Two Republican senators proposed steps to cut the number of legal immigrants admitted into the United States by half on February 7, 2017. Senators Tom Cotton and David Perdue proposed a bill that would reduce the number of immigrants granted U.S. residency each year from 1 million to 500,000. (CNN news)
U.S. citizens and permanent residents can currently sponsor an assortment of family members such as spouses, parents, siblings and married adult children. The proposed legislation would only allow spouses and unmarried adult children to obtain green cards, although it would allow an exception for aging adult parents if their American children are their caretakers. The bill also seeks to eliminate the diversity visa lottery, which allocates about 50,000 visas per year for citizens of countries that have traditionally low rates of immigration. Cotton said his measure would still allow in "high-skilled individuals who can come and help our economy,” and suggested that the introduction of the bill would revitalize the current immigration system from one based on family affiliation towards a more skill orientated one. (Politico.com)
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