AWF Urges Support for H.R. 5882, to Recapture Employment-Based Visas
We sent the following letter to Rep. Lofgren and Rep. King urging the support of H.R. 5882 that will allow unused visas to be recirculated into the job market.
September 09, 2008
The Honorable Zoe Lofgren
Chairwoman
House Subcommittee on Immigration
102 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable Steve King
Ranking Member
House Subcommittee on Immigration
1609 Longworth Office Building
Washington DC 20515
Dear Chairwoman Lofgren & Ranking Member King,
On behalf of Alliance for Worker Freedom (AWF) and millions of hardworking Americans, I urge you to support H.R. 5882, “To recapture employment-based immigrant visas lost to bureaucratic delays and to prevent losses of family- and employment-based immigrant visas in the future.”
This provision, passed 8-1 by the House Subcommittee on Immigration, is scheduled for full mark up this Wednesday, September 10, 2008. H.R. 5882 will recapture un-used green cards back to 1992, and reallocates them to reduce current green card backlog. It also allows any unused green cards to be rolled over to the following year.
H.R. 5882 does not increase the number of employment-based visas. However, it does ensure that the authorized number will actually be utilized. This is important as thousands of current resident workers who have already provided invaluable services in such high-demand professions as medicine and scientific research can not obtain visa reauthorization because of the current processing backlog.
The organic level of workers needed for the U.S. labor force should be determined by free and unfettered labor markets. The current cap on the number of authorized employment-based visas is well below our demand for skilled foreign workers. Accordingly, I request you consider removing all caps on employment-based visas so American employers can hire the workers they need.
I urge you to support H.R. 5882 as well as any legislation that will result in a direct or indirect increase of participant caps.
Sincerely,
Brian M. Johnson, MPA
Executive Director
cc: All Members of the US House of Representatives
