In this way the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act will help bridge the gap between current job skills and the requirements of high paying. important positions in our economy. However. over the short term. until we are producing more qualified high technology graduates. we must also take other steps to bridge the gap between high technology needs and high technology skills. We currently allow companies to hire a limited number of highly skilled foreign born professionals to fill essential roles. To do this they must go through a fairly onerous process to get one of the 65.000 "H1B" temporary worker visas allotted by the INS. Unfortunately. last year our companies hit the 65.000 annual limit at the end of August. This year that limit was hit in May. This bill. in addition to providing significant incentives for Americans to enter the high technology sector. will temporarily raise the number of H1B visas available for the next three years. These additional visas will enable companies to find the workers they need to keep facilities and jobs in the United States. and keep our hightech industry competitive in the global marketplace. The legislation also includes a number of provisions ensuring that companies will not replace American workers with foreign born professionals. including increased penalties and oversight. as well as measures eliminating any economic incentive to hire a foreign born worker if there is an American available with the skills needed to fill the position. I would like to thank the members of my staff who worked long hours negotiating this compromise. I would also especially like to express my personal gratitude to my colleagues for their support for this important legislation.
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H1B visas foreign born