[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 11 (Friday, January 26, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S505]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. ABRAHAM:
  S. 1535. A bill to strengthen enforcement of the immigration laws of 
the United States, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.


      the illegal immigration control and enforcement act of 1996

 Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I introduce the Illegal 
Immigration Control and Enforcement Act of 1996. This bill would crack 
down on the problem of illegal immigration without retreating from our 
historic commitment to legal immigration.
  There is a broad consensus that illegal immigration is a significant 
problem that demands immediate attention. But in addressing that 
problem, we must not blur the distinction between illegal and legal 
immigrants. The overwhelming majority of legal immigrants are law-
abiding, hard-working people who make a positive contribution to our 
economy and our society.
  An omnibus immigration bill recently reported out of the Judiciary 
Subcommittee for Immigration overlooks this distinction. Rather than 
focus on illegal immigration, the omnibus bill would reduce the quotas 
for certain categories of legal immigration, eliminate other categories 
altogether, and impose stifling new taxes and red tape on American 
businesses that employ talented immigrants. The omnibus bill would also 
burden every American worker and business with a new national-
identification system that would vastly expand the power of the Federal 
Government in the workplace.
  The bill I introduce today has a more targeted approach. First, the 
bill aims to take back control of our borders. It would nearly double 
the number of border patrol agents, adding 900 such agents for each of 
the next 5 fiscal years. It would provide new equipment and support 
personnel for these agents. And it would significantly increase the 
criminal penalties for the practice of smuggling aliens across our 
border.
  Second, the bill would for the first time address the problem caused 
by persons who overstay their visas. According to the INS, roughly half 
of all illegal aliens enter the United States with legal, nonimmigrant 
visas and then remain here after their visas expire. Yet, incredibly, 
under current law there is no penalty for overstaying one's visa. 
Moreover, visa overstayers are virtually never caught by the INS, so 
overstaying is for many aliens a risk-free choice. But the Illegal 
Immigration Control and Enforcement Act would change all this. Persons 
who overstay a visa would be ineligible for additional visas for at 
least 3 to 5 years. Since many visa overstayers hope to reside here 
legally one day, this penalty would have a significant deterrent 
effect. To help catch those persons who nevertheless stay here after 
their visas expire, the bill would authorize the addition of 300 new 
INS investigators in each of the next 3 fiscal years, who would focus 
exclusively on visa overstayers. The upshot should be a significant 
reduction in the numbers of these illegal aliens.
  Third, the bill would streamline the deportation of criminal aliens. 
Although, under current law, aliens convicted of felonies after entry 
are deportable, they are, in fact, rarely deported because of their 
ability to seek repeated judicial review of their deportation order. 
That would change under the provisions in my bill, which are stronger 
than those in the omnibus immigration bill. Under my bill, aliens who 
are convicted of serious crimes would simply be deported upon 
completion of their sentences without any further judicial review of 
their deportation order. These provisions would apply to nearly half a 
million alien felons currently residing in this country.
  Fourth, my bill would also respond to the pleas of businesses, 
particularly small businesses, who wish to follow the law but whose 
efforts to do so are thwarted by the bewildering array of documents 
that, under current law, are acceptable for employment verification. To 
help these employers, the bill would reduce the number of acceptable 
employment verification to a relative handful of documents familiar to 
all employers.
  Finally, Mr. President, the bill I introduce today also includes 
important welfare reforms similar to those in H.R. 4, the bill that was 
sent to the President and vetoed. Like H.R. 4, my bill would deny 
Federal means-tested benefits like welfare, food stamps, and SSI to 
illegal aliens and sharply restrict the eligibility of legal aliens to 
receive these benefits. Unlike the omnibus bill reported out of the 
Judiciary Subcommittee for Immigration, however, my bill would not 
continue to apply these provisions to immigrants who become citizens of 
the United States. In my view, we should not create classes of American 
citizens for this purpose.
  In summary, Mr. President, we need to focus our efforts on those 
areas where the real problem lies. By doing so, my bill would address 
our legitimate concerns about illegal immigration and welfare abuse 
without abandoning our commitment to family reunification, imposing new 
taxes and fees on American employers, or handing the Federal Government 
sweeping new powers in the workplace.
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