Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929 Act.

There are currently 11 million noncitizens in the United States. It is not feasible or productive to remove all them. The vast majority of these noncitizens have established roots in the United States and are law-abiding citizens. They have made contributions to their communities and have served as essential workers during the pandemic. Leaving them without a path to permanent residence denies them the opportunity to become full participants in our society.

This legislation would ensure that long-term residents who have lived in the United States continuously for at least 7 years are able to apply for lawful permanent residence.

The Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929 Act would amend the existing registry statue in the Immigration and Nationality Act by establishing a rolling cutoff date of 7 years prior to the date that an immigrant files an application to register permanent or adjusted status.

This bill would ensure that long-term residents already in the United States who have been waiting for a visa number to become available for over 7 years can immediately file an application to register permanent or adjust status.

This legislation also provides a much needed pathway to a green card for Dreamers and forcibly displaced citizens, such as TPS holders, who have been in legal limbo for many years.

Finally, the bill would preempt the need for further congressional action by making the eligibility cutoff rolling, instead of tying it to a specific date, as it is now.

Advancing the registry date is not unprecedented. Congress has updated the registry in a bipartisan fashion four times since it was first codified in 1929. As a result of the 1958 changes, the registry mechanism became available to immigrants who had entered the country improperly or who had overstayed or who violated the terms of a temporary period of entry. With this change, Congress intended the registry to be a mechanism for noncitizens to adjust to lawful permanent resident status.

Currently, the eligibility cutoff date is January 1, 1972, more than 50 years ago. Fewer and fewer immigrants are able to meet this cutoff entry date requirement, rendering this provision all but useless. From 2015 to 2019 only 305 individuals were able to adjust their status based on the registry, down from 58,914 from 1985 to 1989.

It is imperative that we provide immigrants who have been living with uncertainty about their futures a path to permanent residence status.

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