Current Proposals on Illegal Immigration

An article by CRF Staff.

Congress is currently considering bills to address illegal immigration. The House has passed its bill. The Senate has a bill approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee, which still requires further action by the Senate. 

Both bills contain many similar provisions, particularly in the areas of anti-terrorism and crime prevention related to the border. But sections of the bills differ greatly. The following descriptions of the bills and their contrasting sections have been culled from news and congressional sources.  

House Bill 4437 
This bill was sponsored by Representative F. James Sensenbrenner Jr., a Republican from Wisconsin. He is the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. The bill had 35 co-sponsors and passed the House by a 239 to 182 vote. Two-hundred three Republicans favored the bill, and 164 Democrats voted against it. 

The stated purpose of the House bill is to prevent terrorism: "The failure to control and to prevent illegal immigration into the United States increases the likelihood that terrorists will succeed in launching catastrophic or harmful attacks on United States soil." 

The major provisions of this bill include:

1. Criminal penalties. It provides for criminal penalties on undocumented workers and those who help them. It makes "unlawful presence" in the United States a felony. It enhances penalties for smuggling people into the United States. It also includes penalties for anyone who "harbors, conceals, or shields from detection a person in the United States knowing . . . that such person is an alien who lacks authority to be in the United States."
    
2. Employer sanctions. It creates a pilot system that employers must use to verify that employees have proper documents. All employers must join the system within two years. Penalties for hiring undocumented workers are increased.
    
3. Increased security. It requires the building of two "layers of reinforced fencing, the installation of additional physical barriers, roads, lighting, cameras, and sensors" along much of the U.S.-Mexico border. It also funds thousands of new border patrol officers.
    
4. Guest workers. It does not set up a guest-worker program.

Senate Judiciary Committee Bill 
This bill was sponsored by the Senator Arlen Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania. He is the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Judiciary Committee approved the bill by a vote of 12â??6. Four Republicans and eight Democrats supported it. 
The stated purpose of this bill is to improve border security and provide a comprehensive plan to address illegal immigration. 

The major provisions of this bill include:

1. Criminal penalties. It makes clear that "unlawful presence" is not a felony. People who give humanitarian aid to undocumented workers may not be prosecuted for helping them. The bill strengthens penalties against smuggling.
    
2. Enhanced enforcement on employers. It will fund thousands of investigators to enforce laws against employing undocumented workers. The money for the investigators will come from penalties assessed against employers violating the law. A part of this bill involves creating a system for employers to check for valid Social Security numbers before employing workers. The Finance Committee is still considering this part of the bill, and it has not yet reached the floor of the Senate.
    
3. Increased security. It doubles the number of Border Patrol officers within five years. It will create of a fleet of robotic vehicles, cameras, and sensors to monitor the U.S.-Mexico border.
    
4. Guest workers. It sets up a guest-worker program. This program allows current undocumented workers to remain in the United States and apply for permanent resident status after working for six years if they pay a $1,000 fine, pay any back taxes, have no criminal record, and learn English and civics. This program also allows 400,000 more guest workers to enter each year.

This bill has just reached the floor of the Senate (except for the part being considered by the Finance Committee). Before any vote is taken, the bill will be subject to amendment (as was the House bill).  

If a Senate bill passes, both the House and Senate bills must then go to a Conference Committee (made up of senators and members of the House). The Conference Committee will reconcile the differences in the two bill. Then it will return for a final vote in the Senate and House. If both pass it, it will go to the president, who must sign it for it to become law.

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