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Legislative Update 1/14/03
Two bills were introduced at the start of the 108th Congress
that show Congress’ recognition of the need for immigration
reform and due process. Both proposals mirror bills previously
introduced in the 107th Congress.
H.R. 47: Introduced on January 7 by Representative John Conyers
(D-MI), together with 20 cosponsors, the “Restoration of Fairness
in Immigration Act” would restore due process by repealing the
retroactivity of the IIRAIRA, restore judicial review and discretion,
eliminate mandatory detention, and otherwise restore fairness
and proportionality. The bill mirrors H.R. 3894, which Rep.
Conyers introduced in the 107th Congress. Among other things,
the bill would:
- Restore the availability of equitable and discretionary
relief to deserving immigrants seeking admission;
- Allow for release from detention of immigrants who do
not pose a safety risk and are unlikely to flee;
- Repeal the harsh bars to admissibility for minor immigration
violations;
- Restore judicial review that was stripped by the 1996
law;
- Restore section 245(i);
- Eliminate the cap on asylee adjustments;
- Provide for more efficient and equitable consideration
of refugee admissions and asylum determinations.
H.R. 200: On January 7, Representative Luis Gutierrez (D-IL)
introduced the “U.S. Employee and Family Unity & Legalization
(USEFUL) Act” (H.R. 200). The bill proposes sweeping immigration
law reform by providing for legalization, fixing faulty components
of the 1996 immigration laws, facilitating family unity, and
calling for a coordinated policy on immigrant exploitation and
trafficking.
The bill’s legalization provision would change the registry
date and make eligible for legal status immigrants who have
resided in the United States for at least five years. The registry
date would be updated to January 1, 1998, and would then roll
forward in one-year increments until January 1, 2003, becomes
the registry date in 2009. Revisions to the 1996 immigration
laws would include: repeal of the retroactivity of criminal
definitions regarding deportability and “aggravated felony”;
restoration of proportionality to the grounds of removal for
crimes of moral turpitude, aggravated felony, convictions and
imprisonment; and elimination of the 3 and 10 year bars to re-entry
for overstay.
The family unity provisions in the legislation would amend the
V visa program so that qualifying immigrants could enter the
United States immediately to await the approval of their legal
permanent residence application. The bill would also establish
a national task force charged with creating a coordinated national
and state policy on immigrant exploitation and trafficking.
Representative Gutierrez, in introducing the legislation, stated
that the bill would also serve to improve our nation’s security
by “bringing people out of the shadows and creating a new and
improved system of accountability.”
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