White House Press Release on Immigration

June 5, 2006

White House Press Release on Immigration Issued June 1

Today, PresidentBush Discussed His Plan For Comprehensive Immigration Reform. One of the most important tests ofimmigration reform will be the enforcement of our immigration laws in theinterior of our country. The Administration is taking action to improveworksite enforcement – and expects businesses to help.

Congress Is Now Moving Forward With Legislation To Reform Our Immigration System. The House started this debate by passing a bill that focuses on border security and interior enforcement. Now the Senate has passed a comprehensive bill that also includes a temporary worker program and a plan to resolve the status of illegal immigrants who are already in our country. Working out the differences between the House and Senate bills will require effort and compromise on both sides. Yet the difficulty of this task is no excuse for avoiding it.

ComprehensiveImmigration Reform Must Hold Employers To Account For The Workers They Hire

Funding ForImmigration Enforcement Inside Our Country Has Increased By 42 Percent SinceThe President Took Office, And Last Year, The President Signed A Bill DoublingFederal Resources For Worksite Enforcement. We have also launched lawenforcement task forces in 11 major cities to dismantle criminal rings thatproduce fake documents. All these efforts are helping us enforce ourimmigration laws at the worksite.

The FederalGovernment Has A Responsibility To Ensure That Businesses Have A Clear AndReliable Way To Check Work Documents. Today there is an entire underground industry dedicatedto producing fake IDs and fraudulent Social Security numbers. Under currentlaw, the immigration enforcement agents at the Department of Homeland Securityare not informed when the Social Security Administration discovers a mismatchbetween a worker and the Social Security Number he or she provides. We need toaddress these problems and ensure that our agents can enforce the law.

Basic Pilot Is Helping Businesses Comply With The Law. Basic Pilot is a voluntary, online verification system that allows employers to confirm the eligibility of new hires by checking the information they provide against Federal databases.
- When President Bush Took Office, Basic Pilot Was Available In Only Six States, And Today It Is Available Nationwide. The President’s FY 2007 budget requests $111 million to expand Basic Pilot.
- Congress Needs To Make This Program Mandatory And Provide Homeland Security With The Funding And Authority To Make It Work. Basic Pilot is still optional, and most employers do not participate. Both the House and Senate immigration bills would require employers to use Basic Pilot.
To Help Combat Document Fraud, President Bush Has Proposed The Creation Of A New Identification Card For Every Legal Foreign Worker. This card should use biometric technology, such as digital fingerprints, to help make it tamper-proof. With a tamper-proof card, American employers would know that a foreign job applicant is who he says he is – and is in our country legally. A tamper-proof card would be a vital tool to enforce the law, and it must be part of any comprehensive immigration reform.
Improving Enforcement Of Our Immigration Laws Also Requires Stiffening The Penalties For Violating Those Laws. President Bush proposes to increase penalties for employers who violate the law – and to make fines even larger for employers who repeatedly violate the law.

American BusinessesHave A Clear Responsibility To Obey The Law. Businesses that knowingly employillegal workers are undermining our laws, violating the public trust, andcontributing to the problem of illegal immigration – and the Administrationwill not tolerate it.

By Cracking Down On Document Fraud, The Administration Will Help Honest Employers Follow The Law And Will Punish Those Who Violate It. With an effective verification system and a tamper-proof card, employers would have the tools they need to check the work status of job applicants, and there would be no excuse for hiring an illegal worker. And with an effective verification system and a tamper-proof card, illegal workers would have less incentive to cross the border in the first place.

ComprehensiveImmigration Reform Must Help Us Secure Our Borders

President Bush HasCalled On Congress To Provide Funding For Dramatic Improvements In Manpower AndTechnology At The Border. Since the President took office, we have increased fundingfor border security by 66 percent, and expanded the Border Patrol from about9,000 to 12,000 agents. By the end of 2008, we will increase the number ofBorder Patrol officers by an additional 6,000 – doubling the size of the BorderPatrol since the President took office. At the same time, we will constructhigh-tech fences in urban corridors and build new patrol roads and barriers inrural areas. We will create a virtual fence that employs motion sensors,infrared cameras, and unmanned aerial vehicles to detect and prevent illegalcrossings.

This Month,National Guard Units Will Deploy To The Border To Set Up The Headquarters ThatWill Help Coordinate Guard Operations In Support Of The Border Patrol. These forces are the first of up to6,000 Guard members who will assist the Border Patrol by operating surveillancesystems, analyzing intelligence, installing fences and vehicle barriers,building patrol roads, and providing training. Guard units will not be involvedin direct law enforcement activities, and as new Border Patrol agents and newtechnologies come online, the number of Guard forces will be reduced.

The Federal Government Is Now Working To Conclude Formal Agreements With California, Arizona, New Mexico, And Texas That Will Define The Role And Responsibilities Of National Guard Units Deploying To The Southern Border. President Bush will continue to work closely with the Governors of these States to secure our border. He has also spoken with the chief of the National Guard Bureau, Lieutenant General Steven Blum, about the work the Guard will be doing to improve border security.

We Will IncreaseFederal Funding For State And Local Authorities Assisting The Border Patrol OnTargeted Enforcement Missions. We will give State and local authorities the specializedtraining they need to help Federal officers apprehend and detain illegalimmigrants. This will help during the period of transition as new Border Patrolagents and new technologies come online.

We Will End ThePractice Of “Catch And Release” Along The Southern Border.

ComprehensiveImmigration Reform Must Create A Temporary Worker Program That Helps Us SecureThe Border

A Temporary WorkerProgram Would Create A Legal Path For Foreign Workers To Enter Our Country InAn Orderly Way, For A Limited Period Of Time. Above all, a temporary workerprogram would add to our security by making certain we know who is in ourcountry and why they are here.

A Temporary WorkerProgram Would Meet The Legitimate Needs Of American Employers, And It WouldGive Honest Immigrants A Way To Provide For Their Families While Respecting TheLaw.

ComprehensiveImmigration Reform Must Address The Reality That Millions Of Illegal ImmigrantsAre Here Already

The PresidentOpposes Amnesty.Amnesty would be unfair to those who are here lawfully, and it would invitefurther waves of illegal immigration. There is a rational middle ground betweengranting an automatic path to citizenship for every illegal immigrant and aprogram that requires every illegal immigrant to leave.

The PresidentBelieves Illegal Immigrants Who Have Roots In Our Country And Want To StayShould Have To Pay A Meaningful Penalty For Breaking The Law, Pay Their Taxes,Learn English, And Work In A Job For A Number Of Years. People who meet these conditionsshould eventually be permitted to apply for citizenship like other foreignworkers, but approval would not be automatic – and they will have to wait inline behind those who played by the rules and followed the law.

ComprehensiveImmigration Reform Must Honor The Great American Tradition Of The Melting Pot

The Success Of OurCountry Depends Upon Helping Newcomers Assimilate Into Our Society And EmbraceOur Common Identity As Americans. When immigrants assimilate and advance in our society, theyrealize their dreams, they renew our spirit, and they add to the unity ofAmerica.

English Is The Key To Unlocking The Opportunity OfAmerica. English allows newcomers to go from pickingcrops to opening a grocery, from cleaning offices to running offices, from alife of low-paying jobs to a diploma, a career, and a home of their own.