Builders and Contractors Exchange
Weekly Bulletin: 22 May 2006
Comprehensive Immigration Reform?
By: Arthur Serratelli
Recently, a group of leaders in the Senate has been striving to overcome partisan divisions and reach a compromise agreement on historic immigration reform legislation. An earned legalization provision that passed by a 12-6 vote out of the Judiciary Committee has been the subject of Senate Floor debate over the last several weeks; however, the Senate debate on immigration appears to have ended for now, with Senators unable to reach agreement on how to proceed on the so-called "Hagel/Martinez compromise."
That compromise agreement would have made changes to the provisions of the Senate Judiciary Committee's bill that provided a path to citizenship for the undocumented population and a temporary guestworker program. While there seemed to be a consensus on substance, the deal apparently broke down over process. The Senate has indicated that it returns from its two week recess, they will re-visit the topic of immigration reform.
The “Hagel/Martinez compromise” would divide the current undocumented population into the following three categories, based on their period of residence in the United States:
- Those individuals who have been here and working for more than 5 years would be eligible to embark immediately on a path to earned permanent residence and ultimately citizenship. That path would involve a 6-8 year prospective work requirement, a clean record, English language study, and the payment of significant fines and back taxes.
- The second category of undocumented individuals would be those who arrived less than 5 years ago but before January 7, 2004. This group would be required to pay significant fines and, within three years, would be required to leave the country and reenter in a temporary status. Upon reentry, these individuals would have full job portability and could apply for permanent resident status after the first category of undocumented workers completed their processing.
- The final group of undocumented workers, those who arrived after January 7, 2004, would be required to leave the country, but they would be permitted to apply for the new temporary worker program subject to the numerical limitations.
At the time of this writing, no new law has yet been passed. However, if the Senate can reach a consensus and a new law is passed, such a law will likely be comprised of complex issues and requirements that call for careful examination. If you have an employee that may be affected by these possible changes to immigration law, you should consult with an immigration attorney regarding the benefits that may be available to him or her.
Questions?
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This article is meant to bring awareness to this topic and is not intended to be used as legal advice.