Speech #910015991

Mr. Speaker. I take this opportunity to explain to the Congress a change in the rules of the Immigration and Nationality Subcommittee of the Judiciary Committee which will have a substantial effect upon private immigration legislation. This change has become necessary to protect the integrity of our immigration system. I am firmly convinced that the new rule will be welcomed by the Members as an important measure of relief from increasingly heavy pressure to introduce private bills without merit and lacking in the equities necessary for ultimate enactment into law. The new rule approved yesterday by the House Committee on the Judiciary simply provides that hereafter the introduction of private bills for visitors. exchange visitors and students. will not stay deportation. In other words. alien visitors will no longer be permitted to remain in the United States pending a final decision upon a private bill introduced to grant them immigrant status. unless the subcommittee finds justifiable grounds for an exception. I assure you Members with meritorious cases will always be able to petition the Subcommittee on Immigration for a waiver of the rule. However. thousands of aliens whose private bills have no chance for ultimate favorable decision will no longer be able. to remain in the United States for long periods taking employment opportunities away from U.S. citizens. and subverting our immigration program. The abuses to the corrected by this rule change have multiplied in the last few years. Initially. the introduction of a private bill automatically stayed deportation in all cases. In 1947. a rule was adopted that the subcommittee would CXV- 383Part 5 not request reports from the Attorney Generalthus staying deportationon bills for stowaways. deserting seamen. and border jumpers. This rule was initially resisted by some Congressmen but soon became accepted and actually relieved Congressmen of embarrassing requests for private legislation in weak cases. In 1967. the rule was broadened to include those who entered the United States as transients en route to third countries and illegally remain in this country. The agreement between the House committee and the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization has been that the Immigration and Naturalization Service will stay deportation in the case of any alienother than a stowaway. deserting crewman. border crosser. or transientwho is the subject of a private bill introduced in the House on which the committee has requested a departmental report. The stay has not applied in the case of an alien in whose behalf legislation has been disapproved by either the House or the Senate committee unless the disapproving committee notified the Commissioner that further consideration would be given to that case. Reports were automatically requested. upon receipt of information as required by rule 4 of the Committee Rules of Procedure. in all cases except those as outlined in rules 6 and 11. If a case was not reached during the Congress in which it was first introduced. the reintroduction of that bill acted as a further stay of deportation until such time as the new Congress has had an opportunity to consider the case. In recent years the number of private immigration bills to grant- immigrant status to aliens who entered the United States as nonimmigrant visitors has multiplied to such an extent that the Immigration Subcommittee has been unable to remain current. In the 90th Congress. 6.278 private immigration bills were introducedthe largest number ever introduced in a single Congress. Of this number. only 216 were found meritorious and enacted into law. A total of 5.968 private bills were introduced in the House alone and 4.846 were pendingunable to be reached for decisionwhen the second session ended.