Speech #990275038

I yield myself such time as I may consumr. Mr. Chairman. almost no issue has aroused public passions in southern California in recent years more than that of immigration. The district I represent in Orange County is but a few hours away from the porous United StatesMexico border south of San Diego. While Congress has continued to struggle with the issue of immigration reform. the problem has escalated unchecked. In 1980. the Census Bureau estimated that the undocumented alien population ranged between 3.5 million and 6 million. Some economists now offer estimates that exceed 10 to 12 million illegal aliens. While we may never be able to determine the exact number of illegals who reside in the country. we are now certain of the 1.3 million illegal aliens that were apprehended by the INS in 1985. For every alien apprehended by the INS. it is estimated that twice that number enter this country undetected. The surge of illegal immigrants entering the United States through our southern border has risen to such a level that the U.S. Border Patrol. responsible for protecting 66 miles of our southern border. has admitted defeat. They now acknowledge that they cannot begin to apprehend all illegals entering this country because their numbers and their determination far exceed manageable dimensions. The INS has arrested 270.000 illegal aliens in the past 6 months. This represents a 48percent increase in the number of aliens arrested over the same period a year ago. Since May 1986 the Border Patrol has arrested an average of 70.000 aliens per month and has encountered an average of one illegal alien every 35 seconds. Though San Diego County has endured countless hardships in the course of the struggle with illegal immigration. Los Angeles County has not escaped its share of economic and social devastation. According to the 1980 U.S. census. 49.8 percent of all undocumented aliens in this country were in California. 64.3 percent of those settled in Los Angeles County. Additional statistics point up the unjust burden thrust on Los Angles County by the mere chance of geography: Los Angeles County is home to an estimated 1 million undocumented aliens. Los Angeles County has more undocumented aliens than all other States combined with the exception of New York. Texas. and the entire State of California. It costs local taxpayers more than $200 million each year to provide health. justice. and social services for this population. Out of that $200 million. the county department of health services spent approximately $115 million in 1985 on health care for the more than 600 undocumented aliens who daily occupy beds in the five county hospitalsnone of which are currently reimbursed by the State or Federal Government. Approximately 70 percent. or 18.000. of the babies born in country hospitals are to undocumented alien women. These babies are automatically American citizens. and are therefore eligible for all the welfare benefits available to any U.S. citizen. And 48.000 children. whose mothers are undocumented aliens receive benefits costing county taxpayers $8 million per month. As a result. to say that immigration reform is "must" legislation does not begin to capture the compelling need for enactment of a bill before the 99th Congress adjourns in a matter of days. While far from perfect. we have an historic opportunity to pass such legislation in the form of H.R. 3810. the Immigration Reform Act of 1986. now before us. As a member of the Judiciary Committee which crafted this bill. I rise to support it. warts and all. and urge my colleagues to do the same. There are four key elements to immigration reform: Employer sanctions against those who knowingly hire illegal aliens. amnesty for those illegal aliens who are already here and have become part of our social and economic systems. increased enforcement at the border. and a viable guestworker program to meet the labor needs of agriculture in California and elsewhere. The controversy over the substance of these issues has been made all the more difficult to resolve because of the nature of the rule for considering this bill as crafted by the House Rules Committee. The limitations in the rule on what amendments can and cannot be offered make our choices harder. For example. the bill as it comes to the floor provides certain social welfare benefits to illegal aliens. While they are not eligible for basic welfare programs. they are for some health and education programs. Despite the humanitarian motivations for such eligibility. these provisions are unreasonable given the enormous size of projected budget deficits. Despite these legitimate arguments against it. the rule does not permit an amendment to strike these provisions from the bill. Nonetheless. the fundamental question to be addressed in evaluating this less than perfect package is simply this: Is it an improvement over the chaos which characterizes our current immigration conitrol system? Since I believe it is an :improvement. I intend to support the legislation. As to the four key elements of immigration reform noted earlier. my thoughts are as follows. First. employer sanctions are justified by the fact that the magnet which draws illegal aliens to our country is not only personal freedom we enjoy but the economic opportunities which abound in California and in the United States generally compared to conditions in Mexico and other foreign countries. The bill puts stiff sanctions in effect for those who knowlingly hire illegal aliens. Second. if we are going to have employer sanctions. then the other side of that coin is to provide some carefully drawn amnesty for illegal aliens that are already in the country. Many people in and out of Congress are unhappy about any form of amnesty. and I appreciate the concerns which prompt some to feel this way. However. we must confront the dilemma we are in whether we like it or not. namely. that illegal aliens who have been here a number of years are integral members of our society and economy. It is simply unrealistic to think that it is fair or workable to expect these people to go away. We need to wipe the slate clean. in terms of legal status. in order to hold employers accountable for future actions in hiring illegal aliens since this will be a new form of liability. Third. additional resources for the border patrol are absolutely necessary. Fourth. the substantial agricultural operations in our State. which bring food to our tables and employ many of our citizens. depends upon a reliable supply of temporary labor. A major flaw of the bill and the procedures under which it is being considered is the lack of a guestworker program along the lines of the original Senate bill and the lack of an opportunity to add one in the House. However. the provisions in H.R. 3810 as it stands today are in fact an improvement over the H2 Program in current law. We cannot be blind to the fact that illegal aliens are living in a jungle today. They are being preyed upon by ruthless people and cannot pursue the customary channels for legal redress since to do so would expose their illegal status. By providing for a more viable H2 Program. this legislation advances basic human rights. Last. I am pleased that an amendment which I introduced several years ago has been made in order under the rule. The amendment requires the Immigration and Naturalization Service to obtain either the consent of the owner or a search warrant before entering a farm or other agriculture operation in search of illegal aliens. House Members will have the opportunity to vote to reject or accept this provision. If adopted. this provision will reduce unnecessary crop damage resulting from indiscriminate INS "sweeps" and provide farmers and farmworkers the same degree of constitutional protection that their counterparts in other aspects of manufacture already enjoy. In conclusion. I urge support for this legislation since action on immigration reform. even with the problems I have cited with this version. is a much better outcome than again adjourning for the session without enactment of comprehensive legislation. Major improvements are necessary to make the bill acceptable before enactment. At present. our much hailed U.S. melting pot is in danger of overflowing. The immigration reform effort now underway is crucial to the future of this Nation. It is not perfect. it is not what I would have drafted if given a free hand. It is however. better than nothing. Make no mistake. that is the choice. This. or nothing. In light of the severity of the immigration crisis and the social and economic implications for our Nation if the problem continues unchecked. the choice is easy. This. is better than nothing. I remain hopeful that some of its defects will be corrected before it is sent to the President.