Amnesties go farther than inducing people to come to the United States illegally, they allow those individuals who are already in the United States (in contravention of the law) to escape any penalties. Worst of all, amnesties allow these individuals to stay in the United States. Eventually, these individuals will be allowed to sponsor their immediate and distant relatives, thereby making America's overpopulation problem even worse.
H.R. 371 (Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security [AgJOBS] Act of 2007) - would allow illegal alien farm workers to obtain a "blue card" granting “temporary” legal status (i.e., amnesty) for themselves and their families if they could show they have worked in the U.S. at least 863 hours or 150 work days (5.75 hours constituting a work day [i.e., the equivalent of 21.5 40-hour work weeks, or less than half of a “standard” work year {50 weeks}] during the preceding two years; and would, subsequently, allow these “blue card” illegal aliens to apply for legal residency, provided they demonstrate that they have worked in agriculture here: (1) 100 work days per year each of the first five years following enactment; (2) 150 work days per year each of the first three years following enactment; or (3) over the course of the first four years after enactment, 150 work days per year for three of those years and 100 work days for the other. Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
H.R. 454 (HRIFA Improvement Act of 2007) - would expand the scope of the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA) of 1998 (i.e., one of six amnesties granted since 1986) by: (1) granting amnesty to children whose parents applied for amnesty for them when they were minors, but who have since turned 21 and become adults (i.e., "aging out"); (2) including document fraud among the grounds of inadmissibility which may be waived in granting amnesty to a Haitian national under HRIFA; and (3) allowing Haitians who were previously denied amnesty to file a motion to reopen their applications. Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) is the measure's main sponsor.
H.R. 750 – would provide a general amnesty “Earned Access to Legalization” to illegal immigrants who are able to demonstrate that they: have been physically present in the United States for 5 years; have good moral character; have no criminal record; have a satisfactory understanding of the English language; have “accepted the values and cultural life of the United States;” and have completed 40 hours of community service. In addition, this legislation: allows illegal immigrants to become lawful permanent residents if they entered the United States prior to 1986, allows Haitians who have been in the United States illegally for a year or more to become lawful permanent residents, allows individuals with temporary protected status to adjust their status, and would waive all bars of legal reentry for illegal aliens ordered to be removed by the United States. Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas) is the bill's main sponsor.
H.R. 1221 (Education Access for Rightful Noncitizens [EARN] Act) - would authorize DHS to cancel the removal of, and adjust to conditional lawful permanent resident (LPR) status (i.e., for six years), an illegal alien who demonstrates that he/or she: (1) has maintained continuous presence in the United States for the five years preceding enactment; (2) is of “good moral character” and is not inadmissible or deportable on certain criminal grounds or on the basis of being a risk to national security (except for document violations and misrepresentation of citizenship occurring before he/she turned 16 years of age); (3) has been admitted to an institution of higher education, has attained a high school diploma, or has obtained a GED in the United States; and (4) has never been under a final administrative or judicial order of exclusion, deportation, or removal (unless he/she has remained in the United States or the order was issued before he/she turned 16); would allow a “hardship exception” for the removal of the conditional nature of the LPR status if the applicant alien’s removal would result in “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” to the alien, his/her spouse, parent, or child who is a U.S. citizen or an LPR; would authorize DHS to revoke an alien’s conditional LPR status upon his/her failure to meet the required criteria, but would allow removal of the conditional nature of the status if those criteria, and others relative to further education or military service, are met (i.e., amnesty); and would allow conditional LPR status to be granted to those who have satisfied these criteria as of this bill’s enactment. Rep. Paul Gillmor (R-Ohio) is the measure’s main sponsor.
No Cosponsors
H.R. 1275 (American Dream Act) - would repeal existing statutory provisions denying illegal aliens’ eligibility for in-state tuition unless a U.S. national is similarly eligible without regard to state residence; would authorize DHS to cancel the removal of, and adjust to conditional lawful permanent resident (LPR) status (i.e., for six years), an illegal alien who demonstrates that he/or she: (1) has maintained continuous presence in the United States for the five years preceding enactment; (2) is of “good moral character” and is not inadmissible or deportable on certain criminal grounds or on the basis of being a risk to national security; and (3) has been admitted to an institution of higher education, has attained a high school diploma, or has obtained a GED in the United States; would authorize DHS to revoke an alien’s conditional LPR status upon his/her failure to meet the required criteria, but would allow removal of the conditional nature of the status if those criteria, and others relative to further education or military service, are met (i.e., amnesty); would allow a “hardship exception” for the removal of the conditional nature of the LPR status if the applicant alien’s removal would result in “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” to the alien, his/her spouse, parent, or child who is a U.S. citizen or an LPR; and would allow conditional LPR status to be granted to those who have satisfied these criteria as of this bill’s enactment. Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
H.R. 1631 - would eliminate the April 30, 2001, deadline for an illegal alien who is married to a
U.S.
citizen and who is the parent of a
U.S.
citizen child to apply for a Section 245(i) amnesty, thus making this amnesty. Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
H.R. 1941 (Liberian Refugee Immigration Protection Act of 2007) - would grant amnesty to Liberian national aliens (including those present in the United States who have been ordered excluded, deported, removed, or ordered to depart voluntarily – without any motion to reopen, reconsider, or vacate that order required) granted, or eligible to be granted, Temporary Protected Status (a means by which DHS may grant limited refugee status to aliens who would otherwise be prohibited from staying in the United States, and give them “safe haven” until crises [e.g., armed conflict, natural disaster, or “extraordinary and temporary conditions” that prevent safe return] in their native countries pass) on or after March 27, 1991, provided: (1) application for amnesty occurs before April 1, 2009; (2) they are otherwise admissible for permanent residence (with some bars to inadmissibility inapplicable); also would grant amnesty to aliens who are: (1) the spouses, children, or unmarried sons or daughters of aliens granted this amnesty; and (2) otherwise admissible (with some bars to inadmissibility not applicable), physically present in the United States on the date the application for amnesty is filed, and in the case of unmarried sons or daughters, have been physically present in the United States for at least one year (aggregated absences up to 180 days allowable); would establish procedures by which a stay of a final order of deportation, removal, or exclusion is granted pursuant to an application for amnesty, which include an allowance for the alien to engage in employment during the pendency of the application; and would prohibit judicial review of any determination made by DHS as to the granting of amnesty under this bill. Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
H.R. 2413 (Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2007) - would grant amnesty (in this instance, an “adjustment of status” to that of “an alien lawfully admitted”) to illegal aliens continuously present in the United States since January 1, 2002 if they: (1) apply during the 12-month period beginning on a date (not less than 180 days after enactment) designated by DHS; (2) pay DHS a $1,000 “fine” as well as an “application fee”; (3) are otherwise admissible (with waivers of inadmissibility available relative to unlawful entry and documentation violations); (4) have not been convicted of a felony or of two or more misdemeanors; and (5) satisfy English language and U.S. civics standards (or are “satisfactorily pursuing” a course of study to meet those requirements); would grant illegal aliens apprehended between enactment and the closing of registration the opportunity to establish prima facie eligibility for amnesty; would prohibit illegal aliens granted amnesty under the above provisions from being granted lawful permanent resident (LPR) status without first seeking to obtain that status by another avenue (e.g., qualifying for an immigrant visa through a U.S. consulate abroad); and would require DHS to undertake a public education program to inform interested parties about the availability of amnesty as provided by this bill. Rep. Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
No Cosponsors
H.R.6020 - would expedite the naturalization process for certain lawful permanent residents (LPRs) who have served honorably in the U.S. military. In addition, it would facilitate the removal of conditional status for certain LPRs who have served in the military for at least one year, along with their family members, and prohibit the deportation of an alien who served honorably in the military, unless such deportation is specifically approved by the Director of USCIS or the Assistant Secretary for ICE.
Additionally, section four of this legislation waives certain grounds of inadmissibility and grounds for deportation for any alien who has ever served honorably in the U.S. military, along with the alien's spouse, minor children, adult children, parents, and minor siblings. These “grounds” include whether or not the alien: 1) is or is likely to become a public charge; 2) has failed to comply with certain labor certification requirements; 3) entered the United States illegally; 4) entered the United States without proper documentation; or 5) is subject to the three or ten-year ban on reentry due to prior illegal residence. Furthermore, it authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security or the Attorney General to waive all other grounds of inadmissibility or deportation, including prior criminal convictions, except those specifically relating to terrorism and drug trafficking.
Section five of this legislation exempts the spouse and minor children of any LPR serving in the U.S. military from annual numerical green card caps. Essentially, these spouses and children would be treated as if they are the spouses and children of U.S. citizens and admitted without numerical limits.
Section six requires DHS to grant amnesty to the spouse, minor and adult children, parents, and minor siblings of any: 1) U.S. citizen serving in the military; 2) U.S. citizen who served in the military during any period designated as an armed conflict with a hostile foreign force, beginning with World War I; or 3) alien who is eligible for naturalization because of his or her service in the U.S. military. The family members would continue to be eligible for amnesty for two years after the death of the member of the military if such death was "the result of injury or disease incurred in or aggravated by his or her service in the Armed Forces." Moreover, this opens the door for additional chain migration by providing posthumous naturalization benefits for up to 2 years after the death of the service member (the widow/widower can potentially remarry creating another chain of migration). Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) is the bill’s main sponsor.
H.Res. 440 - would provide a sense of the House that, to deter further illegal immigration and strengthen the U.S. economy, “a prohibition on blanket amnesty for illegal aliens who have deliberately broken the law that does not harm the innocent victims of circumstance” must be part of any immigration reform bill considered by this Congress. (NumbersUSA defines “amnesty” as anything that allows illegal aliens to keep what they broke the law to obtain – most often lawful residence and jobs in the United States. Use of the term “blanket amnesty” connotes that the person making the statement is, quite possibly, amenable to other forms of amnesty – at least, according to his own definitions.) Rep. Paul Gillmor (R-Ohio) is the measure’s main sponsor.
No Cosponsors
S. 9 (Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007) - would provide a sense of Congress that “comprehensive” immigration legislation (i.e., containing amnesties for illegal aliens, “guestworker” programs, etc.) should be enacted. (NumbersUSA believes that this is a “shell” bill, which, at some point, will be amended to include language very similar to that which the Senate passed in 2006 [S. 2611].) Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
S. 237 (Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security [AgJOBS] Act of 2007) - would allow illegal alien farm workers to obtain a "blue card" granting “temporary” legal status (i.e., amnesty) for themselves and their families if they could show they have worked in the U.S. at least 863 hours or 150 work days (5.75 hours constituting a work day [i.e., the equivalent of 21.5 40-hour work weeks, or less than half of a “standard” work year {50 weeks}] during the preceding two years; and would, subsequently, allow these “blue card” illegal aliens to apply for legal residency), provided they demonstrate that they have worked in agriculture here: (1) 100 work days per year each of the first five years following enactment; (2) 150 work days per year each of the first three years following enactment; or (3) over the course of the first four years after enactment, 150 work days per year for three of those years and 100 work days for the other.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
S. 330 (Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2007) - would create a new “W” guestworker nonimmigrant visa program, under which aliens who are physically present in the United States as of January 1, 2007, would have one year following enactment to register with DHS for the program and be fingerprinted; would provide that illegal aliens who are unlawfully employed as of January 1, 2007, would have one year following the implementation date to be fingerprinted and registered; would condition a W nonimmigrant guestworker’s continued stay and employment in the United States (initial admission of two years working for the requesting employer, unlimited two-year renewals [i.e., no longer a “guest,” but a permanent worker]) upon: (1) clearance from the terrorist watch list and completition of a criminal background check; (2) abiding by all applicable Federal, state, and local laws; (3) continued employment and abiding by the terms of that employment; and (4) completion, within the initial two-year period of authorized admission, of an approved assimilation program that includes English language and civics curricula. Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
No Cosponsors
S. 340 (Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security [AgJOBS] Act of 2007) - would allow illegal alien farm workers to obtain a "blue card" granting “temporary” legal status (i.e., amnesty) for themselves and their families if they could show they have worked in the U.S. at least 863 hours or 150 work days (5.75 hours constituting a work day [i.e., the equivalent of 21.5 40-hour work weeks, or less than half of a “standard” work year {50 weeks}] during the preceding two years; and would, subsequently, allow these “blue card” illegal aliens to apply for legal residency, provided they demonstrate that they have worked in agriculture here: (1) 100 work days per year each of the first five years following enactment; (2) 150 work days per year each of the first three years following enactment; or (3) over the course of the first four years after enactment, 150 work days per year for three of those years and 100 work days for the other. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
S. 656 (Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act of 2007) - would grant amnesty to Liberian national aliens (including those present in the United States who have been ordered excluded, deported, removed, or ordered to depart voluntarily – without any motion to reopen, reconsider, or vacate that order required) who have been continuously present in the United States since January 1, 2007 (with absences not exceeding 180 days in aggregate allowed), provided: (1) application for amnesty occurs by April 1, 2009; and (2) they are otherwise admissible into the United States (with some bars to inadmissibility inapplicable); also would grant amnesty to the spouses, children, or unmarried sons or daughters of aliens granted this amnesty; would require DHS to cancel an order of exclusion, removal, etc., if the application for amnesty is granted, and, if the application is denied, would require that order to be effective and enforceable to the same extent as if the application had not been made; would make an alien ineligible for amnesty under this bill if he/she has been convicted of an aggravated felony or two or more crimes involving moral turpitude; would establish procedures by which a stay of a final order of deportation, removal, or exclusion is granted pursuant to an application for amnesty, which include an allowance for the alien to engage in employment during the pendency of the application; would require DHS – upon granting amnesty to an alien under this bill – to establish a record of the alien’s admission for permanent record as of the alien’s arrival in the United States; and would prohibit judicial review of any determination made by DHS as to the granting of amnesty under this bill. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
H.Con.Res. 119 - would express the sense of Congress that the President should announce publicly that he will oppose any proposal to grant illegal aliens amnesty. Rep. Virgil Goode (R-Va.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
H.Res. 351 - would provide a sense of the House that Congress should reject amnesty legislation until all existing immigration laws are enforced. Rep. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) is the measure’s main sponsor.
H.R. 4192 (Overdue Immigration Reform Act of 2007) - would sunset existing amnesties such as the agricultural worker amnesty program, the IRCA legalization program, the Amerasian immigration provision, the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act, and the Haitian Refugee and Immigration Fairness Act. In addition, this legislation would prevent future amnesties by defining illegal presence as “not demonstrating good moral character,” one of the qualifications for legal immigration. Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) is the bill’s main sponsor.
