December 14, 2005

House to Review Immigration Enforcement Legislation

An enforcement-only immigration bill that would place even tighter restrictions on immigration and potentially pose additional problems for U.S. businesses will be the subject of intense debate in the House of Representatives this Thursday. The bill, referred to as the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 (H.R. 4437), purports to address the issue of undocumented individuals through heightened border security measures and increased punishments.

Written by Homeland Security Chairman King (R-NY) and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Sensenbrenner (R-WI), the legislation fails to set forth a plan for the future flow of guest workers to enter the U.S., while seeking to drive out seven to eleven million undocumented immigrant workers. It would also create an Employment Eligibility Verification System (EEVS) that would severely limit workers' claims through provisions such as those prohibiting class action lawsuits against the government.

Other provisions include those criminalizing unlawful presence; expanding expedited removal; broadening the definition of “alien smuggling” to include family members, employers, and immigrant advocates; expanding the definition of “aggravated felony;” creating new grounds of deportability and inadmissibility; increasing mandatory detention; militarizing the border; and placing limitations on eligibility for naturalization.

House leaders are expected to allow amendments to this proposed legislation late this week. The list of amendments will likely include hot-button topics that may not pass but are sure to spark intense debate. Last week Rep. Tancredo (R-CO) wrote to the House Rules Committee seeking a rule for the bill that would permit debate on an extensive list of amendments including those which would end birthright citizenship and make English the official language.

Laura Reiff, a Principal Shareholder in the Business Immigration Group at Greenberg Traurig and the Co-founder and Co-chair of the Essential Workers Immigration Coalition (EWIC) has put forth significant efforts to amend Representative Sensenbrenner’s bill and fight amendments that are problematic for U.S. businesses.