As 2005 begins to wind down, the debate over immigration reform in Washington is heating up. Top politicians in the White House and Congress are insisting that the topic will be one of the first discussed in the 2006 legislative year, and everyone is trying to insist that the reforms they support are “comprehensive.” While it is unlikely that we will see any serious progress on this issue before the new year, policymakers are turning to their constituents now to shape their opinions, and to help determine where their votes will fall. So now is the time to make your voice heard in what promises to be a huge debate over the fate of migrant workers and the face of border communities.

To give you good reason to tell your members of Congress what you think, and to help decipher the litany of “comprehensive” bills, here is a layout of the land. There are numerous immigration reform and border security bills that have been introduced this year, and which will form the basis for the debate early next year.

The first bill that was introduced in 2005 is generally considered to be the strongest bill out there. It is called the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act (SAOIA), and was introduced by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Ted Kennedy (D-MA), and by Representatives Jim Kolbe (R-AZ), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), and Luis Gutierrez (D-IL). Though the bill is imperfect, it provides the most generous terms to legalize current undocumented workers, provides new workers with a path to permanent residency, has broad terms for labor protections, and minimizes the role of border security. It is the only bill which can truly be considered “comprehensive.” For more information on the details of the bill, as well as concerns with the bill, you can visit the Latin America Working Group’s website at (http://www.lawg.org/countries/mexico/explore_border.htm) - all immigration materials are on the Mexico page.

After SAOIA was introduced, it was expected that there would be more liberal and more conservative bills introduced. Unfortunately, we have seen increasingly extreme anti-migrant bills put out there. Rather than being the compromise bill in the center of the debate, SAOIA is now the stronghold of pro-immigrant advocates – we must work to consolidate that position so that it goes into 2006 with as much support as possible.

Here are some of the other extreme bills that will be competing for attention:

• Comprehensive Enforcement and Immigration Reform Act: Introduced by Senators Kyl (R-AZ) and Cornyn (R-TX), this bill does not provide a path for permanent residency, does not guarantee a regularization of status for current undocumented workers in the U.S., and focuses mainly on border militarization – it proposes over $4 billion for fences, cameras, and other infrastructure, plus the addition of 1000 new Border Patrol Officers.
• Senator Chuck Hagel’s (R-NE) Package: Senator Hagel introduced four bills in the fall that work together to address national security; employment security; America’s workforce; and current undocumented workers in the U.S. The bill would provide opportunities for new workers to apply for permanent residency, but would limit such opportunities for workers currently in the U.S. The “national security bill” would dramatically increase resources to the Border Patrol, and focus on increased technology at the border.
• Representative Hayworth’s (R-AZ) Bill: An unnamed bill, Representative Hayworth is interested in focusing on punitive measures. It would look to deport current undocumented workers in the U.S., require local law enforcement officers to enforce federal immigration laws, allow the U.S. military to patrol the U.S.-Mexico border, and appropriate $4 billion for increased infrastructure at the border.
• TRUE Enforcement and Border Security Act: Introduced by two of the most extreme anti-migrant members of Congress, Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and Virgil Goode (R-VA), this bill, among other things, proposes to construct fencing along all 2,000 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border.
• REAL Guest Act: Introduced by the ringleader of anti-immigrant forces, Tom Tancredo (R-CO), this bill would place military troops on the border, dramatically increase criminal penalties and jail time for undocumented migrants, and limit the number of visas currently available to foreign workers.
• Secure Borders Act: Representative Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), former chief of the El Paso Border Patrol, has introduced a bill to require electronic monitoring of every mile of the U.S.-Mexico border, double the number of Border Patrol agents (we currently have 10,000), and increase the use of canine teams along the border.
• Illegal Immigration Enforcement and Empowerment Act: Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison’s (R-TX) bill would require local law enforcement to enforce federal immigration laws and establish formal ties between the Border Patrol and citizen militias like the Minutemen, called Volunteer Border Marshals in the bill.
• Securing America's Future through Enforcement Reform Act: Yet another punitive bill introduced by Representative Gresham Barnett (R-SC) that would put troops on the border, penalize undocumented migrants, require local law enforcement of immigration laws, and drastically reduce visas for foreign workers.
• Border Security Improvement Act: Introduced by Virgil Goode (R-VA), the strongest proponent of troops at the border, this bill would allocate $2 billion for the construction of a fence along the entire length of the U.S.-Mexico border.

SAOIA takes the opposite approach of all these bills, and works to recognize and respect the contributions immigrants have made to our country. It would provide a legal mechanism – temporary work visas – for foreign workers to fill needed jobs, and would allow them to apply for permanent residency after four years. It respects the contributions that current migrants make to our economy, and would allow these people to “earn” legal status in the US. It helps immigrant families stay together by providing a path to permanent residency for all migrants, and it allows these families to come out of the shadows and register for legal visas without separating parents and children. SAOIA also allows new migrants to reunite with their families if they decide to become permanent residents of the US. The bill protects all workers, and gives migrant workers the same labor protections and salaries that American workers receive for the same work. Most importantly, it can help prevent migrant deaths in the desert. By providing visas to new workers, it will allow them to enter the country in a safe, orderly, and documented fashion. This will reduce the need for desert crossings, and consequently the number of people who die.

Though the news looks overwhelmingly negative after such a long list of extreme bills, don’t lose heart. SAOIA is still the main bill that moderate members of Congress are looking at. But it is unquestionable that they are receiving pressure to move to the right from the sponsors of the bills above, especially with regards to border security. The next few months before the debate begins in 2006 will be an important time to tell policymakers what the average American wants.

Members of Congress will be spending a lot of time in their home districts in the next two months as the Thanksgiving and Winter Holidays approach. This is an excellent time for you to express your opinions to them. Here are a few things that you can do during this critical time to help swing the momentum back in favor of the immigrant community, and in favor of reducing the militarization of our borders.

• Call your Senators and Representative’s local offices – most members of Congress have multiple offices throughout the district or state to make communicating with constituents easy.
• Write a personal letter to your members of Congress expressing your support for SAOIA, and your strong disapproval for increased border security bills.
• Get a group of like-minded individuals together and set up a meeting with your members of Congress, or with their immigration policy aides at the local office. Speaking one on one with your representatives can be one of the most effective ways of getting your message across.
• Arrange a teach-in or other local event to educate your community about the SAOIA and the extreme bills in Congress. Be sure to invite your members of Congress so that they can hear from the community directly.
• Show up at events where your members of Congress are speaking with the community. Ask them their position on these bills, and express your strong support for SAOIA.

You can get contact information for your Senators at www.senate.gov and for your Representative at www.house.gov.

When speaking with your congressional representatives, here are some pointers on what to say:

• Hardworking immigrants who are in the U.S. deserve the right to continue contributing to our society in a legal way.
• The U.S. economy needs foreign workers – we need to give them a legal way to enter the country that does not endanger their lives in the desert.
• We want to encourage hardworking migrants to become part of our society. It is through their work that this country has become what it is, and they deserve to benefit from the fruits of their labor.
• Providing a legal means of entry for new workers is the best border security we can have. It will allow the Border Patrol to shift its attention away from targeting undocumented migrants to finding real solutions to any terrorist threat that may exist at the border.
• Border security as it exists does not work. It puts fear into local communities, encourages racial profiling, pushes thousands of migrants to their deaths in the desert, and does not stop anyone from entering the country.
• We need to reform our border security, not add additional resources to the current scheme. The current scheme is aimed at addressing undocumented migration, and has failed at that. We should not put more money into a failed program. Find new solutions instead.

For more lobbying tips, you can visit the Latin America Working Group’s website, http://www.lawg.org/tools/contacting_congress.htm

Comprehensive immigration reform will be dealt with in 2006, for better or for worse. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist has indicated that it will be on the short list of issues to be dealt with beginning in January, and leading members of the House of Representatives have made similar statements. With multiple bills introduced, the floor is set for the debate to begin. Make a difference and let your representatives know how you feel!