President Obama Signs into Law the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act 2009.
Passage of the Act into U.S. law in concert with the removal of the HIV travel and Immigration ban - effective in January 2010.
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U.S. JAILS TO EXPAND IMMIGRATION CHECKS
Washington D.C. - President Obama is seeking funds to expand programs that will enable local jails to check the immigration status of inmates. Individuals incarcerated in federal and state programs already undergo immigration checks, but plans are underway to ensure that the immigration status is checked of inmates in all local jails throughout the United States. This program is expected to result in a marked increase of deportations of illegal immigrants who have committed crimes and were previously ordered to leave the country. The program is currently operating in Miami, Boston, Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, and Los Angeles. President Obama is asking for approximately $200 million to fund the expansion of the program, enabling it to receive $1.1 billion in funding by 2013. |
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U.S. TO BEGIN IMMIGRATION REFORM MEETINGS
Washington, D.C. - Plans are underway to begin discussions in regards to comprehensive immigration reform legislation. President Obama has set a June 8 meeting at the White House for Senate and House leaders to begin discussing immigration reform. According to a White House spokesman, the Obama administration is hoping to propose immigration reform legislation by the end of this year. Fueling the debate is the decrease in arrests at the Mexican -U.S. border. Arrests in this area are down by 27% from prior years. This figure is in part due to the decline in illegal immigration to the United States, which is attributed to the downturn in the U.S. economy. The increase in immigration enforcement is also believed to be contributing to the decrease in illegal immigration to the United States. The United States has nearly doubled its employment of border patrol agents since 2001. In addition, to date, over 600 miles of border fencing has been completed of the proposed 2000 mile fence. |
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E-VERIFY DEMONSTRATES IMPROVEMENTS, BUT STILL NOT PERFECT
Dallas, TX - E-Verify, an electronic eligibility verification system that is designed to assist employers in verifying the immigration status of potential employees, has recently underwent several improvements. The system allows employers to verify the identity and immigration status of new employees by checking with government databases, so that individuals unauthorized to work in the United States, such as illegal immigrants, are not hired. E-verify has remained a focal point of comprehensive immigration reform, and has received much funding . The use of E-verify has tripled from 2006 to 2008, and is used to screen 1 out of every 10 newly hired employees in the United States. As of last month, over 117,000 employers have registered to use the system. This can be compared to only 9,000 employers who registered in 2006. Current US law mandates that all US employers check potential new employee's documentation and fill out an I-9 form, to ensure work eligibility in the U.S. However, only certain employers are required to use E-Verify such as employers in certain US states, certain federal employers, and employers who have previously been convicted of hiring illegal immigrants. Recent improvements have allowed for the majority of queries (approximately 96 %) to receive a response within 24 hours, and non-confirmations have decreased. However, many believe that E-Verify still needs to see even more improvements, as a number of individuals who have reportedly been unauthorized to work in the United States have received employee verification and have been hired. |
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Senate Majority Leader promises Immigration Overhaul
Las Vegas, NV: Legislators will start working on reforming America’s immigration system as soon as they are back from the Congressional recess, the U.S. Senate majority leader said at an immigration rally in early April. Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada who is currently campaigning to be re-elected as a U.S. Senator, spoke to more than 6,000 people, most of them immigrants, at the immigration rally in down-town Las Vegas. “We need to do this this year,” he said. “We cannot wait.” Senator Reid’s promise to start work on immigration reform came as a surprise to many as the Senate is already divided after the health care reform was passed recently. The immigration rally in Las Vegas was the largest of several demonstrations around the country, with immigrants demanding immigration reform this year. Many immigrants are angry with president Obama for having postponed immigration reform. One Las Vegas immigrant said, “I’m very unhappy with President Obama because he said this would be the first thing he did when he was elected.” Two other senators, Lindsey Graham, a Republican from California, And Charles E. Schumer, a Democrat from New York, have been working on an immigration bill. But Graham has said that he doesn’t think there is enough support from Republicans. |
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Immigration Policies Complicate Employment
Aurora, CO: Business owners who rely on seasonal workers to get through the busy season say immigration rules are complicated and wastes resources. They are not confident that policies will change for the better any time soon either. Mike Leman, owner of Singing Hills Landscape, Inc in Aurora, has relied on seasonal workers from Mexico since the mid 90s. The reason is that it is hard to get American workers or workers with permanent residency that are willing to take seasonal jobs. He says the H-2B program that allows the workers to come to the U.S. to work should be simplified. For example, people who have been working the busy season for Singing Hill every year for decades still have to spend two days each year to do background checks and interviews. And each year the workers have to take the driver’s test again, because the license expires along with the visa. |
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Democrats Proposes Immigration Reform
Washington, D.C.: Democrat leaders in the Senate has revealed the outlines of a new immigration law that will seek to strengthen the U.S. border security first, and later offer a way for illegal immigrants to become residents. The Democrats says they will seek Republican support for the proposed legislature with the help of President Obama. Obama, on the other hand has said that Congress might not have “appetite” for an immigration reform at this stage. But he still thinks the proposal is “a very important step” and says he will work to get the support of both Democrats and Republicans. The Democrats are led by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid from Nevada, who is up for reelection in a state where 15 percent of the voters are Hispanic. He claims Democrats and republicans agree that the “immigration system is broken and needs to fixed.” But some Republicans have said that the proposal is just a try to gain voter support in the upcoming elections, and even that the proposal “poisons the well” for those who work for more secure border. |
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