Immigration Legislation and Issues in the 108th Congress (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised Oct. 6, 2004 |
| Report Number |
RL32169 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Andorra Bruno, Ruth Ellen Wasem, and Alison Siskin, Domestic Social Policy Division; and Margaret Mikyung Lee, American Law Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
The 108th Congress has considered and is considering legislation on a wide range of
immigration
issues. Chief among these are the immigration-related recommendations of the National
Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (also known as the 9/11 Commission),
expedited naturalization through military service, and foreign temporary workers and business
personnel.
Several major bills that seek to implement recommendations of the 9/11 Commission propose
significant revisions to U.S. immigration law: H.R. 10 , S. 2845 ,
S. 2774 / H.R. 5040 , and H.R. 5024 . Of these bills, H.R.
10 proposes the most extensive revisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
The major immigration areas under consideration in these comprehensive 9/11 Commission bills
include: asylum, biometric tracking systems, border security, document security, exclusion, and visa
issuances.
The 108th Congress has enacted a measure on expedited naturalization through military service.
P.L. 108-136 , the FY2004 Defense Department Authorization bill, amends military naturalization
and posthumous citizenship statutes and provides immigration benefits for immediate relatives of
U.S. citizen servicemembers who die as a result of actual combat service.
In the area of foreign temporary workers and business personnel, the 108th Congress has enacted
legislation to implement the Chile ( P.L. 108-77 ) and Singapore ( P.L. 108-78 ) Free Trade
Agreements. These agreements address several categories of temporary workers and business
personnel currently governed by the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), including professional
workers. Separate legislation on H-1B professional workers ( S. 1452 / H.R. 2849 , H.R. 2235 , H.R. 2688 , H.R. 3534 , and
H.R. 4166 ) and L intracompany transfers ( S. 1452 / H.R. 2849 ,
S. 1635 , H.R. 2154 , H.R. 2702 , H.R. 4415 , and
H.R. 4166 ) has also been introduced. Also pending are proposals to reform existing
guest worker visas ( S. 1645 / H.R. 3142 , S. 2010 ,
S. 2185 , S. 2381 / H.R. 4262 , H.R. 3534 , and
H.R. 3604 ) and establish new guest worker visas ( S. 1387 , S. 1461 / H.R. 2899 , S. 2010 , S. 2381 / H.R. 4262 ,
and H.R. 3651 ).
Since the Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( P.L. 107-296 ) created the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS), Congress has considered legislation to clarify the allocation of immigration
authorities between the Secretary of DHS and the Attorney General. P.L. 108-7 amended the INA
in an apparent effort to clarify the authority that was to remain with the Attorney General.
H.R. 1416 , as passed by the House and reported by the Senate Governmental Affairs
Committee, would further amend the INA to remove certain references to the Attorney General.
Among other immigration-related legislation receiving action are adjustment of status of
unauthorized alien students ( S. 1545 ), noncitizen eligibility for Medicaid ( P.L.
108-173 ), consular identification cards ( H.R. 1950 ), elimination of the diversity visa
lottery ( H.R. 775 ) and employment eligibility verification pilot programs ( P.L.
108-156 ). This report will be updated as legislative developments occur.
