McCain/Kennedy bill slipped into minimum wage law

Date: Sunday, February 04, 2007 9:48 PM

<<<<< JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER No. 1634 -- 2/04/2007 >>>>>

Today I made a rather horrifying discovery -- we could be just a few days
away from the McCain/Kennedy bill from becoming law. Congress is
fast-tracking legislation that contains massive increases in nonimmigrant
visas - as many as 400,000 the first year with 20% increases each year
afterwards. There is a bunch of other nasty surprises that I haven't even
looked at.

Please excuse the hasty nature of this newsletter. It is intended to give
you the most important factoids quickly. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of
all the details until more immigration experts can peer review its
contents. Speaking of immigration experts --- you might want to ask your
favorite immigration reform group why they haven't notified their activists
about this, and what it all means.

Expect updates soon.

<<<<< SUMMARY OF EVENTS >>>>>

* The Senate passed the "Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007" (S.2) by a 94-3
vote

* Senators Kerry and Kennedy introduced "Amendment 187", which contains
huge increases to H-1B and employer based green cards, and creates a new
nonimmigrant visa guest worker visa for unskilled workers called an H-5.
The H-5 visa is a pathway for amnesty. The amendment contains almost
identical wording to the Specter/McCain/Kennedy bill from last year's
comprehensive immigration bille (S. 2611) and the Skil Bill.

* Amendment 187 passed by a unanimous voice vote. I don't know if the votes
were recorded, but typically voice votes are off the record so the one's
who voted aren't held accountable.

* The House minimum wage bill hasn't passed yet, but that's where things
get very scary.

* Amendment 187 has been introduced to the House. This might mean we are
standing on the precipice of a major immigration disaster.

<<<<< CONCLUSION >>>>

It is highly likely that the House minimum wage bill will pass. I don't
know if amendment 187 has been approved by the House, but if it does get
approved there will be no way to stop it.

Thomas.gov and govtrack may update their information next week, which might
change these instructions.

<<<<< SENATE ROLL CALL VOTES FOR S2 >>>>>

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s110-2

<<<<< HOW TO FIND SENATE amendment 187 >>>>>

1) Go to this web page:
http://thomas.loc.gov/

2) Click "Search Congressional Record"

3) Enter this in the search engine without quotes, use exact match only

"TEXT OF AMENDMENTS -- (Senate - January 24, 2007)"

3) Click on the first link

4) Starting at Page: S1088 you will see the text of the amendment

<<<<< HOW TO FIND 187 IN THE HOUSE >>>>>

1) Go to http://thomas.loc.gov/

2) Search by bill number for "H.R.2" without quotes.

3) Click the link that says:
Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 (Introduced in House)[H.R.2.IH]

4) Click: Bill Summary & Status

5) Click: amendments

6) Scroll down to this and click link:

87. S.AMDT.187 to H.R.2 In the nature of a substitute.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. [MA] (introduced 1/24/2007) Cosponsors (4)

Latest Major Action: 1/24/2007 Senate amendment agreed to. Status:
Amendment SA 187 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

7) Click: S.AMDT.112

8) Click: TEXT OF AMENDMENT AS SUBMITTED: CR S1121

<<<<< Amendment TEXT -- IMPORTANT PARTS >>>>>

From an immigration point of view all of this is important. To find out
more about H-1B, green cards, and the H-5, look for all pages that contain
the following subjects:

ESSENTIAL WORKER VISA PROGRAM
H-5A and H-5B NONIMMIGRANTS
EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY

<<<<< ADDITIONAL MATERIAL >>>>>

The text can get very confusing, especially since so much of it is changes
to other bills. The most common bill as far as H-1B is concerned is: USC
1184 which can be viewed by clicking this link:

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/uscode08/usc_sec_08_00001184----000-.html

Most of this will read like gobblygook, so to erase any doubts in your mind
that it's about H-1B, I reproduce this excerpt:

SEC. 1305. MARKET-BASED NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS.

refers to:

(g) Temporary workers and trainees; limitation on numbers
(1) The total number of aliens who may be issued visas or otherwise
provided nonimmigrant status during any fiscal year (beginning with fiscal
year 1992)
(A) under section 1101 (a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of this title, may not exceed
(i) 65,000 in each fiscal year before fiscal year 1999;
(ii) 115,000 in fiscal year 1999;
(iii) 115,000 in fiscal year 2000;
(iv) 195,000 in fiscal year 2001;
(v) 195,000 in fiscal year 2002;
(vi) 195,000 in fiscal year 2003; and
(vii) 65,000 in each succeeding fiscal year; or

<<<<< MY REASONABLE REQUEST >>>>>

While most of you were enjoying the Super Bowl, I was working very hard to
put this information together. Please, do not ask me how I liked the game
because I didn't have time to watch it. This is a lousy way to spend a
Sunday afternoon but I consider this vitally important information.

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