WASHINGTON — President-elect Joe Biden plans to unveil a sweepingimmigration bill on Day One of his administration, hoping to provide aneight-year path to citizenship for an estimated 11 million people living inthe U.S. without legal status, a massive reversal from the Trumpadministration’s harsh immigration policies.
The legislation puts Biden on track to deliver on a major campaign promiseimportant to Latino voters and other immigrant communities after four yearsof President Donald Trump’s restrictive policies and mass deportations. Itprovides one of the fastest pathways to citizenship for those livingwithout legal status of any measure in recent years, but it fails toinclude the traditional trade-off of enhanced border security favored bymany Republicans, making passage in a narrowly divided Congress in doubt.
Expected to run hundreds of pages, the bill is set to be introduced afterBiden takes the oath of office Wednesday, according to a person familiarwith the legislation and granted anonymity to discuss it.
As a candidate, Biden called Trump’s actions on immigration an “unrelentingassault” on American values and said he would “undo the damage” whilecontinuing to maintain border enforcement.
Under the legislation, those living in the U.S. as of Jan. 1, 2021, withoutlegal status would have a five-year path to temporary legal status, or agreen card, if they pass background checks, pay taxes and fulfill otherbasic requirements. From there, it’s a three-year path to naturalization,if they decide to pursue citizenship.
For some immigrants, the process would be quicker. So-called Dreamers, theyoung people who arrived in the U.S. illegally as children, as well asagricultural workers and people under temporary protective status, couldqualify more immediately for green cards if they are working, are in schoolor meet other requirements.
The bill is not as comprehensive as the last major immigration overhaulproposed when Biden was vice president during the Obama administration.
For example, it does not include a robust border security element butrather calls for coming up with strategies. Nor does it create any newguest worker or other visa programs.
Read Top Stories
It does address some of the root causes of migration from Central Americato the United States and provides grants for workforce development andEnglish language learning.
Biden is expected to take swift executive actions to reverse other Trumpimmigration actions, including an end to the prohibition on arrivals fromseveral predominantly Muslim countries.
During the Democratic primary, Biden consistently named immigration actionas one of his “day one” priorities, pointing to the range of executivepowers he could invoke to reverse Trump’s policies.
Biden allies and even some Republicans have identified immigration as amajor issue where the new administration could find common ground withSenate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and enough other GOP senators toavoid the stalemate that has vexed administrations of both parties fordecades.
That kind of major win — even if it involves compromise — could be criticalas Biden looks for legislative victories in a closely divided Congress,where Republicans are certain to oppose other Biden priorities that involverolling back some of the GOP’s 2017 tax cuts and increasing federalspending.
As a candidate, Biden went so far as to say the Obama administration wenttoo far in its aggressive deportations.
