Immigration

There is no question that the United States must do a better job of enforcing our immigration laws and securing our borders.  There are approximately 12 million undocumented aliens living in this country that, under our current system, we cannot effectively monitor.  Illegal immigration is a security threat; we must know who is crossing our borders and living and working in our country.  The United States needs comprehensive reform that is both smart and tough to fix our immigration system.   

The Senate Judiciary Committee has approved a bipartisan, comprehensive immigration reform bill.  The bill is strong on enforcement and in some ways is

stronger than the immigration bill passed by the House.  It is tough on employer enforcement and tough on traffickers, and it includes a key provision that will make tunneling under our borders a federal crime.  The Committee bill adds new criminal penalties for evading immigration officers and it adds 12,000 new Border Patrol Agents over the next five years. 

Two issues of concern to many Vermonters are enforcement along the northern border, and seasonal guest worker programs.  Vermont has long enjoyed a friendly border with our neighbors in Canada.  I have been discouraged by members of the Bush Administration and the majority in the House that have sought to

What About Vermont?
Sen. Leahy's efforts to make the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative work for Vermont and other northern border states.

construct a fence, or barrier, along our northern border.  I was successful in removing this provision from the bill passed by the Judiciary Committee.  Vermonters, including myself, enjoy close, family relationships with our neighbors in the north, and business with Canada accounts for a significant contribution to our state’s economy.  Addressing border security in the north in the same manner we deal with it in the south is both shortsighted and inappropriate. 

Vermont’s resort, ski and lodging industry, as well as the agriculture industry across the country, also rely on seasonal workers to successfully operate Vermont businesses.  I have supported past efforts to raise the cap on visas given to guest workers.  I am pleased to support an amendment to the immigration reform bill introduced by Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland to extend a provision for seasonal workers who come to the United States legally, enabling employers to keep seasonal workers on their payroll from year to year, through 2009.

The provisions in the Judiciary Committee-passed bill are not amnesty.  The legislation respects work and human dignity, while confronting the problem of 12 million undocumented immigrants who live in this country.  Undocumented immigrants already in the country would not get to cut to the front of the line, but, in accordance with the Committee’s bipartisan plan, will need to pay fines, pay back taxes, work hard, and wait in line for green cards.  Following this plan, we can create an orderly system for immigration that is consistent with traditional American values and our history. 

Resources from the Congressional Research Service:

Immigration Legislation and Issues in the 109th Congress

Border Security: Fences Along the U.S. International Border

The Efforts on U.S. Farm Workers of an Agricultural Guest Worker Program

The Congressional Research Service provides members of Congress with non-partisan research and analysis of legislation and issues.  It's my goal to make all of these reports available to the tax payer.  You can read more about my efforts here.  Until then, I've made the below reports available in PDF form to help you research this issue further. 

Statements, Letters, And Releases About Immigration

For audio statements from Judiciary Committee hearings and floor statements about immigration,
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