HR 6090 eliminate the diversity immigrant program and to re-allocate those visas

[desi_man]

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the diversity immigrant program and to re-allocate those visas to certain employment-based immigrants who obtain an advanced degree in the United States.

Below is the link

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-6090

[go_guy123]

Originally Posted by desi_man

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the diversity immigrant program and to re-allocate those visas to certain employment-based immigrants who obtain an advanced degree in the United States.

Below is the link

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-6090

It wont pass. elemination of the diversity etc visa is a major political hurdle

[meridiani.planum]

Originally Posted by go_guy123

It wont pass. elemination of the diversity etc visa is a major political hurdle

why? I dont think there is anyone out there who thinks hte diversity visa (random lottery without any family or economic ties to US) is a good idea.

[desi_man]

Eliminating diversity visa would help in some manner, at least I believe it would give 50,000 visas that can be used for reducing such a huge backlog in green card applications. Even if congress wants to keep this program, they can make this program a flexible where alternate year they use 50,000 visas for EB green cards and the next year for diversity visa. This would benefit both ways.

[gc_on_demand]

Folks

Lots of bills were introduce in last couple months for EB community. I was under impression that more Co-Sponser can move forward bill to floor for debate. That was not case with STRIVE ACT 2007 which had 78 co-sponsers while One for International Doctors passed in house had only one Co-Sponser.

Does any one know how Bill move forward to floor ? Is there any person/group we can target to move these bills forward.

I have already called Local / CHC and Recently new lawmakers list given in tristate. Just want to educate my self how this thing works in congress.

Gurus / Senior / Core please update.

Thanks

[desi_man]

Below is website that shows how a bill becomes a law, it mentions all the stages that it follows, please read this below website.

http://www.votesmart.org/resource_govt101_02.php

[gc_on_demand]

Originally Posted by desi_man

Below is website that shows how a bill becomes a law, it mentions all the stages that it follows, please read this below website.

http://www.votesmart.org/resource_govt101_02.php

I think we are at step 5 on B. Committee Action can we call those Full committe members to take some action. It says if they dont take action then it will die in committe.

[ras]

A.
Legislation is Introduced - Any member can introduce a piece of legislation


House - Legislation is handed to the clerk of the House or placed in the hopper.

Senate - Members must gain recognition of the presiding officer to announce the introduction of a bill during the morning hour. If any senator objects, the introduction of the bill is postponed until the next day.

The bill is assigned a number. (e.g. HR 1 or S 1)
The bill is labeled with the sponsor's name.
The bill is sent to the Government Printing Office (GPO) and copies are made.
Senate bills can be jointly sponsored.
Members can cosponsor the piece of Legislation.
B.
Committee Action - The bill is referred to the appropriate committee by the Speaker of the House or the presiding officer in the Senate. Most often, the actual referral decision is made by the House or Senate parliamentarian. Bills may be referred to more than one committee and it may be split so that parts are sent to different committees. The Speaker of the House may set time limits on committees. Bills are placed on the calendar of the committee to which they have been assigned. Failure to act on a bill is equivalent to killing it. Bills in the House can only be released from committee without a proper committee vote by a discharge petition signed by a majority of the House membership (218 members).


Committee Steps:

Comments about the bill's merit are requested by government agencies.
Bill can be assigned to subcommittee by Chairman.
Hearings may be held.
Subcommittees report their findings to the full committee.
Finally there is a vote by the full committee - the bill is "ordered to be reported."
A committee will hold a "mark-up" session during which it will make revisions and additions. If substantial amendments are made, the committee can order the introduction of a "clean bill" which will include the proposed amendments. This new bill will have a new number and will be sent to the floor while the old bill is discarded. The chamber must approve, change or reject all committee amendments before conducting a final passage vote.
After the bill is reported, the committee staff prepares a written report explaining why they favor the bill and why they wish to see their amendments, if any, adopted. Committee members who oppose a bill sometimes write a dissenting opinion in the report. The report is sent back to the whole chamber and is placed on the calendar.
In the House, most bills go to the Rules committee before reaching the floor. The committee adopts rules that will govern the procedures under which the bill will be considered by the House. A "closed rule" sets strict time limits on debate and forbids the introduction of amendments. These rules can have a major impact on whether the bill passes. The rules committee can be bypassed in three ways: 1) members can move rules to be suspended (requires 2/3 vote)2) a discharge petition can be filed 3) the House can use a Calendar Wednesday procedure.
C.
Floor Action


Legislation is placed on the Calendar
House: Bills are placed on one of four House Calendars. They are usually placed on the calendars in the order of which they are reported yet they don't usually come to floor in this order - some bills never reach the floor at all. The Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader decide what will reach the floor and when. (Legislation can also be brought to the floor by a discharge petition.)

Senate: Legislation is placed on the Legislative Calendar. There is also an Executive calendar to deal with treaties and nominations. Scheduling of legislation is the job of the Majority Leader. Bills can be brought to the floor whenever a majority of the Senate chooses.

Debate
House: Debate is limited by the rules formulated in the Rules Committee. The Committee of the Whole debates and amends the bill but cannot technically pass it. Debate is guided by the Sponsoring Committee and time is divided equally between proponents and opponents. The Committee decides how much time to allot to each person. Amendments must be germane to the subject of a bill - no riders are allowed. The bill is reported back to the House (to itself) and is voted on. A quorum call is a vote to make sure that there are enough members present (218) to have a final vote. If there is not a quorum, the House will adjourn or will send the Sergeant at Arms out to round up missing members.

Senate: debate is unlimited unless cloture is invoked. Members can speak as long as they want and amendments need not be germane - riders are often offered. Entire bills can therefore be offered as amendments to other bills. Unless cloture is invoked, Senators can use a filibuster to defeat a measure by "talking it to death."

Vote - the bill is voted on. If passed, it is then sent to the other chamber unless that chamber already has a similar measure under consideration. If either chamber does not pass the bill then it dies. If the House and Senate pass the same bill then it is sent to the President. If the House and Senate pass different bills they are sent to Conference Committee. Most major legislation goes to a Conference Committee.
D.
Conference Committee


Members from each house form a conference committee and meet to work out the differences. The committee is usually made up of senior members who are appointed by the presiding officers of the committee that originally dealt with the bill. The representatives from each house work to maintain their version of the bill.
If the Conference Committee reaches a compromise, it prepares a written conference report, which is submitted to each chamber.
The conference report must be approved by both the House and the Senate.
E.
The President - the bill is sent to the President for review.


A bill becomes law if signed by the President or if not signed within 10 days and Congress is in session.
If Congress adjourns before the 10 days and the President has not signed the bill then it does not become law ("Pocket Veto.")
If the President vetoes the bill it is sent back to Congress with a note listing his/her reasons. The chamber that originated the legislation can attempt to override the veto by a vote of two-thirds of those present. If the veto of the bill is overridden in both chambers then it becomes law.
F.
The Bill Becomes A Law - once a bill is signed by the President or his veto is overridden by both houses it becomes a law and is assigned an official number.


GLOSSARY OF TERMS
House Legislative Calendars
The Union Calendar - A list of all bills that address money and may be considered by the House of Representatives. Generally, bills contained in the Union Calendar can be categorized as appropriations bills or bills raising revenue.

The House Calendar - A list of all the public bills that do not address money and maybe considered by the House of Representatives.

The Corrections Calendar - A list of bills selected by the Speaker of the House in consultation with the Minority leader that will be considered in the House and debated for one hour. Generally, bills are selected because they focus on changing laws, rules and regulations that are judged to be outdated or unnecessary. A 3/5 majority of those present and voting is required to pass bills on the Corrections Calendar.

The Private Calendar - A list of all the private bills that are to be considered by the House. It is called on the first and third Tuesday of every month.

Types of Legislation
Bills - A legislative proposal that if passed by both the House and the Senate and approved by the President becomes law. Each bill is assigned a bill number. HR denotes bills that originate in the House and S denotes bills that originate in the Senate.

Private Bill - A bill that is introduced on behalf of a specific individual that if it is enacted into law only affects the specific person or organization the bill concerns. Often, private bills address immigration or naturalization issues.

Public Bill - A bill that affects the general public if enacted into law.

Simple Resolution - A type of legislation designated by H Res or S Res that is used primarily to express the sense of the chamber where it is introduced or passed. It only has the force of the chamber passing the resolution. A simple resolution is not signed by the President and cannot become Public Law.

Concurrent Resolutions - A type of legislation designated by H Con Res or S Con Res that is often used to express the sense of both chambers, to set annual budget or to fix adjournment dates. Concurrent resolutions are not signed by the President and therefore do not hold the weight of law.

Joint Resolutions - A type of legislation designated by H J Res or S J Res that is treated the same as a bill unless it proposes an amendment to the Constitution. In this case, 2/3 majority of those present and voting in both the House and the Senate and ? ratification of the states are required for the Constitutional amendment to be adopted.