The LA Times has a very interesting article talking about potential plans for comprehensive immigration reform that involve a major - and risky - change in strategy. According to the report, the CIR bill would look very similar to prior years, but in order to appease labor unions, a new independent commission would be created to assess employment-based visa numbers. According to the LA Times
The new proposal, as laid out by several participants in the
behind-the-scenes negotiations, would also create an independent
commission that would assess labor and industry data to decide how many
foreign workers should be allowed into the country. The system,
designed by Ray Marshall, a Labor secretary under President Carter,
would replace a maze of special temporary worker visas that are granted
each year to high-tech specialists, agriculture workers and other
foreigners brought into the U.S. by foreign and domestic firms.
The article mentions that this proposal could cause key Republicans like John McCain to drop their support for CIR.
And I can understand why pro-business advocates in Congress would be concerned. I'm also worried about labor unions having the final say in determining visa numbers since - sorry to say it - they have a tendency to act like the OPEC cartel when it comes to allowing employers access to needed workers. In the nursing context, a few labor organizations have done everything possible to preserve a severe nursing shortage - a shortage that endangers patients but has the happy effect of dramatically driving up wages. I'm happy when labor unions work to protect working conditions for exploited immigrant workers. But they should not be permitted to dictate populist protectionist policies that damage our economy.
On the other hand, Congress has done a dreadful job determining appropriate visa numbers. In the past, they cut numbers as we were coming out of a recession and raised them when a boom was ending. And we're now at a number for H-1Bs and skilled/professional worker green cards that was set in 1990 even though our economy is much larger. The result has been employers voting with their feet and outsourcing jobs to foreign countries, taking employment opportunities for Americans away as well. The status quo clearly isn't working either.
We also have international treaty obligations that bar us from imposing protectionist measures that would result in fewer visa numbers so I suspect that there would be constraints on anything too draconian being imposed by a commission. We already have seen this reality serve as a useful firewall during recent attempts to bar TARP-recipient banks from having access to H-1B workers. Congress backed down on a plan to bar such employers from using the visas since it would have likely violated our obligations under the General Agreement on Trade in Services.
I suspect the devil is in the details including
- how will commission members be appointed
- how long will terms be and what power will a President have to replace someone
- are specific "slots" reserved for labor interests, business interests, etc.
- will the commission merely make recommendations or will they have actual authority to set numbers and visa rules
I'm interested in hearing more about this proposal because I could actually see some benefits in a TRULY independent commission that actually could actually make needed changes based on what's in the best interest of the country rather than just meeting short term political demands. So what will be important is learning how Congress will ensure that the commission will not simply be a tool for one interest or another.
