Speech #920194522

Mr. Chairman. I urge the favorable vote of each of my colleagues on H.R. 9615. a bill devised to correct inequities in the present immigration law which were carried over from the old discriminatory national origins quota system. H.R. 9615 is a temporary measure which would make special immigrant visas available to natives of certain countries who were adversely affected by the 1965 amendments. which became fully effective on July 1. 1968. When the 1965 amendments were under consideration. certain provisions were present in the proposal which would have placed every country on an equal basis as of the effective date of 1965 act. However. before enactment. amendments were adopted which gravely altered the original design of the 1965 amendments. Consequently. when the 1965 act became fully effective in July 1968. backlogs for previously oversubscribed preferences were not eliminated as originally intended. and immigration from high quota countries was severely affected. In particular. immigration from northern Europe. especially Ireland and Germany. was drastically reduced and the tremendous backlogs in the fifth preference for natives of Italy. which were present only because of the discriminatory nature of the old law toward Italy. were not eliminated. H.R. 9615 will correct the injustices resulting from the 1965 act by assuring that each country will be able to compete fairly and equitably for visas. Immigrants from previously undersubscribed countries such as Ireland. Germany. and England would be allocated additional visas based upon the average number of visas available to these countries in the period preceding the 1965 act. Visa numbers would not exceed 7.500 per year for any such foreign state. Special immigrant visas would be available for brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens where backlogs are present as a result of the discriminatory nature of national origins quota system. The labor certification provision of the law would not be applicable to any visas issued under H.R. 9615. The bill is a fair proposal which is essential to place each country on equal footing. as the drafters of the 1965 act had originally intended. The total number of additional visas is approximately 72.500. which would be allocated over a 4year period. An annual increase of 18.000 immigrants per year for a period of 4 years could easily be absorbed within the United States and would have virtually no effect on our economy. Enactment of H.R. 9615 is particularly important to natives of Italy. who are prejudiced under the present system. Because of the tremendous backlog in the fifth preference by the time the new law went into effect. there is a lengthy waiting list. For the month of March 1972. visa numbers were available for natives of Italy who registered in the fifth preference as brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens by June 1. 1970. This is a backlog of approximately 2 years. Because of this backlog.