Dreamers And Legal Immigration Changes Highlight New House Bill

Stuart Anderson, Forbes, Sept. 13, 2021

"A new House bill could provide green card relief for thousands of individuals and families waiting years in backlogs and grant legal status to millions of immigrants living in the United States without legal status. Although the bill does not contain permanent structural changes to the legal immigration system, it would likely allow more individuals to gain permanent residence than the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act and provide relief for many families, high-skilled immigrants and employers. 

Background: On September 10, 2021, the House Judiciary Committee released a press statement: “Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) announced the committee print for the Committee markup on Monday, September 13th on legislative proposals under the budget reconciliation instructions.” Before becoming law, the provisions would have to pass the Judiciary Committee, the House of Representatives and the Senate and be signed by the president.

It is unclear if the Senate parliamentarian will permit Democrats to include immigration provisions through the reconciliation process—which allows a bill to avoid a filibuster—and if enough Democratic senators support all the immigration provisions that appear in the Judiciary Committee print."