A House Divided: Divergent Views in Congress Over Immigration Reform

Senate passage of comprehensive immigration reform legislation in June 2013 stands as a major accomplishment on the road to restructuring the U.S. immigration system. At this mid-point in the legislative debate, House committees have passed five separate bills, but are still grappling with key elements of the Senate plan, especially legalization for the nation’s estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants. The big question surrounding the debate remains whether compromises that reconcile the approaches by both chambers can be found to produce legislation that improves the U.S. immigration system. This online discussion with Migration Policy Institute policy experts Doris Meissner and Muzaffar Chishti was held shortly after MPI released an analysis comparing the major provisions of the Senate bill against those of the individual House bills considered to date in House committees. The discussion outlines the differing policies crafted by the House and Senate, their likely implications for the U.S. immigration system, and offers a look ahead to where the debate might be headed when Congress returns from its summer recess.

A Year In: A Review of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA)

August 15, 2013 marked the one-year anniversary of the implementation of the Obama administration’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which offers a two-year reprieve from deportation as well as work authorization for eligible unauthorized immigrants under the age of 31 who entered the United States before the age of 16 and meet a number of education and other requirements. During this online chat, Migration Policy Institute researchers discuss their findings in a new MPI brief that provides the most up-to-date estimates of the current and prospective DACA population by educational attainment, English proficiency, state of residence, country of origin, age, gender, labor force participation, poverty, and parental status. Researchers Michael Fix, Jeanne Batalova, and Sarah Hooker also answer questions from chat participants.

Leveraging Migration and Human Capital in the U.S., Mexico, and Central America

This joint Migration Policy Institute and Woodrow Wilson Center event at the National Press Club in D.C marks the release of the Regional Migration Study Group’s final report, Thinking Regionally to Compete Globally: Leveraging Migration and Human Capital in the U.S., Mexico, and Central America. Discussants outline the report’s findings and offer recommendations to policymakers in the United States, Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. MPI President Demetrios Papademetriou begins with the vision behind the Study Group’s work, followed by a video from Study Group Co-Chair Ernesto Zedillo, the former President of Mexico. Speakers include Study Group Co-Chair Carlos Gutierrez, former US Secretary of Commerce; Doris Meissner, Director of MPI's US Immigration Policy Program; Study Group Co-Chair Eduardo Stein, former Vice President and Foreign Minister of Guatemala; Luis Rubio, Chairman of the Center of Research for Development (CIDAC); James R. Jones, Former US Ambassador to Mexico and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma; and Andrew Selee, Vice President for Programs, Wilson Center.
For more information and to download the report, visit www.MigrationPolicy.org/RegionalStudyGroup.

Sharing Lessons, Sharing Responsibility: Combating Human Trafficking

This Migration Policy Institute event discussed the Dutch model for fighting human trafficking and the strategic and operational dilemmas that public prosecutors in the Netherlands face. The event discussion also covered international efforts to engage private-sector organizations and the public in reducing organized crime; ways to strengthen law enforcement’s operational capacity and ability to apply collaborative and interagency approaches; and strategies for framing the public and political discourse on the issue. Demetrios G. Papademetriou, MPI President, moderates a discussion on the international efforts to engage private-sector organizations, law enforcement, governments, and the public in reducing organized crime to combat human trafficking. Panelists include Corinne Dettmeijer-Vermeulen, National Rapporteur for Human Trafficking in The Netherlands; Jane Nady Sigmon, Senior Advisor to the Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, US Department of State; Herman Bolhaar, Chair of the Dutch Public Prosecution Service; Jack Blakey, Chief of the Special Prosecutions Bureau, Cook County, Illinois State Attorney’s Office; and Ruud Bik, Deputy Chief, National Police of the Netherlands.

Changing Dynamics: Immigration, Mexico, and the United States

The Migration Policy Institute hosts a discussion with H.E. Eduardo Medina Mora, Mexico’s Ambassador to the United States, on the changing dynamics of Mexico’s economy, demographics, and large-scale emigration, and their implications for both Mexico and the United States. MPI President Demetrios Papademetriou moderates the discussion, joined by Senior Fellow Doris Meissner, who directs MPI’s U.S. immigration policy program.

Discussion on Ways to Make the U.S. Immigration System Better Meet U.S. Labor Market Needs

This Migration Policy Institute event marks the release of the book Immigrants in a Changing Labor Market with a discussion on how to make the U.S. immigration system more effective in meeting labor market needs. The discussion features Jason Furman, Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and Principal Deputy Director of the National Economic Council; Georgetown Professor Harry Holzer, who was chief economist at the U.S. Labor Department; and the book’s editors, MPI Senior Vice President Michael Fix, President Demetrios Papademetriou, and Senior Policy Analyst Madeleine Sumption. The panelists discuss immigration at high-, middle-, and low-skill levels, current and proposed policy, how to measure labor shortages, and the flexibility that should be built into the U.S. immigration system.
For more on MPI’s Labor Markets Initiative, visit, www.migrationpolicy.org/lmi
Purchase a copy of the book at http://www.migrationpolicy.org/bookstore/labormarkets.php

Avoiding Pitfalls on the Road to Immigration Reform: Building an Effective US Immigration System

In this Migration Policy Institute event, immigration experts with decades of policy experience in and out of government examine issues at the heart of immigration reform, including: How would the registration process of a legalization program for unauthorized immigrants best be designed and implemented? How should future flows for needed workers be determined? And what will be the effects of barring access to services for the newly legalized? MPI President Demetrios G. Papademetriou discusses lessons from IRCA, economic issues, and mechanisms to allow for future immigration flows; Muzaffar Chishti, Director, MPI Office at NYU School of Law, discusses labor concerns and provides a conclusion on political realities; Michael Fix, Senior Vice President and Director of Studies and Co-Director, National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy, addresses impacts on immigrant integration, including impacts on healthcare costs; and Doris Meissner, Director of MPI’s US Immigration Policy Program, provides an overview on issues associated with a legalization program.
Visit www.migrationpolicy.org/CIR for research on US immigration policy.

Children of Immigrants: Children of the Unauthorized and Immigration Policy (S3)

Doris Meissner, Migration Policy Institute Senior Fellow, moderates a discussion on the intersections of immigration policy as it is in the law, current practices, and what may change in the context of immigration reform. Presenting research papers for a day-long MPI conference on the children of immigrants are David B. Thronson, Professor of Law, Michigan State University College of Law, and Hiro Yoshikawa, Walter H. Gale Professor of Education and Academic Dean, Harvard Graduate School of Education. Kelly Ryan, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Immigration, Office of Policy, US Department of Homeland Security, remarks on how current immigration law affects immigrant children. Read the agenda and topics here.

Policies Affecting Young Children of Immigrants: Keynote Address by Doris Meissner

Doris Meissner, Migration Policy Institute Senior Fellow, discusses the current political environment regarding immigration policy in the United States at a day-long MPI conference on the children of immigrants in the United States, “Critical Immigration, Health, and Education Policies Affecting Young Children of Immigrants.” Read the agenda and topics here.

Immigration Enforcement in the United States: The Rise of a Formidable Machinery

This Migration Policy Institute event discusses the findings of MPI’s major report, Immigration Enforcement in the United States: The Rise of a Formidable Machinery, which assesses the evolution of the current-day immigration enforcement system in the United States. Moderating the discussion is MPI President Demetrios Papademetriou. The report authors discuss the following topics: MPI Senior Fellow Doris Meissner provides an overview of the report and its findings on border enforcement and data systems; Muzaffar Chishti, Director, MPI Office at NYU School of Law, discusses workforce enforcement and the interplay of immigration enforcement and the criminal justice system; and MPI Nonresident Senior Fellow Donald Kerwin discusses the report’s review of detention and removals.
Download the Full Report | Download the Report in Brief | Watch the full event

Refugee Protection, Territorial Access, and the Affirmative Asylum System

At the 9th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference sponsored by the Migration Policy Institute, Georgetown University Law Center, Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC), and the Center for Migration Studies, Don Kerwin from the Center for Migration Studies moderates a session on US refugee policy and the system in place for processing and protection.  US Coast Guard Senior Maritime Law Enforcement Advisor Louis Orsini discusses the logistics of interdiction at sea, including the process for identifying those who may fear persecution or torture; US Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Refugee Affairs Division Chief Barbara Strack presents on USCIS's coordination with the Coast Guard, the protection screening for those interdicted at sea, and broader refugee screening and resettlement process; and Andrew Schoenholtz, Deputy Director at Georgetown's Institute for the Study of International Migration and Georgetown Law Professor, discusses his recent findings on asylum data.
For more information on the conference, click here.

Serving Millions: Hot Topics in Legal Service Response

At the 9th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference sponsored by the Migration Policy Institute, Georgetown University Law Center, Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC), and the Center for Migration Studies, CLINIC’s Training and Legal Support Attorney Jennie Guilfoyle moderates a session on charitable legal service programs with Immigrant Legal Resource Center Executive Director Eric Cohen; William Hornsby, Staff Counsel in the American Bar Association’s Division for Legal Services; and Mark O’Brien, Pro Bono Net’s Executive Director.  The session provides an overview on legal service provision, and covers new trends, best practices, challenges, and possible pitfalls in using technology for legal service provision. Panelists also discuss organizing large-scale legal service responses (like in the cases of deferred action, past legalizations, or naturalization); and other issues in organizational capacity, associated expenses, and coordination when providing charitable legal services.
For more information on the conference, click here.

A Discussion with Alejandro Mayorkas, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

At the 9th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference on October 1, 2012 sponsored by the Migration Policy Institute, Georgetown University Law Center, Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. and the Center for Migration Studies, US Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Alejandro Mayorkas discusses the implementation of the Obama administration's Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals initiative; the pre-adjudication of waivers; the agency's promulgation of policies and public engagement efforts; possible fiscal cuts to the agency's budget; and other steps the agency is taking to respond to changing demographics, customer service needs, and national security concerns. The session was moderated by Charles Wheeler, Director of CLINIC's National Legal Center for Immigrants.
For more information on the conference, click here.

Immigration and the 2012 Elections and Campaigns

At the 9th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference sponsored by the Migration Policy Institute, Georgetown University Law Center, Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc., and the Center for Migration Studies, Migration Policy Institute Senior Fellow Doris Meissner moderates a plenary panel focused on immigration and the 2012 campaigns. The panelists, Alfonso Aguilar, Executive Director of the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles; Maria Cardona, Principal of the Dewey Square Group; and Brian Bennett, a reporter with the Los Angeles Times/Tribune-Washington Bureau, offer their perspectives on the role immigration is playing in the US presidential election and the future of US immigration policy in the near term.
For more information on the conference, click here.

Immigration Enforcement: the Role of States, the Federal Government, and Litigation Developments

At the 9th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference on October 1, 2012 sponsored by the Migration Policy Institute, Georgetown University Law Center, Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc., and the Center for Migration Studies, Andrew Schoenholtz of Georgetown University Law Center moderates a discussion covering federal and state action on immigration enforcement, prosecutorial discretion, Arizona and Utah immigration legislation, and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals initiative. Panelists include Lucas Guttentag of Yale Law School, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff, and US Department of Homeland Security Deputy General Counsel Seth Grossman.
For more information on the conference, click here.

Assistant Atty General Tom Perez Remarks at 2012 Immigration Law and Policy Conference

At the 9th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference on October 1, 2012 sponsored by the Migration Policy Institute, Georgetown University Law Center, Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. and the Center for Migration Studies, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Thomas E. Perez discusses the work his division and the Justice Department are pursuing in the areas of equal educational opportunity, public safety and policing, the prevention of bullying and harassment, the elimination of racial profiling, anti-discrimination efforts in the workplace, equal housing rights, access to justice in state courts, voting rights, and improving access to services for persons with Limited English Proficiency. He also touches the history of immigration in the United States in his remarks.
For more information about the conference, click here.

Regulating Private Recruitment in the Asia-Middle East Labour Migration Corridor

This joint Migration Policy Institute and International Organization for Migration event marks the Issue brief launch of Regulating Private Recruitment in the Asia-Middle East Labour Migration Corridor, with author Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias, Regional Research Officer, IOM and Policy Analyst, MPI; Supang Chantavanich, Professor, Chulalongkorn University and Director, Asian Research Center for Migration; Jaewon Kim, Manager, Business for Social Responsibility; and Rabab Fatima, Regional Coordinator and Advisor for South Asia, IOM Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Panelists discussed the Asian migrant worker experience in the Middle East and offered insights on migration issues affecting the Asia-Pacific region today.  

Download the Issue Brief | Learn more on MPI’s Migration and Development Program

The New Deferred Action Program: Strategies for Success

In this Migration Policy Institute event, US Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Alejandro Mayorkas discusses the application process and policies that his agency has announced to implement the deferred action program that will grant a two-year reprieve from deportation to as many as 1.76 million unauthorized immigrants who came to the United States as children (and are known as DREAMers). After initial comments, Director Mayorkas engages in a conversation moderated by MPI Senior Fellow Doris Meissner with panelists David A. Martin, Professor of International Law at the University of Virginia and former Principal Deputy General Counsel of the Department of Homeland Security; Muzaffar Chishti, Director, MPI Office at NYU School of Law; and Marielena Hincapié, Executive Director, National Immigration Law Center.
Download the MPI Fact Sheet with the latest estimates on the potential beneficiary population: Relief from Deportation: Demographic Profile of the DREAMers Potentially Eligible under the Deferred Action Policy.

Unaccompanied Minors and Their Journey through the US Immigration System

In this Migration Policy Institute (MPI) event, experts focus on the causes of the increase in unaccompanied minor migrants, the situation these minors face once detained or apprehended, and the challenges confronting both nongovernmental organizations trying to provide aid and the US government agencies responsible for processing minors through the US immigration system. Speakers include Wendy Young, Executive Director of Kids in Need of Defense (KIND); Jessica Jones, Equal Justice Works Fellow, Detention and Asylum Program, Women's Refugee Commission; and Michelle Brané, Director of the Detention and Asylum program, Women's Refugee Commission. Kathleen Newland, MPI Co-Founder and Director of the Refugee Policy and Migrants, Migration, and Development Programs moderates the panel.

The Role of National Governments in Promoting Immigrant Integration

Migration Policy Institute (MPI) President Demetrios G. Papademetriou leads a discussion on the complexities of managing an effective immigrant integration system and creating policies and initiatives that support the success of immigrants and their families in their new host societies. Discussants include Rosario Farmhouse, High Commissioner for Immigration and Intercultural Dialogue in Portugal; Alejandro Mayorkas, Director, US Citizenship and Immigration Services, US Department of Homeland Security; Jasenko Selimovic, State Secretary to the Minister for Integration in Sweden; and Peter Sylvester, Associate Deputy Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
For immigrant integration resources from MPI, visit www.migrationpolicy.org/integration. For international migration resources, visit www.migrationpolicy.org/transatlantic.