Speech #1010080448

Senator SHELBY. and my colleague. the distinguished colleague from North Carolina. Senator HELMS. I think we are all familiar with the problem of illegal immigration. We heard a lot about this problem last July when we passed the immigration bill under the able leadership of Senators KENNEDY and SIMPSON. But we do not have to compound the problem. We do not have to compound this problem by mindless lumping of millions. of illegal aliens in the 1990 census. We do not have to compound this problem by ripping off the States. some of whom will lose congressional seats because of the inclusion of illegal aliens in the census. Unfortunately. the established policy of the Census Bureau is to count every person in this country without making a single adjustment for illegal aliens. The Census Bureau intends to continue this policy through 1990. With all due respect to the Census Bureau and their many fine people who work at the Bureau. this policy simply does not make any sense. It violatei the constitutional principle of one manone vote. and is just plain unfair to most Americans who live here in this country and live here legally. That Is what it is all about. Last July Senator SHELBY and HELMS offered an amendment to the immigration bill that provided a simple and straightforward solution to this problem. The amendment which. if passed by the Senate. requires the Secretary of Commerce to use tabulating procedures that are both feasible and appropriate to ensure that illegal aliens are not counted in the census for purposes of reapportionment. There is a sound solution that would restore some fairness to the census and reapportionment process. But what happened? The House has not acted on the immigration bill. and time is running out. As the distinguished Senator from Alabama appointed out. if we do not act now. Congress will not have the opportunity to correct the census problem until the year 2000.