HR Policy Submits Comments for Improving Immigration System

Immigration

With immigration reform unlikely to move through Congress in the foreseeable future, this week HR Policy Association joined fifteen other trade organizations and business coalitions in submitting comments to the Administration on how to "provide a more reliable and functional immigration system until broader Congressional action is achieved."  The comments were in response to a formal request for information issued by the Departments of State and Homeland Security last month, as part of the process for implementing the President's recent executive action on immigration reform.  Among our recommendations, the group called for numerous technical fixes focused on the immigration process for high skilled workers, including: clarifying aspects of the visa review process, making it easier for student visa holders to remain and work in the United States after graduating, and provisions to ensure that all the visas allotted by Congress each year actually get used.  Even as there is reason to hope improvements can be made this year through regulatory changes, the prospects for immigration legislation from Congress seem increasingly dim.  The battle over the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill came to a head in the Senate this week, with Republicans insisting that Leader McConnell use the measure to defund President Obama's immigration action, and Democrats demanding a "clean" bill without strings attached.  The President has promised to veto any funding bill restricting his immigration initiative.  That leaves Senate Republican leaders in a difficult spot: either they can give up on their defunding initiative, which will mean strong opposition from the House of Representatives and disappointing their base, or they risk being blamed for shutting down the Department of Homeland Security.  Either way, the clock is ticking—current DHS funding runs out on February 27.