On 05/9/13 the Senate Judiciary Committee began markup of the Senate Gang of Eight's "Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act." (AILA Doc. No. 13041760.) 300 amendments to the bill were filed by Senators on the committee in advance and posted online (106 by the ten Democrats on the committee and 194 by the eight Republicans). Markup of the bill (amendment votes and a final vote to move the bill out of committee) will continue for the two to three following weeks, most likely concluding before the Memorial Day Congressional recess. AILA will be following the amendment process closely, and will provide live comprehensive updates of each day of markup at www.aila.org/senatebill and daily summaries at www.aila.org/ip2013.

If the bill is able to secure a majority of the votes on the committee it will move on the to the floor of the Senate. At that point Majority Leader Senator Reid (D-NV) and Minority Leader McConnell (R-KY) will agree on a set of rules to govern debate and offering of amendments on the bill on the Senate floor. Additionally, as most major issues before the Senate now, the bill will almost certainly be filibustered, meaning that it will need 60 yes votes to end debate and move on to a final vote in the full Senate.

Most reports indicate that the Senate will take the lead in debating and passing any immigration bill; however, the House of Representatives is not standing still. A bipartisan group of eight Representatives have been meeting for months, if not years, to hammer out their own legislative language. Additionally, House Judiciary Committee Chair, Rep. Goodlatte (R-VA), has stated that his committee will begin holding hearings on multiple bills that address individual issues in immigration reform, starting with "The Agricultural Guestworker Act" and "The Legal Workforce Act." (AILA Doc. No. 13042561, AILA Doc. No. 13042953, AILA Doc. No. 13050809.) Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), Speaker of the House, has largely stayed out of the debate so far, but has said that he wants the Senate to take up and pass the issue first, before the House attempts to pass their own bill.

For daily updates on what's happening in D.C. and on immigration reform check out Immigration Politics 2013. (AILA Doc. No. 12120666.) For all InfoNet postings related to Immigration Reform please visit our Immigration Reform 2013 Featured Topics page.

Government Action

On 05/09/13 the Senate Judiciary Committee held the first day of markup in S. 744. AILA compiled a comprehensive summary of the day's debates and amendment votes. (AILA Doc. No. 13050961.)

On 05/07/13 300 amendments to S. 744 were filed by the 18 Senators on the Judiciary Committee. (AILA Doc. No. 13041760.)

On 04/30/2013 the sponsors of S. 744 introduced a substitute amendment to the bill as a redline version that shows changes to the bill as originally introduced. (AILA Doc. No. 13041760.)

On 4/16/2013, the Senate "Gang of Eight" introduced the "Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act." (AILA Doc. No. 13041760.)

On 01/29/13 the White House released a fact sheet on the President's plan for creating a common sense immigration policy entitled: "Fixing our Broken Immigration System so Everyone Plays by the Rules." Most notably the President's plan does not tie the road to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented Americans to any border security triggers as the Senate plan does, although he does lay out plans to increase enforcement both at the border and at worksites. (AILA Doc. No. 13012946.)

On 01/28/13 a bipartisan group of eight Senators released a set of principles to overhaul the country's immigration system. The principles include a road to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants currently in the country and increased enforcement at the border and interior. (AILA Doc. No. 13012865.)

Issue Papers and Talking Points

AILA AIC draft redline section-by-section summary of S.744, reflecting the changes made by the Sponsors’ Amendment released 4/30/13. (AILA Doc. No. 13050260.)

AILA’s 2013 Resource Guide on Immigration for lawmakers, AILA members, the media and other advocates to use during the 2013 immigration reform debate. (AILA Doc. No. 13040151.)

Reforming Immigration for the 21st Century: NDA Leave Behind is a four page document used during AILA’s 2013 National Day of Action to outline AILA’s priorities and principles for reforming immigration for the 21st Century. (AILA Doc. No. 13040241.)

On 03/28/13 the conservative polling group Resurgent Republic released the positive results of focus group research they conducted with Republican primary voters in South Carolina and Iowa on the issue of immigration.

Polling Report has a continuously updated round-up of all major national polling on immigration, most of which signals that a majority of Americans want to put aspiring citizens without legal status on the road to citizenship.

On 01/30/13 AILA released their report, Border Security: Moving Beyond Past Benchmarks, that urges lawmakers to move beyond massive expenditure on resource buildup at the border. (AILA Doc. No. 12032166.)

AILA Press Statements

AILA: Senators Advance Both Good and Bad Amendments on Bipartisan Bill (05/08/13) (AILA Doc. No. 13050809.)

AILA Commends Senate “Gang of Eight” for Bipartisan Immigration Bill (04/17/13) (AILA Doc. No. 13041761.)

AILA President Laura Lichter Discusses Immigration Reform in 2013

AILA President Laura Lichter to Testify at Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing (4/22/2013) (AILA Doc. No. 13042260.)

AILA: Senate Immigration Bill A Good Start (4/18/2013) (AILA Doc. No. 13041849.)

AILA Quicktake: President on 4/22 Senate Immigration Hearing (4/25/2013) (AILA Doc. No. 13042549.)

Take Action
AILA needs your case examples! As the immigration reform bill moves forward in the Senate, we will use your stories to fight back against bad amendments and support good policies. (AILA Doc. No. 13041707.)

Write a Letter to the Editor in support of immigration reform in 113th Congress!