Dear Mr. and Mrs. XXXX:

Thank you for contacting me with your opposition to the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act. I appreciate hearing from you and would like to respond to your concerns.

As you know, on May 25, 2006, I joined 61 of my colleagues in passing the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 (S. 2611). This legislation combines strong border control legislation, with a realistic workplace enforcement mechanism, and a way to bring 11 million people out of the shadows.

Like you, I agree that we must fully secure our borders. S. 2611 provides significant resources to do this. It provides for the training and hiring of 15,000 additional border patrol agents over the next six years, places 6,000 National Guard troops on our border with Mexico, uses 370 miles of double- and triple- layer fencing and 500 miles of vehicle barriers on our southern border in conjunction with unmanned aerial and land vehicles to report and halt the flow of illegal aliens crossing our border. These measures will significantly improve our national security.

Please be assured that I strongly support our President and his efforts to secure our borders. This is a critical component of our national security, and I intend to work with my colleagues to secure the passage of a law that fixes our porous borders and broken immigration system.

Delaying comprehensive reform does a disservice to America. We must protect the border, but we must also provides for the economic needs of this nation and contend with the 11 million already living here illegally. It is my firm belief that addressing border security while doing nothing to address those already living here illegally would amount to de facto amnesty for 11 million people.

It is in the best national security interest of the United States to learn the identity of these individuals who are living in our country unrecognized by our government. This legislation would separate the current illegal immigrant population into three categories. The first group consists of illegals that have entered the United States since January 2004. S. 2611 would require this group to leave the country. Individuals who have been here more than two years but less than five would be required to leave the country but would be able to return immediately as new temporary workers. It would take them at least six years to qualify for a green card, and the applicant must prove he or she was working during the entire time. Long term workers who have been in the country for more than five years would have the option to earn a green card by registering with the government, undergoing criminal and national security background checks, paying a $2000 fine along with back taxes, then learning English, and working for six years while they wait their turn behind the current green card applicants, which will be at least an eleven year wait.

American employers also need to take responsibility when determining the immigration status of individuals they hire. Too often illegal immigrants attempt to enter the United States chasing employment from unscrupulous employers who accept fraudulent citizenship documents. This hurts both American workers and immigrants whose sole aim is to work hard and get ahead. S. 2611 would implement a simple, fool-proof, and mandatory mechanism for all employers to check the legal status of new hires, and we must penalize employers that continue to hire illegal employees.

This legislation is now subject to a joint House and Senate conference committee to reconcile the differences between the Senate- passed S. 2611 and the House- passed Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 (H.R. 4437). Please know that as we continue to work on this difficult issue I will remain mindful of your concerns.

Thank you for sharing your thoughtful comments with me. If you have any additional comments, please contact me. For more information about issues and activities important to Florida, please sign up for my weekly newsletter at http://martinez.senate.gov.

Sincerely,

Mel Martinez
United States Senator