Washington, D.C. - The Secure Borders, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Reform Act of 2007 (also known as S. 1348) was introduced in the U.S. Senate on May 9th. S. 1348 attempts to massively reform America's immigration system by strengthening and offering a path to citizenship to the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants currently residing in the U.S. The act was offered last month by a bipartisan group of a dozen senators led by Harry Reid (D-NV) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) who had negotiated the details with the White House. President Bush has said he will sign S.1348 if it is passed by Congress.

For those already waiting for U.S. citizenship, the act calls for shorter waiting periods, and promises to process all 4 million families who applied for citizenship before May 2005. The act would also issue 200,000 visas a year to temporary workers. The workers would be allowed to stay in the U.S. for two years at a time. Before these measures would go into effect, S.1348 would tighten border security and call for an employer verification system to ensure that all employees are legally allowed to work. Employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens would face stiffer punishment than is currently the case.

S.1348 faces considerable opposition. From the moment the legislation was announced, it has been attacked from many sides of the political spectrum. Many conservatives have condemned it as rewarding people for breaking the law, and fear that the act's passage would simply encourage further illegal immigration. Many unions have been sharply critical of the guest worker program, arguing that it would give employers a steady pool of labor that they could use to drive down wages and reduce health benefits and safety measures for workers.

Of particular concern to many immigrant families, including Iranian Americans, are measures within the act that would shortchange family immigration. Most visas currently go to relatives of American citizens. As a result, businesses that want to hire skilled immigrant workers with no family ties in the U.S. find it difficult to do so. S.1348 puts greater emphasis on worker immigration. The act calls for 380,000 employment-based immigrant visas, but only 127,000 family-based immigrant visas, in addition to a certain number of refugee-based immigrant visas. The act also eliminates all of the current family preference categories for immigrants and limits future family-sponsored immigration to spouses and minor children of citizens and permanent residents. The number of parents of U.S. citizens permitted to obtain permanent residence is limited to 40,000 per year. The legislation also fails to allocate a sufficient number of visas in the family and employment categories to meet current demand.

Two amendments were introduced to make S.1348 more favorable to family immigration. Amendment 1194, introduced by Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE), would have delayed the emphasis on attracting foreign workers over families. The Menendez amendment would also have allowed more than 800,000 people who had applied for permanent legal status by the beginning of 2007 to obtain green cards solely based on family connections. As it currently stands, the act ends this preference for most relatives who got on the waiting list after May 2005. Amendment 1194, however, failed to pass. Amendment 1183, introduced by Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY), would have removed limits on visas for the spouses and minor children of immigrants with permanent resident status. The Clinton amendment also failed.

Early in the morning on June 7, 2007, the Senate voted to accept Amendment 1316 into the act. Introduced by Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND), the amendment marked a significant setback for the bill’s advocates by closing the guest worker program after five years. Later in the evening, senators rejected a motion to cut off debate by a 50 to 45 margin. 60 votes were necessary to end the debate. Senate Majority Leader Reid then pulled the bill from the floor, vowing to continue working toward an agreement on S.1348.

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes
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IAPAC is a registered bipartisan political action committee that contributes to candidates for public office who are attuned to the domestic needs of the Iranian American community. IAPAC focuses exclusively on domestic policy issues such as civil rights and civil liberties, and encourages Iranian Americans to actively participate in the electoral process, to vote and run for political office.