RAISE Act Seeks to Limit Legal Immigration, Abolish Diversity Lottery
On August 2, 2017, Senators Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and David Perdue (R-Ga.), with the backing of President Donald Trump1, introduced the Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy (RAISE) Act (S. 1720). The Bill would create a merit-based immigration system.
In announcing the bill, Senator Cotton stated, "We will build an immigration system that raises working wages, creates jobs, and gives every American a fair shot at creating wealth, whether your family came over on the Mayflower or just took the oath of citizenship." Senator Perdue said the Act "will create a skills-based system that is more responsive to the needs of our economy and preserves the quality of jobs available to American workers."2
Provisions in the Act include:
- Eliminating the Diversity Visa program;
- Capping the number of refugees granted permanent visas to the U.S. at 50,000 per year;
- Maintaining immigration preferences for the spouses and minor children of U.S. residents, but eliminating visa preferences for extended family and grown adult family members of U.S. residents;
- Creating a temporary visa for the elderly parents of U.S. residents to come to the U.S. for caretaking;
- Replacing the current employment-based immigration system with an immigration points system based on education, English-language ability, high-paying job offers, age, record of extraordinary achievement, and entrepreneurial initiative; and
- Conditioning naturalization on the sponsors of an immigrant fulfilling their obligation to reimburse the federal government for benefits used by the immigrant (required under current law).3
The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
Footnote
[1] https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/08/02/president-donald-j-trump-backs-raise-act
[2] https://www.perdue.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senators-perdue-cotton-introduce-the-reforming-american-immigration-for-a-strong-economy-act
[3] https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/354
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