Efforts to Increase H1B Cap
Prior to May 1998

There has been a strong effort by AILA to lobby for the increase in the number of H1B Petitions because of the acute shortage of skilled computer based professionals in the U.S. Besides increasing the cap on skilled foreign professionals to about 90,000 (with an additional 25,000 from the prior years unused H2Bs functioning as an as-needed safety valve), this bill also would:

transfer filing of LCAs to the INS; reform prevailing wage considerations by establishing categories of experience to achieve greater accuracy and by allowing use of generally accepted industry surveys; toughen enforcement penalties (by increasing fines fivefold for willful violators, and creating probationary periods of up to 5 years for willful violators); authorize 20,000 new college scholarships annually for low-income students in math, engineering, and computer science; authorize increased training and job support for the unemployed; and eliminate discrimination in employment visas (for nationals from certain Asian Pacific nations) by eliminating the per-country limit on immigrant employment-based visas.

Senator Edward Kennedy, Ranking Minority on the Subcommittee, has indicated his intention to introduce a competing measure. Staff has indicated that his measure, while temporarily increasing (for 3 or 4 years) H1Bs to 90,000 would also include layoff, prior recruitment and retention, and DOL audit at will, provisions similar to those he has promoted in the past.

Also signaling his interest in the issue to achieve other objectives, Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX), Chair of the House Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, has indicated that he too will shortly introduce a measure that would likely: increase the number of H1B visas to 90,000 in FY98, 110,000 in FY99, and 130,000 in FY2000 and in subsequent years; allow spouses of E and L visa holders to work in the U.S. if their native countries reciprocate for U.S. citizens; and reorder the fourth family preference (siblings and adult unmarried children of U.S. citizens) to give priority to those who hold a high school degree. This last provision has been labeled a poison pill that would generate so much opposition that it would kill the entire bill.

ABLI (American Business for Legal Immigration), the coalition working to increase H1Bs of which AILA is a member, has indicated its support for an effort in the House similar or identical to the Abraham bill, one that focuses on H1B visas, without the added weight of other immigration-related provisions.

AILA, along with other ABLI members, secured a meeting with the White House to stress the need for the Administration to support an increase in the H1B cap. White House staff stressed the need for business to commit to enhanced employment and training efforts, a longer-term effort that they inferred the H1B shortage would obscure. ABLI members stressed that business already has made and is even enhancing its employment and training commitment, and that the need for H1B workers remains critical. Discussions between ABLI and the White House will continue.

In a conference call with INS Headquarters Adjudications staff, it was announced that the most recent count of H1B approved petitions was 35,747 as of February 20, 1998. It is unclear if that number takes into account all approved petitions for FY 1998, or if the number is actually slightly higher (to account for the 3800 petitions actually approved in FY 1997, during the month of September, that need to be counted against this year's cap). INS is verifying these numbers and will provide AILA with an H1B update in the near future.

INS's EAD Card Production Update

INS is continuing to work on tracing the computer software problem which has resulted in occasional breakdowns in the EAD card production process. If it appears that the data transmission has been lost between the INS office which received the application (either a Service Center or District Office) and the EAD card manufacturing center (currently the NSC), the concerned person should contact the receiving office where the I-765 originally was filed. The receiving office then should check its file and contact the NSC in order to determine the best course of action. In many cases, the receiving office will be asked to re-send the data transmission to Lincoln Service Center. INS advises that attorneys should not contact the NSC regarding these cases (unless the application was originally filed in Lincoln) and an applicant should not refile a second I-765.