Speech #1100153507

First of all. I want to thank the gentleman from Iowa . who is the ranking member of the Immigration Subcommittee. for yielding. I am happy to have played a part in the creation of the Religious Worker Immigrant Visa Program back in 1990. These visas enable American religious denominations. large and small. to benefit from committed religious workers from other countries. However. I have also long been concerned about the high level of fraud that has been evident in this visa program. Like Mr. KING. I feel regulations can only go so far in preventing fraud and we do need additional statutory changes in the program. The Office of Fraud Detection and National Security at the Department of Homeland Security has conducted a Fraud Benefit Assessment. It found that of 220 religious worker visa cases selected at random. 33 percent had "a finding of fraud." the highest of any visa program. Fraud involves everything from bogus churches and bogus jobs to "religious workers" who are found driving taxis soon after they arrive here. So I especially appreciate the steps that the chairman of the Immigration Subcommittee. Congresswoman ZOE LOFGREN. has taken to address these concerns. She agreed that we would extend the expiring religious worker green cards for 7 years as long as the Department of Homeland Security issues longneeded regulations to address some types of fraud. In addition. she agreed to have the Inspector General complete a report on the effectiveness of the antifraud regulations. The Inspector General also will conduct an audit to determine to what extent religious workers continue to work for the religious institutions that sponsor them.