Thread: Senate Dems to give federal commission say over legal immigr

By Laura Litvan
Monday, May 24, 2010
Washington Post

Democrats crafting an overhaul of U.S. immigration laws are bringing a new approach to a long-stalled debate: giving a federal commission some power over the future flow of legal foreign workers.

Senate Democratic leaders are drafting a measure to authorize a commission to recommend levels of employment-based visas and green cards that let immigrants work legally in the United States. The plan would require Congress, in certain cases, to vote when immigrant labor is deemed out of line with demand. Although the commission would have limited influence over the skilled-immigrant market for technology and other industries, it would have a major role in regulating low-skilled foreign labor.

The idea is another example of lawmakers showing a willingness to relinquish decision-making to commissions on issues that include reducing the federal debt, Iraq war policy and curbing Medicare costs.

"It's the ultimate expression for the need for political cover," said Ross Baker, a political science professor at Rutgers University.

It's also an idea that allows the Democrats, who control Congress, to show support for labor unions championing the proposal. Business groups, however, are concerned the commission would make it more cumbersome to use foreign labor.

"Traditionally, our levels have been set by law, and that's worked for us," said Ralph Hellman, top lobbyist at the Information Technology Industry Council, which includes Intel and Hewlett-Packard as members. "The commission has a lot of peril in it."

Labor unions say the approach can be flexible enough to satisfy business. Their key goal is a mechanism that helps ensure that use of immigrant labor doesn't rise to levels that hurt U.S. workers, said Ana Avendaño, an AFL-CIO official who focuses on immigration policy. "We don't want a detrimental effect on our economy or wages," she said.

Calls for action on immigration-overhaul legislation from Hispanic groups, unions and some lawmakers have increased since passage last month of a measure in Arizona that would require local police to determine the immigration status of anyone suspected of lacking proper documentation. Still, Congress probably won't take up immigration legislation and the commission idea until 2011, after November's elections.

The overhaul measure would secure the U.S.-Mexico border, create a temporary-worker program and forge a path to citizenship for the estimated 11 million people in the country illegally.

The commission idea came from Ray Marshall, Labor Secretary under President Jimmy Carter. The United States needs a nonpartisan panel that would use "rigorous" data analysis in its decisions, Marshall said in an interview.

The commission plan emerged in December, when Rep. Solomon P. Ortiz (D-Tex.) included it in an immigration bill backed by the House's Hispanic and Progressive caucuses. That bill, stalled in the House, would establish a seven-member commission charged with preventing wage depression and job losses for U.S. workers. It would recommend to Congress and the president annual caps on all worker visas. Congress would have to act to prevent the limits from taking effect.

Legislation being drafted by Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) is expected to take a different tack, said a Schumer aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The panel they envision would have a stronger role in deciding immigrant-worker levels in lower-skilled occupations -- such as hotel and restaurant jobs -- than in higher-skilled ones.

The commission would issue recommendations for high-skilled worker visas and wage levels, the aide said. For lower-skilled occupations, the commission could declare "emergencies" when it sees an imbalance between foreign-worker supply and demand. A vote in Congress would be required for the panel's recommended immigration levels for these workers.

Employers or industries that hire lower-skilled immigrants could petition the commission for temporary waivers of visa caps, although the commission would first need to determine that it wouldn't be possible to hire U.S. workers for the jobs.

Shawn McBurney, a lobbyist with the American Hotel & Lodging Association, said resorts and hotel chains that rely on seasonal workers probably couldn't get commission approval to hire more foreign workers in a timely manner.

"There's a lot of things a commission really can't do in real time," said McBurney, whose group lobbies for companies such as Best Western International.

Corporations also want the final legislation to ensure that a commission can't mandate flows for highly skilled immigrant labor, said Lynn Shotwell, executive director of the American Council on International Personnel.

In 2000, after a lobbying push by technology companies, such as Microsoft, that are facing worker shortages, Congress approved lifting, for three years, the annual cap on H-1B visas for skilled temporary workers to 195,000 from 65,000. Today, it is back at 65,000.

"While it's very difficult to get changes through Congress, a commission wouldn't be any more responsive to business," said Shotwell, whose group includes Amazon.com and Exxon Mobil as members. "A commission could be even less responsive."


-- Bloomberg News

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... cs/fedpage

Oh great,just stinking great. Another think tank from the stupid people on the hill.

Why don't they ask the Commission of American People, us citizens for our votes???

Our votes don't matter. This is just another shell game tactic to keep us from controlling our own country.

Congresscritters, what is wrong with you? We have 30 million unemployed and underemployed American Workers and you're wasting your time and our money with yet another means to determine how many more foreign worker visas and green cards you want to give away to foreign workers? Are you insane?

We don't need any more foreign worker visas and green cards issued until all these unemployed and underemployed Americans are employed at wages with hours and benefits that sustain them. Period.

So we don't need or want some dank dark "independent commission" to sell out our country and people. You've already done a swell job at that on your own.

Furthermore, you've no right to determine new immigration levels under the US Constitution, except to "Just Say No". The states decide immigration levels under the US Constitution. You decide when to tell them "NO MORE". Period.

Therefore, the only "commission" you need is one to that reviews the levels each state legislature wants, determine how many states approve of what each state wants and then determine when to say "NO".

Read your Constitution. You only have the right to prohibit immigration and tax it, you have absolutely NO AUTHORITY whatsoever to admit anyone to the United States without the permission of the state desiring it and the approval of any other state that could be affected by it, and charging them a tax for each person they "may think proper to admit."

"that any of the states now existing shall think proper to admit" ... not you, not the US Congress, not the White House, not the US Courts, not labor unions, not businesses, not hotels and motels, not restaurants, not fisheries, not farmers, not "think tanks", not Bill Gates, and not "independent commissions". The "states" decide new immigration levels, you only decide when to tax them and when to cut them off.

US Constitution
Article 1.
Section 9.

The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person.

So tell the GAO to get their little calculators out and tell the American People what $10 for each person in 1789 equates to today adjusting for inflation, and then tell the states that want to "admit" to inform their citizens, inform the other states, publish the list of all the states who desire to "admit" immigrants in what numbers, for what purpose, for what terms, publish the adjusted tax or duty to be imposed, and once the state legislatures have all approved their own and every other states immigration levels that they "shall deem proper to admit" and come up with the money to pay the tax for it, THEN, and only THEN, is it your job to say "OK" or exercise your Constitutional Authority to say "NO" and prohibit it.

If you say "OK", THEN and only THEN, may you pass a conforming resolution to authorize "green cards" and "visas" for someone to enter the United States for any purpose other than temporary tourism, business or diplomatic travel, ONLY to the point of entry of a state requesting the migrants AFTER you collect the tax or duty on every single one of them.

You morons have overpopulated and bankrupted our nation with your illegal and unconstitutional "visas" and "green cards", and you should all be brought up on federal charges and prosecuted for this reckless stupidity and disregard for the Constitution, the States, and the American People.

And THAT's the way it is and THAT's the way it will be until such time as you want to amend the US Constitution to authorize something else, and obtain 3/4 of the states permission to do so.

WE HAVE TO CLEAN THE US CONGRESS. NO MORE DEMOCRATS. THEY ARE DESTROYING OUR COUNTRY. LET'S REMOVE ALL THE DEMOCRATS FROM OFFICE. IN 2012 LET'S ELECT ANOTHER PRESIDENT BECAUSE BARACK OBAMA IS NOT GOOD.

Oh, goodie. An immigration czar appointed by the great one.

This is worrisome, as in high tech, there is something on the horizon called "cloud computing" that will doubtless be used to justify the firing of hundreds of thousands of American tech workers, and their replacement. Back in the day, America's decades of worldwide tech leadership were accomplished by training and encouraging American workers, but now tech skill is seen as a global commodity.

It's all worrisome in my mind. We have 51 million people on MediCaid, low income families with less than $2,000 in total assets. Under Obama Care, if it's not repealed, another 16 million will be added to MediCaid. Then there are another 12 million on SCHIP. That's 78 million Americans who can't sustain themselves or support their families. Another worrisome fact is that 60% of all US school children in K-12 are using the free school lunch program.

The lower income jobs are just as important as the higher paid ones. When we have that many low income or no income families with little or no assets, our own people are the ones who need a job in a hotel or motel or restaurant or with a janitorial service or agricultural operation or fishery or whatever whenever they can find work and earn income to support their families, so other families don't have to support them.

That's true, and I've heard lots of stories of our working poor who either couldn't get hired or were pushed off work teams because they didn't speak Spanish. My own sons had to go farther and try harder each year to get summer and after school work, as everyone was hiring Spanish speakers from .... somewhere. Even in predominantly white areas, such as the Colorado mining communities.

Originally Posted by BetsyRoss

That's true, and I've heard lots of stories of our working poor who either couldn't get hired or were pushed off work teams because they didn't speak Spanish. My own sons had to go farther and try harder each year to get summer and after school work, as everyone was hiring Spanish speakers from .... somewhere. Even in predominantly white areas, such as the Colorado mining communities.

Yep .. here too. And our community has a high black population so when constructions sites used to be filled with black and white workers, more blacks than whites, they suddenly became filled with all Hispanics that didn't speak a word of English. Then the long lines started at the local Employment Security Office, and they've grown every year since. That was in 2000. Some of these people have been out of good paying work for going on a decade. It's criminal. The people responsible for this travesty need to go to jail. This is so wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.