Chairman Brownback: "America is a nation of immigrants," and our greatest strength remains its openness to new ideas and new people, the Chairman said. Brownback outlined the following policies he expects to work on in the 107th Congress:

• Require the INS to process immigrant and naturalization applications within 180 days and temporary visas within 30 days.
• Work toward guestworker legislation that meets the needs of farmers, their employees, and the American economy.
• Attract medical professionals to rural areas to help residents find the medical personnel they need to receive proper healthcare.
• Increase U.S. refugee admissions to ensure America is providing a safe haven for victims of persecution
• Implement fully the sex trafficking bill Congress passed last year to deal with the victimization of women around the world.
• Pass "The Refugee Protection Act," which will be introduced next month. The bill would restrict the use of expedited removal in refugee cases.

Brownback concluded by saying, "When the Pilgrims set out for America they sought a land where they could work hard, pray in peace, and enjoy the fruits of their labor. Nearly 400 years later, the same can be said of today's immigrants. Yet if America is to prosper we must provide timely service to those who play by the rules and seek to join us as fellow Americans."

Senator Richard Durbin: The immigration laws Congress has written, said Durban "are not in touch with reality." He said the subcommittee must address Nicaraguan and Cuban Adjustment Relief Act (NACARA) parity and bring forth a consistent law for all Central Americans who have been repressed. Durbin said he hoped the subcommittee would examine the serious due process concerns that remain unsolved from the passage of 1996 legislation. "We need to remove the overly harsh provisions of the 1996 law," Durbin said.

Panel I

Warren Leiden, Esq. Berry, Appleman &Leiden, American Immigration Lawyer Association (AILA): "U.S. immigration law is unique in that it is unforgiving," said Leiden. Our policies and laws have become out of date as to numbers and purposes, and overly restricted by a patchwork of accumulated amendments and ridged rules, he said. Leiden said the committee should raise the "out-of-date quota limits" for immigrants and nonimmigrant categories to meet America's interests in the 21st Century. Leiden outlined the problems in the three main pillars of U.S. immigration policy-based admissions: family unification, employment, and protection of refugees.

1. Family unification:

• Preference quotas for family immigration need to be increased.
• The age-out problem for minor children who turn 21 before the application is approved needs to be rectified.
• Permanent restoration of section 245(i) would allow families to stay together and create revenue for the INS.

2. Employment based immigration:

• H-1B cap needs to be raised.
• H-1B limits on India and China nationals needs to be raised
• Nonimmigrant spouses should be granted work authorization.
• All temporary employees should be allowed to complete the employment-based permanent residence process. (Green card)

3. Protection of Refugees:

• Must end the expedited removal provisions.
• Raise the cap on asylum grantees available for permanent residence per year.

Stephen Moore, Senior Fellow in Economics, Cato Institute: "This pro-immigration environment that has emerged on Capitol Hill reflects the growing consensus within the economics profession that immigrants are on balance economic assets, not liabilities," said Moore. Moore continued by showing a series of graphs on unemployment, poverty, welfare use, incomes, and the impact on minorities. Moore said the U.S. legal immigration system works remarkably well and that most immigrants who come to the U.S. today are economic contributors on net. He concluded by saying, "Given the coming retirement of some 75 million baby boomers, we need the young and the energetic immigrants now more than ever before and therefore we need Congress to keep the Golden Gates open."

Panel I: Question and Answer Period

Q: Brownback: Are we at an optimal level in terms of the right number of immigrants to bring in?

A: Moore: We can absorb the current level without social problems. An optimal policy would be to let more immigrants in, but I am happy with the number now.

Q: Brownback: What is the connection between unemployment and immigration?

A: Moore: There are only a few specific industries where low-skilled native workers and recent immigrants are hurt by more immigration.

Q: Brownback: It is very disturbing that we have a cap on the number of refugees the U.S. accepts each year. "I was startled by that number." Why are these numbers so low?

A: Leiden: I cannot answer that question; however this is something the subcommittee should definitely look into.

Q: Senator Durbin: The Hispanic population has risen by 60% in the U.S. and 69% in Illinois, but their high school dropout rate is 30%. New immigrants are not doing as well as they used too. How can we let this continue without having negative consequences?

A: Moore: Economic Assimilation Rates. Immigrants climb this ladder very fast over longer periods of time and often pass Americans. However, school dropouts are troubling, therefore we need to focus on educating immigrant children.

Q: Durbin: What do you think of amnesty?

A: Leiden: We gave 3 million illegal immigrants an amnesty in 1986, however I think a better solution would be to update the registry date to at least 1986, which would therefore solve the problem and not bring up the topic of amnesty being that it is a hot-button issue.

A: Moore: It is a tough policy issue. "For individuals who have been living in the country as long as 15 years, a strong case can be made that we should. On the other hand, if you keep legalizing immigrants who come in illegally, perhaps you encourage illegal immigration."

Panel II

Cecilia Munoz, Vice President, National Council of La Raza (NCLR): "The extraordinary growth of our community, which is emerging as a force throughout the U.S., demonstrates the power of the immigration phenomenon and the ways in which the classic American story is being repeated all over the country," said Munoz. (At this point Senator Brownback broke in and said, "Yes, it is beautiful and the numbers are astounding.) However, she continued there are anti-immigrant organizations and movements working today to raise concerns about current waves of immigration. "At their best, these organized movements provoke discussion and debate; at their worst, they promote hatred and bigotry." Munoz then detailed four areas she would like to see the subcommittee address:

• 1. Reform of the INS: The Latino community has an enormous interest and stake in the reform of the INS, however it must be done in ways that promote equity and accountability. The Latino community fears the INS. Immigration enforcement often runs afoul of the civil rights of Hispanic American, including U.S. citizens and legal residents who are mistaken for immigrants because of their ethnic appearance.

  2. Farmworkers and Guestworkers: NCLR strongly opposes legislation that has been introduced in the last several Congresses to expand the existing H-2A temporary worker program and reduce its labor protections. NCLR believes that any reforms that simply expand the guestworker structure without significant improvements in labor standards and access to adjustment of status are incomplete.

  3. Revisit the 1996 law:

• Remove the barriers to the reunification of families by permanently restoring section 245(i) and the creation of arbitrary financial restrictions.
• Remove "court stripping" which has prevented judges from offering leniency in immigration hearings.
• Remove automatic deportation of immigrants who commit prior crimes.
• Extend NACARA to all of Central America.
• Reinstitute welfare to legal immigrant children.

4. Enforcement issues and practices: Hispanic Americans, immigrants and natives, continue to suffer abuse in the name of immigration enforcement.

Jennifer Kenney, Director, Global Deployment, and Shared Services, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP: PricewaterhouseCoopers utilizes nonimmigrant visas to temporarily transfer highly skilled international personnel, hire U.S. educated foreign students, and to fill positions where sufficient numbers of qualified workers are not available, said Kenney. PricewaterhouseCoopers supports:

1. Implementation of Established User Programs, similar to L-1 Blanket programs that would streamline processing and decrease turnaround times for high volume nonimmigrant visa employers.
2. Implementation of an INS $1,000 fee to expedite processing for H-1B visa holders.
3. Implementation of the "Spousal Equity Act" which would grant work authorization for spouses of L-1 nonimmigrant visa holders.

Karen Narasaki, Executive Director, National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium (NAPALC): Narasaki told Senator Brownback that NAPALC would like to thank him for the 1996 fight of legal immigration reform. She then outlined 7 policy recommendations for the 107th Congress:

1. Clear all backlogs for family based immigration.
2. Provide a means for adjustment to a H-1B holder so that if the visa holder desires, he or she may eventually adjust to permanent residency.
3. Increase number of asylum grantees seeking permanent residence to 15,000-20,000 a year.
4. Reorganization of the INS in order to improve the overall delivery of services, particularly in he area of naturalization and green card processing.
5. Restoration of basic due rights for immigrants.
6. Repeal of employer sanctions.
7. Adoption of a rolling registry date.

Elizabeth C. Dickson, Manager, Immigration Services, Ingersoll-Rand: "Current law does not provide an appropriate vehicle to bring needed foreign workers to the U.S. From manufacturing facilities to nursing homes to restaurants and hotels, we are in dire need of employees, but are precluded from bringing them in through the existing H-2B temporary visa program," said Dickson. She said by creating short and long-term employment based visa programs that eventually lead to permanent residence; coupled with an amnesty for all illegal aliens and repealing employer sanctions, will end the worker shortage.

Panel II: Question and Answer Period

Q: Brownback: Asked Cecilia Munoz if she would provide him with specific cases from Kansas where there was racial profiling and/or discrimination and said he would personally look into the cases.

Q: Brownback: Why are refugee admission numbers so low?

A: Narasaki: We were very disappointed and concerned that the Clinton Administration cut the refugee admission numbers. We hope this subcommittee will address the issue.