We’ve been a little lax updating this week. HLG’s Blog editor has been in India meeting with a variety of clients. He has also taken two important meetings with Consular Officials – at Chennai and Delhi. The mood among the Consular Officials is one of anticipation of a forthcoming massive CIR bill. We suspect that the same mood is the case in Manila. (The Philippines and India are, of course, two of the largest suppliers of healthcare workers to the US).
Once he gets to the US, all HLG attorneys will be meeting and reaching out to our contacts to provide an update on the legislative efforts. We will, of course, provide a timely update.
For now a few points are worth mentioning, and should serve as remarks in response to a number of Commentors:
· While CIR is the leading bill it is by no means a sure thing. Many other bills and amendments may be proposed between now and then.
· It is important to realize that this Congress is less than 10 days old! While HLG shares some Commentors desire to see a Schedule A bill immediately passed (and indeed H-1 relief and EB2/3 worker relief, among other things), some Commentors are a little too dismissive in the Congress’ failure to act. These bills and laws will shape a generation and it is only fair to give this new Congress some time to dicker and debate and craft a bill that serves the needs of many immigration stakeholders.
· The “band aid” bill – 10-25K worth of Schedule A visas is very much alive. But again, to expect a passed bill at this quick stage is not realistic.
· One thing to keep in mind is that US Immigration Reform is not an “either/or” game. Just because, for instance, Schedule A relief may happen soon, does not mean that H-1 relief is not going to happen, or vice-versa.
Finally we want to thank everyone for their comments. While reasonable minds can differ, it is nice to see that the discourse is always cordial and informative. We invite everyone to express their views in this forum via the Comments links.