Speech #1140002798

This amendment is about doing right by them and their families. It is about making sure the men and women who play by the rules receive the fair treatment that they were promised. Congress must send a clear message to the administration and the American people that we are committed to fixing what is broken about our immigration system but not at the expense of lawabiding immigrants. In recent weeks. I have worked with The Heritage Foundation to identify seven failing programs at the USCIS that are in most need of improvement. One of the most egregious examples is of the $792 million that the USCIS spent between 2008 and 2012 to create an online system for applicants to file forms and pay fees. After $700 million spent and 4 years of time. only two forms out of 100 and one out of 73 different fees can be processed online. The administrations repeated inability to build a Web site that workswelldocumented as it is by nowis compounded by its eagerness to bypass the Constitution and break the law. Had the President wished to show real leadership on immigration reform. he could have used his executive authority to promote greater efficiency and costsaving measures within the system. Had he done so. I suspect there would have been overwhelming support in this Congress. but. regrettably. that is not the course he chose. and it is why this Congress must act. We have a responsibility to American taxpayers and to millions of immigrants to establish spending priorities at the USCIS. and eliminating wasteful spending in the immigration system is an important component of our responsibility and is a first great step in achieving comprehensive reform. Ensuring that the fees paid by lawful applicants are not used to fasttrack those who break the law strikes at the heart of our oath of office. During my time in Congress. the 18th District of Illinois has welcomed more than 2.600 new citizens. many of whom have faced a long road to get here. but there are still thousands more who are waiting.