The United States has come to depend on foreignborn engineers. we have reached the point where we import as many engineers as we graduate from our universities. Recently. my colleagues in the U.S. Senate and I approved the American Competitiveness Act of 1998. It raises the ceiling on the number of visas designated for hightech workers. or HiB visas. from 65.000 to 95.000 in the fiscal year 1998. and then to 115.000 a year through 2002. This bill is partially in response to the "year 2000" problem and will help hightech industries hire enough employees to effectively resolve the problem. But this is a shortterm solution. and in the year 2002.