decline to order the removal – by any means – of a removable alien if the alien is the parent of a child who is a U.S. citizen and the judge determines that removal is "clearly against the best interests of the child"; and would only prohibit use of this discretion if the alien in question: (1) is removable on national security-based grounds; or (2) has engaged in "severe" forms of human trafficking or in sex trafficking.

The bill would require the IRS to notify DHS if: (1) an employee uses an Individual Tax
Identification Number (ITIN) in place of a Social Security number to report employment
earnings; and (2) the ITIN indicates that the employee is not authorized to work in the
United States (ITINs are issued to individuals – regardless of immigration status – who are
required to have a U.S. taxpayer identification number but who do not have, and are not
eligible to obtain, a Social Security Number);

The bill would prohibit DHS from approving a family-based immigration petition or fiancé/fiancée nonimmigrant petition if the petitioner is certified by the Department of Health and Human Services as owing back child support; and would authorize DHS to revoke a previously-approved petition – provided a visa has not been issued or an adjustment of status has not yet been effected – if the petition would not have been approved if this measure was not in effect.

This bill is a 677 page compilation of existing bills that would redefine immigration policy in support of open borders and amnesty for illegal aliens. Among numerous provisions, it would:
Use “environmental protection” as an excuse to prevent federal and state agencies from patrolling large areas of the border
Suspend Operation Streamline, which was a zero tolerance program along the southern border, where violators were detained and prosecuted for federal immigration offenses, rather than immediately released back to their home country to try again.

The bill would make wages and benefits paid to illegal aliens nondeductible for federal tax purposes. More specifically, it stipulates a retroactive six year limitation on assessment and collection, giving the IRS an incentive to collect due taxes. Furthermore, New IDEA makes E-Verify a permanent program, gives employers “safe harbor” when using E-Verify to confirm employment eligibility of their workers, and requires the IRS, Social Security Administration, and Department of Homeland Security to share information and work with each other on investigations.

The bill would require all federal contractors and subcontractors to participate in the Basic Pilot (E-Verify) program. Specifically, this legislation reinforces Executive Order 12989 signed by President Bush on June 10, 2008.

To require Federal contractors to participate in the basic pilot program for employment eligibility verification.

The bill would rename the Basic Pilot Program the Employment Eligibility Verification System, phase in mandatory employer participation over seven years based on a business’s employment numbers, and authorize appropriations for the system’s full implementation.

To require employers to conduct employment eligibility verification.

The bill would replace the current visa lottery system (55,000 visas currently focused on nationality and minimum work/educational degree requirements) with a system targeted at applicants with advanced degrees. Specifically, the program would include "qualified immigrants who hold a masters or doctorate degree in the life sciences, the physical sciences, mathematics, technology, or engineering. The end result would be more high-tech and other highly educated workers, possibly in job areas not traditionally affected by H-1B visas. This bill does not affect overall immigration numbers.

The bill would extend the E-Verify program for 5 years, phase it out over 3 years, and replace it with a “new” and mandatory system called the Electronic Employment Verification System (EEVS) to verify the status of all (and only) new employees. EEVS would allow employers to access and add information to the Federal National Directory of New Hires, an untested database currently designed to locate individuals, not determine legal status.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend certain expiring provisions, and for other purposes.

To establish requirements for any health reform legislation enacted by the Congress or the President during the 111th Congress.

The bill would allocate appropriations and determine federal spending priorities for the remainder of the 2009 Fiscal Year.

H.R. 994, LEAVE Act, contains multiple provisions designed to help federal authorities enforce our immigration laws including mandatory employment verification, assistance by state and local law enforcement, additional ICE agents, secure identification measures, and preventing sanctuary cities from receiving federal funds. Click here to read more about this bill.

H.R. 588, 10k Run for the Border Act, would increase penalties for employing illegal aliens up to $80,000 for the first offense, up to $200,000 for the second offense, and up to $1,600,000 for the third offense. Furthermore, 80% of the fines collected would be rewarded directly to state and local authorities.

The bill would allow an alien to return as an H-2B nonimmigrant worker without counting against the annual 66,000 cap if they have used an H-2B visa during one of the three previous fiscal years (i.e., potentially tripling the number of H-2Bs in the U.S. at one time). In addition, this legislation would be effective as if enacted on December 1, 2008.

To extend the termination date for the exemption of returning workers from the numerical limitations for temporary workers.

H.R. 662, Employee Verification Amendment Act of 2009, would reauthorize the E-Verify program for a period of 5 years. The E-Verify program allows businesses to determine the legal status of new hires and prevents illegal aliens from being hired, thus making the program an important tool in the Attrition through Enforcement anti-illegal immigration strategy.

H.R. 1868, Birthright Citizenship Act of 2009, would eliminate birthright citizenship, the process that automatically grants citizenship to the estimated 350,000 U.S.-born children of illegal aliens each year.

H.R. 3308, SAVE Act of 2009, would help reduce illegal immigration by requiring every employer in the United States to use the E-Verify system to verify that every employee has the legal right to work in the United States. It also contains other interior enforcement measures, such as increasing the number of ICE agents and training at least 250 State and local law enforcement officers on federal immigration enforcement procedures.