Speech #920194560

It has its own builtin increments. so that as soon as you get rid of a backlog there is the incentive for new applicants. This is why we feel possibly it would be wiser to limit fifth preference to unmarried brothers and sisters. Then. too. married brothers and sisters do not really come to the home of the petitioner so that. in a sense it is not family reunification. They usually are an entire family unit and set up their own household. It would be more in the spirit of the law. we would consider. if you restricted it to the unmarried brothers and sisters. The administrations omnibus immigration bills in the 91st and 92d Congresses provide for such a limitation of the fifth preference. So do bills which have been introduced by the distinguished chairman of the full Committee. on the Judiciary and the chairman of the subcommittee now handling this bill. It is my opinion that this legislation which is essentially cleanup legislation will be greatly strengthened by the Dennis amendment which gives some assurance that the need for such periodic cleanup legislation will not occur again in the future. This amendment provides for a limitation upon fifth preference unmarried brothers and sisters and will definitely improve the bill. This amendment is a limitation for the future. I want to emphasize that this will not in any manner reduce or affect the number of special visas made available to any country under this bill since the amendment specifically provides that the proposed limitation to the married brothers and sisters will not apply to petitions filed prior to the effective date of this legislation. Nor will such amendment reduce the maximum number of regular visas available to any one countrywhich is 20.000 per yearin the future. I am happy to yield to the gentleman from California.