[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 13 (Wednesday, January 30, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S405-S406]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. UDALL of Colorado (for himself, Mr. Flake, Mrs. 
        Gillibrand, and Mr. Warner):
  S. 189. A bill to establish an employment-based immigrant visa for 
alien entrepreneurs who have received significant capital from 
investors to establish a business in the United States; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, it is with great pleasure that 
I, along with Mr. Flake of Arizona, reintroduce the Startup Visa Act. 
The Startup Visa Act of 2013 allows immigrant entrepreneurs and foreign 
graduates of U.S. universities to appeal for a two-year visa on the 
condition that they secure financing from a qualified U.S. investor and 
can demonstrate the ability to create jobs in America.
  If they are successful in developing their company and hiring 
American workers, they would be eligible for legal permanent residency 
and would be free to continue building their companies, creating more 
home-grown jobs

[[Page S406]]

and continuing our legacy of unmatched innovation and entrepreneurship.
  The United States has a proud history of providing entrepreneurs from 
around the world the freedom and resources to turn an idea into a 
successful venture. Well-known U.S. companies such as Google, Yahoo, 
Intel, Pfizer and eBay all began as startups that were founded by 
immigrants. These businesses have grown into multibillion-dollar 
industry leaders that provide thousands of Americans with high-paying 
jobs in cutting-edge fields.
  The number of jobs offered by startups is dropping off. While this is 
partly due to the economic downturn it is also because of our Nation's 
broken immigration system. Many of the world's best and brightest minds 
are finding that our current visa restrictions discourage them from 
launching new companies here. This is a major competitive disadvantage, 
and one that runs counter to our Nation's history of fostering foreign-
born innovators, such as Albert Einstein or Andrew Carnegie.
  More worrisome is that while we try to work out a solution to our 
broken immigration laws, our foreign competitors are catching up and, 
in some cases, passing us by in many of the fields we once dominated. 
In 2009, for the first time in recent memory, foreign innovators were 
awarded more patents than Americans pioneers. Only a decade earlier, 
U.S.-based entrepreneurs were awarded almost 57 percent of all patents 
worldwide. We must work quickly and in a bipartisan manner to reverse 
this trend. The Startup Visa Act of 2013 is a strong and simple step 
that will reward foreign innovators, pioneers and entrepreneurs for 
creating jobs in America. Put simply, this legislation will help 
protect America's position as the global leader in innovation.
  We do not have to look far for evidence that our broken immigration 
system is hurting our economy. We only need to look at our Canadian 
neighbors. The Canadian founders of Vanilla Forums, an innovative and 
fast-growing company, whose products are used by websites around the 
world to host online forum discussions, spent a summer in my home State 
of Colorado participating in a mentorship program with U.S.-based 
entrepreneurs and investors. Despite the numerous investors who were 
interested in funding Vanilla Forums and developing the company in 
Colorado, concerns about the founders' ability to obtain visas won out. 
As a result, Vanilla Forums is a successful company that is hiring 
employees at its headquarters in Montreal, Quebec.
  America has tremendous untapped potential for innovation and it is 
our responsibility to give our Nation every opportunity to remain 
globally competitive. By passing the Startup Visa Act of 2013 we can 
create high paying jobs here in the United States, and help ensure that 
the next globally transformative company is based in America. This 
legislation is bipartisan and fiscally responsible; it will spur 
private investment and it will help put our economy back on track. I 
ask my colleagues to join me in support of this important legislation.

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