Speech #1020121779

Mr. President. I am pleased to join with Senator KENNEDY. the chairman of the Immigration Subcommittee. in introducing legislation to revise the pay grades of immigration judges and members of the Board of Immigration Appeals. Immigration judges perform extremely important functions. They hear and decide whether aliens should be deported or excluded from the United States. They hear and decide whether an alien is likely to face political persecution if forced to return to his or her homeland. They determine whether it is safe to release on bond an alien who has been convicted of a felony. There are countless other decisions made by immigration judges. which are reviewed by the Board of Immigration Appeals. that have significant effects on our immigration policy and on our country. Presently. immigration judges are paid at the GS15 level. However. a number of Federal agency adjudicators performing similar functionssuch as administrative law judges for the Social Security Administrationare paid at a much higher pay rate. As a result. a number of senior immigration judges have been leaving the immigration judge corps because they are wellqualified for these more lucrative agencyadjudicator positions. I am greatly concerned that. unless this pay inequity problem is solved. we will lose our most qualified immigration judges to other Federal agencies. and the quality of decisions on important immigration cases will diminish. This legislation takes a reasonable and responsible approach to the probl1m. While not paying immigration judges exactly as much as administrative law judges now receive. this bill would substantially increase the salaries of immigration judges and board members. It would decrease the incentive for our most talented judges to leave for employment in other Federal agencies. and it will preserve a quality level of adjudication in the increasingly complex arena of immigration law. I understand that the Congressional Budget Office finds this legislation acceptable under our budget agreement. and I note that this legislation has significant support in the House of Representatives. as well. I urge the adoption of this bill.0 By Mr.