FAIR Unveils Legislative Agenda for the 111th Congress
In January, the United States will have a new president and a new Congress. These new leaders will assume office under the most difficult economic circumstances this country has experienced in generations. They will also inherit a dysfunctional immigration policy that has contributed to huge budget deficits and unemployment.
While recognizing that the Obama administration and the leadership of the 111th Congress support amnesty and increased levels of immigration, FAIR believes that current economic realities combined with the unbending resolve of the American public make it possible to enact positive reforms in the coming years. As FAIR has done each time a new Congress takes office, we will be reaching out to new members of Congress and sharing with them FAIR’s legislative agenda, which represents the priorities of the American public on important immigration policy issues.
The following are some of the highlights of FAIR’s Legislative Agenda for the 111th Congress.
Worksite Enforcement — During the last quarter of 2008, the U.S. economy has been losing jobs at an alarming rate. Unemployment officially stood at 6.7 percent at the end of November, a month that saw the loss of 533,000 American jobs — the single worst month since 1974 — and economists predict that the figure will grow to between 8 and 9 percent in 2009. In addition, what is called the “underemployment rate” — people who are involuntarily working only part-time — recorded an astonishing one-month jump from 8 percent in October to 12.5 percent in November. It is also estimated that some 420,000 American workers simply gave up on finding jobs in November. Had these people been calculated into the official unemployment data, the actual rate would have hit 7 percent.
Given the dire unemployment picture, Congress and the Obama administration must act to prevent jobs from being filled by illegal aliens. FAIR’s legislative agenda calls for:
- Permanently reauthorizing E-Verify, and fully funding the program to guarantee enforcement.
- Making E-Verify a mandatory program for all employers.
- Increasing ICE worksite enforcement and increased funding for detention space.
- Approving legislation allowing legal workers to file unfair labor practices complaints against employers hiring illegal aliens, and the right of competitors to take civil actions against businesses employing illegal aliens.
Secure ID — Any effective worksite enforcement policy must be supported by verifiable documents used by all workers. FAIR calls for:
- Creating a secure, tamper-resistant Social Security card.
- Including biometric information in all immigration documents.
- Full implementation of the REAL ID Act.
- Barring the use of Mexican Matricula Consular cards or other foreign government-issued documents for purposes of accessing government benefits and services or opening bank accounts.
Increased Intra-governmental Cooperation — It is essential that Congress require the various government agencies responsible for overseeing and enforcing immigration laws to cooperate more closely and share relevant information. FAIR recommends:
- Requiring the Social Security Administration to share information with the Department of Homeland Security regarding the issuance of no-match letters to employers and the suspicious use of Social Security Numbers.
- Restricting the use of Individual Taxpayer ID Numbers to tax filing purposes only.
- Requiring the IRS to investigate and penalize employers who submit fraudulent tax documents for illegal workers.
- Removing business tax write-offs for illegal workers.
Securing America’s Borders and Ports of Entry — The horrific terrorist attacks in India in November remind us once again of the high cost of lax border enforcement. To protect the security of the homeland, FAIR recommends:
- Completion of the security fence along our southern border.
- Increasing and funding the Border Patrol and providing them state-of-the-art equipment to do their jobs.
- Increasing screening at ports of entry.
- Repealing the Visa Waiver Program, which allows millions of people to enter our country without prior screening.
Cutting Government Mandated Immigration — The dramatic downturn in our economy reveals, yet again, the complete disconnect between U.S. immigration policies and other conditions in our country. To reform our government mandated immigration laws, FAIR recommends:
- Reductions in government mandated admissions to no more than 300,000 annually.
- Limiting family-based immigration to nuclear family members.
- Repealing the visa lottery provision.
- Elimination of automatic birthright citizenship to the children of illegal aliens.
December 2008/January 2009
