Speech #1040178175

Mr. President. I introduce the Illegal Immigration Control and Enforcement Act of 1996. This bill would crack down on the problem of illegal immigration without retreating from our historic commitment to legal immigration. There is a broad consensus that illegal immigration is a significant problem that demands immediate attention. But in addressing that problem. we must not blur the distinction between illegal and legal immigrants. The overwhelming majority of legal immigrants are lawabiding. hardworking people who make a positive contribution to our economy and our society. An omnibus immigration bill recently reported out of the Judiciary Subcommittee for Immigration overlooks this distinction. Rather than focus on illegal immigration. the omnibus bill would reduce the quotas for certain categories of legal immigration. eliminate other categories altogether. and impose stifling new taxes and red tape on American businesses that employ talented immigrants. The omnibus bill would also burden every American worker and business with a new nationalidentification system that would vastly expand the power of the Federal Government in the workplace. The bill I introduce today has a more targeted approach. First. the bill aims to take back control of our borders. It would nearly double the number of border patrol agents. adding 900 such agents for each of the next 5 fiscal years. It would provide new equipment and support personnel for these agents. And it would significantly increase the criminal penalties for the practice of smuggling aliens across our border. Second. the bill would for the first time address the problem caused by persons who overstay their visas. According to the INS. roughly half of all illegal aliens enter the United States with legal. nonimmigrant visas and then remain here after their visas expire. Yet. incredibly. under current law there is no penalty for overstaying ones visa. Moreover. visa overstayers are virtually never caught by the INS. so overstaying is for many aliens a riskfree choice. But the Illegal Immigration Control and Enforcement Act would change all this. Persons who overstay a visa would be ineligible for additional visas for at least 3 to 5 years. Since many visa overstayers hope to reside here legally one day. this penalty would have a significant deterrent effect. To help catch those persons who nevertheless stay here after their visas expire. the bill would authorize the addition of 300 new INS investigators in each of the next 3 fiscal years. who would focus exclusively on visa overstayers. The upshot should be a significant reduction in the numbers of these illegal aliens. Third. the bill would streamline the deportation of criminal aliens. Although. under current law. aliens convicted of felonies after entry are deportable. they are. in fact. rarely deported because of their ability to seek repeated judicial review of their deportation order. That would change under the provisions in my bill. which are stronger than those in the omnibus immigration bill. Under my bill. aliens who are convicted of serious crimes would simply be deported upon completion of their sentences without any further judicial review of their deportation order. These provisions would apply to nearly half a million alien felons currently residing in this country. Fourth. my bill would also respond to the pleas of businesses. particularly small businesses. who wish to follow the law but whose efforts to do so are thwarted by the bewildering array of documents that. under current law. are acceptable for employment verification.