Dear Friend:
Thank you for contacting me regarding H.R. 3012, the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act. I welcome your thoughts and comments.
I believe current U.S. immigration law is unsatisfactory in many ways, ranging from illegal immigration to arbitrary limitations on admissions of highly skilled professionals needed by U.S. businesses.
The Immigration and Nationality Act allocates 140,000 visas annually for employment-based legal permanent residents (LPRs). They made up 14.2% of the total 1 million LPRs in fiscal year 2010. The INA also includes an annual, country-specific limit of 7% of total U.S. immigrant admissions, known as per-country limits, or country caps.
On September 22, 2011, Representative Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) introduced H.R. 3012, which would eliminate country-specific numerical restrictions on permanent employment-based admissions. It would also raise the per-country cap on family-based immigration from 7% to 15% over several years.
In spite of several attempts to take action on this sensible proposal, it appears that there is enough opposition in the Senate to prevent it from being considered before the end of 2012. My term in office will end this year, but I hope that the next Congress will take action on needed immigration reforms like this.
I appreciate hearing from you, and I hope that you will not hesitate to contact me on any issue that is important to you.
Sincerely,
Kay Bailey Hutchison
United States Senator
