By Alan Gomez | USA TODAY
A draft of a White House immigration proposal obtained by USA TODAY would allow illegal immigrants to become legal permanent residents within eight years.
The plan also would provide for more security funding and require business owners to check the immigration status of new hires within four years. In addition, the nation’s 11 million illegal immigrants could apply for a newly created “Lawful Prospective Immigrant” visa, under the draft bill being written by the White House.
If approved, they could then apply for the same provisional legal status for their spouse or children living outside the country, according to the draft.
The bill is being developed as members in both chambers of Congress are drafting their own immigration bills. In the House, a bipartisan group of representatives has been negotiating an immigration proposal for years and are writing their own bill. Last month, four Republican senators joined with four Democratic senators to announce their agreement on the general outlines of an immigration plan.
One of those senators, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said Obama’s bill repeats the failures of past legislation and would be “dead on arrival” in Congress.
Related: Some Democrats Wary on ImmigrationA4
If you’d like to discuss immigration matters, Brian Bergin, bbergin@roselawgroup.com
