Core Provisions: This untitled bill seeks to recapture approximately 210,000 employment-based immigrant visas (H-1B visas) that went unused between fiscal year 1992 and fiscal year 2007 due to bureaucratic delays and to prevent losses of family and employment-based immigrant visas in the future by allowing unused visas to roll over to the following fiscal year.

Status: On April 23, 2008, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) introduced H.R. 5882. The bill was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Core Provisions: This bill would recapture 150,000 unused H-1B visas from prior years and distribute them over a three-year period. As a result, H1-B visa caps for fiscal years 2009 through 2011 would be increased from 65,000 to 115,000. The bill would also increase H-1B petition fees for employers and impose a recapture fee. The bill requires all employers to agree not to advertise jobs solely to H-1B workers and prohibits employers from outsourcing the labor of an H-1B worker by requiring that the alien work only at the worksite of the employer. Additionally, among other provisions, the H-2B Returning Worker provisions would be extended for 3 years.

Status: On April 10, 2008, Sen. Cornyn (R- TX) introduced S. 2839. The bill was read twice and referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.

Core Provisions: This legislation authorizes the Department of Homeland Security to use an employer’s failure to timely resolve discrepancies with the Social Security Administration after receiving a “no match” notice as evidence that the employer violated section 274A of the INA. S.2710 provides that an employer is deemed to have “constructive knowledge” an employee is not authorized to work in the United States if the employer:

(A) receives a Social Security no-match letter notifying the employer that the Social Security Administration has been unable to match the employee’s name with the Social Security number provided by the employer; and

(B) fails to take the corrective action suggested by the Social Security Administration or the Department of Homeland Security within 90 days of receiving the letter described in subparagraph (A).

The bill also states that secretary of homeland security shall promulgate necessary regulations related to the amendment.

Status: On March 5, 2008, Sen. Sessions (R-AL) introduced S.2710. The bill was read the second time on March 6, 2008, and placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders, Calendar No. 595.

Core Provisions: The Worksite Enforcement Act bars employment of unauthorized aliens either directly or through a contract or subcontract and outlines document verification and recordkeeping requirements. Like the New Employee Verification Act (H.R.5515), the Worksite Enforcement Act provides for EEVS to replace the current E-Verify program for verifying employees’ identification and work eligibility. The bill tightens reporting requirements and increases penalties for employers who incorrectly report employees’ social security numbers on tax documents. The bill also orders the social security commissioner to issue fraud-resistant social security cards, and orders the secretary of homeland security to establish a grant program to assist states in issuing identification cards that may be used to verify eligibility to work in the United States.

Status: On March 5, 2008, Sen. Sessions (R-AL) introduced S.2711. The bill was then placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar.

Core Provisions: The New Employee Verification Act would replace the government’s current E-Verify program with the Electronic Employment Verification System (EEVS) for verifying employees’ eligibility to work in the U.S. The legislation would affect those employers already participating in the E-Verify program pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), as well as employers that may be selected for participation by the secretary of homeland security. EEVS would be accessible via the Internet and a toll-free telephone line for determining whether an employee’s identification information is consistent with records maintained by Homeland Security and Health and Human Services, and whether the individual is eligible for employment.

Status: H.R.5515 was introduced by Rep. Johnson (R-TX) on February 28, 2008, and referred to several House committees including the Judiciary, Ways and Means, and Education and Labor Committees.

 Core Provisions: The act would increase the annual H-1B cap and amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to exempt from the annual H-1B (specialty occupation) visa cap an alien who has: (1) earned a master’s or higher degree from an accredited U.S. university or (2) been awarded a medical specialty certification based on post-doctoral training and experience in the United States. Additionally, the act would increase worldwide immigration caps and exempts an alien who: (1) has earned a master’s or higher degree from an accredited U.S. university; (2) has been awarded medical specialty certification based on postdoctoral training and experience in the United States; (3) will work in shortage occupations; (4) has earned a master’s degree or higher in science, technology, engineering, or math and has been working in a related field in the United States during the three-year period preceding his or her immigrant visa application; (5) has extraordinary ability or received a national interest waiver; or (6) is the spouse or minor child of an employment-based immigrant. The act would also revise student visa provisions, authorize an L-1 (intracompany transfer) visa extension beyond the fifth or seventh year if the individual has a immigrant application pending, permit an alien with an approved labor certification to apply for permanent resident status adjustment if there is no visa immediately available by paying a $500 supplemental fee, direct the secretary of Homeland Security to establish a pre-certification procedure for employers who file multiple employment petitions, prohibit immigration application approval until background and security checks have been completed and any fraud allegations have been resolved, and authorize temporary workers (E, H, I, L O or P visas) who have not violated their status to renew their same category visa from within the United States.

Status: H.R.1930 was introduced by Rep. Shadegg (R-AZ) on April 18, 2007, and referred to the Judiciary Committee. On June 4, 2007, it was referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law. S.1083 was introduced by Sen. Cornyn (R-TX) on April 10, 2007, and referred to the Judiciary Committee.

Core Provisions: Title I of this act would establish a program whereby aliens who can demonstrate a substantial past commitment to agricultural work in the United States are provided an opportunity to adjust their status to that of an alien in “blue card” status. Blue card status would be conferred upon an alien who: (1) has performed agricultural employment in the United States for at least 863 hours or 150 work days during the 24-month period ending on December 31, 2006; (2) applied for such status during the 18-month application period beginning on the first day of the seventh month that begins after the date of enactment of this act; (3) is otherwise admissible to the United States; and (4) has not been convicted of any felony or a misdemeanor, an element of which involves bodily injury, threat of serious bodily injury, or harm to property in excess of $500. Title I would also direct the secretary to adjust a blue card alien (and spouse and minor children) to permanent resident status if the alien has fulfilled specified periods of agricultural employment. Title II would reform the existing H-2A program for the temporary admission of alien agricultural workers. Employers desiring to employ H-2A aliens would need to first file an application with the secretary of Labor, including (1) a description of the nature and location of the job, (2) the job’s expected beginning and ending dates, (3) the number of jobs and (4) specified labor assurances respecting job opportunities covered by collective bargaining agreements and non-covered job opportunities.

Status: S.237 and S.340 were introduced by Sen. Feinstein (D-CA) on January 10, 2007, and January 18, 2007, respectively, and referred to the Judiciary Committee. H.R.371 was introduced by Rep. Berman (D-CA) on January 10, 2007, and referred to the Judiciary Committee. On February 2, 2007, it was referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law. Leaders from both parties have indicated that reforming the agricultural worker visa program is a legislative priority.

Core Provisions: This bill would increase the numerical limitation with respect to H-1B nonimmigrant visas for fiscal years 2008 and 2009 to 195,000. 

Status: On March 14, 2008, Rep. Lamar Smith (R- TX) introduced H.R. 5642.  The bill was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Core Provisions: The SAVE Act would require employers to verify employees’ eligibility to work in the U.S. using the E-Verify program. The Social Security Commissioner would annually notify employers of any employees whose Social Security account numbers did not match that employee’s name or date of birth, and the employee would have ten days to correct the mismatch, or the employer would be required to terminate the employee. Employers of more than 250 employees would be required to start verifying employee status as soon as the law is enacted, with verification requirements for smaller employers phasing in over the ensuing two to four years. The SAVE Act would also increase border patrol, increase the investigative abilities of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and create a new infrastructure for the detention, processing and removal of illegal aliens.

Status: H.R.4088 was introduced by Rep. Shuler (D-NC) on November 6, 2007 and referred to the House Homeland Security, Judiciary, Ways and Means, Education and Labor, Oversight and Government Reform, Armed Services, Agriculture, and Natural Resources Committees. S. 2368 was introduced by Sen. Pryor (D-AR) on November 15, 2007 and referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary. H.R.4088 currently has 112 co-sponsors, while S.2368 has one co-sponsor.