From Irish Emigrant:
E-3 momentum builds despite Grassley stalling
By Brian Fitzpatrick
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), whose stalling of HR3012 has also placed Irish visa efforts on hold.Momentum has built up behind the proposed E-3 visa which would allow 10,000 Irish per annum to come and work legally in the US, after Senator Charles Schumer (D-New York) Tuesday hotlined Bill S.1983 in the Senate, officially attaching it to Bipartisan Bill HR3012, the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act.
However, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), is for now continuing to block HR3012, as he did when it passed the House 389-15 in November, and has placed the legislation on hold before it can go before the Senate. Bills may be stalled by any senator, and when Grassley may relent remains unclear. His issue is thought to be solely with HR3012 and not the Irish E-3, and he is currently negotiating with the bill’s supporters on broader reforms he has long sought for employer-sponsored visas, such as the H1B.
“I have concerns about the impact of this bill on future immigration flows, and am concerned that it does nothing to better protect Americans at home who seek high-skilled jobs during this time of record-high unemployment,” Grassley said after HR3012 initially passed the House.
HR3012 is aimed at eliminating country-based caps on the number of employment visas issued annually, and boosting similar limits for immigrants sponsored by a spouse or relative currently in the US. It has been heavily supported by US high-tech companies keen to resolve the huge backlogs they face when trying to secure visas for skilled workers from abroad, particularly India and China. Ireland has an ally in these high-tech lobbyists, who are simply keen to see their own problems solved and have to date raised no objections to any Irish-specific bill.
Amendments
Co-sponsored by Senator Pat Leahy (D-Vermont) and Senator Richard Durbin (D-Illinois), Schumer’s bill – first devised as a suggested set of amendments to HR3012 - was introduced after the initial Grassley delay, and would create a legal channel for immigration for those still in Ireland.
The amendments asked for are modeled on the Australian reciprocal E-3 visa, which requires that applicants have a job offer for a specialty occupation in the US. The visas are for two years and can be renewed; however, they are temporary non-immigrant work visas, not green cards. The E-3 category already includes provisions for admission of dependents and employment authorization for spouses.
Senator Schumer had initially included concessions for the undocumented which would have allowed them to return home and re-apply for the new visas, without being subject to barring orders from the US. However, lobbying efforts on these waivers are understood to have come up against a Republican brick wall, and in a move that will dismay many in the undocumented community, these have now been removed in the hope that so-called administrative waivers can be introduced at a later date, if the bill is passed.
The separate, standalone Irish Immigration Reform and Encouragement (IRE) Act (S.2005), introduced before Christmas by Senator Scott Brown (R-Massachusetts) and co-sponsored by Senator Mark Kirk (R-Illinois), aims to add the Irish citizens directly to the E-3 visa program.
It would provide the same number of visas as the Schumer bill, but as it never contained any waivers for the undocumented, it is expected that those inclined to co-sign the Brown bill will now back the more advanced Schumer bill, as they are now effectively identical.
Support
Some 53 Democratic Senators have pledged support to the Schumer bill so far, with as many as eight Republicans – including Brown - said to be in favor. If this is the case, it would mean the bill would hit the crucial filibuster-proof number. Irish efforts received another boost of late when Illinois Congressman Luis Gutiérrez, considered one of the strongest voices on immigration reform in the country, indicated he will weigh in behind the push.
Meetings have been held on Capitol Hill over the past few weeks between the Irish Embassy, representatives of Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR) and the Chicago Celts for Immigration Reform, and the staffers of numerous senators, in the hope of gaining support across party lines. Most recently, efforts have focused on gaining the crucial backing of Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky).
Efforts have also focused on securing a statement of support from the Obama administration. Reciprocity on the E-3 visas has been guaranteed by the Irish government, although this is almost a moot point given the employment situation there.
If a solution to Grassley’s hold can be found, should the bill pass the Senate it will return to the House for final approval, but this is considered almost a fait accompli, given the majority with which HR3012 has already passed.
Benefits
“There is nothing unusual about the extension of particular immigration benefits to a particular country,” the ILIR said in a circulated advocacy document, responding to the idea that no bill should benefit the Irish ahead of others.
“HR 3012 provides very specific assistance to four nationalities - Indians, Chinese born in the PRC, Filipinos and Mexicans, to the detriment of other groups.”
“The time is now to pass this common-sense bill,” Senator Schumer told Irish Central.
“The underlying bill passed the Republican House with overwhelming bi-partisan support – and the Irish E-3 visa also has support from both parties - so there is no reason not to pass this bill.”
This common sense approach was echoed by Billy Lawless of the Chicago Celts for Immigration Reform, who said that the effort has unified the Irish groups in a manner that is good to see.
“We’re really happy with how it’s going,” he told The Irish Emigrant. “The work put in by the likes of ILIR but also more unsung heroes like the Irish Apostolate and people like Dan Dennehy at the Ancient Order of Hibernians has been crucial. We’ve all come together and now we’re trying to get the two sides of the US political divide to come together, too.”
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Originally Posted by kd2008
). [By the way, not only did I contact my senators, I also visited one of my senators' office.]
