Speech #970223934

Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens is the designation. Now immediate relatives of U.S. citizens are not presently subject to any numerical limitation under our law. Under S. 2222. they are not subject to any numerical limitation under our law but here is the condition: The bill does require. in effect. that if the number of immediate relatives increases. then offsetting reductions will be required in numerically limited family reunification categories. The State Department has advised us in our previous hearings and debates that immediate relative admissions increase at the rate of 7.000 to 10.000 per year. That number may well increase after some of the newly legalized grouplegalization is an important part of this billare naturalized. Presently 155.000 immediate relatives are admitted each year. It is the largest immigrant category and it is neither accounted for nor controlled. So there are only two ways to achieve control over total legal admission of immigrants. We either impose a cap. and include immediate relatives in that cap. or we require offsetting reductions elsewhere while not restricting immediate relatives. A U.S. citizen I do not think should be told that he cannot bring in his spouse or minor children.