The record · Topic 03 of 15
How much do people want it
What got approved
People were asked about a two-part proposal: require employers to check that their workers are here legally, and also increase the number of work visas given out each year when there is demand for workers. 83% were in favor — Republicans 82%, Democrats 84%. It is one of the closest splits between the two parties on the whole list.
Four bills in this Congress would do the checking half. We have not found one that pairs it with more work visas. Bills requiring these checks have been introduced in every Congress since 1997 and none has ever become law.
What could have been
While this ranks 3rd of 15 for agreement, what Congress has written bills for is the enforcement half on its own.
People did not say they wanted checks on workers. They said they wanted checks on workers together with more legal ways in. A bill doing one without the other is a different proposition from the one that got 83%.
One bill elsewhere on this list does pair them — it trades legal status for long-settled immigrants against mandatory checks. It has not been voted on either. See the long-term visa topic.
Additional notes
Nothing to report. Where a government department changes a rule affecting this topic, it appears here — never counted as the government getting something done. Why.
Where these came from
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