To read the case, Rodriguez v. Mukasey, click here.

 By Michelle Richart

 By:  Martha James

Click here to view the visa bulletin for the month May

By Angela M. Lopez

Click here to read the text of the publication.

By Michelle Richart

Second, a student may be eligible to extend post-completion OPT by an additional 17 months.  To be eligible for this extension, the student must have at least a bachelor’s degree in certain designated fields (STEM degree), the student must be in an approved post-completion OPT period based on that STEM degree, the student’s employer must be enrolled in E-Verify, and the student must apply for the OPT extension before the current post-completion OPT expires.  Note that this is not an automatic extension, but one that must be applied for timely.

The STEM designated degrees include the following courses of study:

*  Computer Science Applications                    *  Biological and Biomedical Sciences
*  Actuarial Science                                          *  Mathematics and Statistics
*  Engineering                                                  *  Military Technologies
*  Engineering Technologies                            *  Physical Sciences

For more information on these extensions,  click here

 By:  Martha James

USCIS will carry out the computer-generated random selection process for all cap-subject petitions received. USCIS will select the number of petitions needed to meet the caps of 65,000 for the general category and 20,000 under the “advanced degree” exemption limit. USCIS will reject, and return filing fees for all cap-subject petitions not randomly selected, unless found to be a duplicate. USCIS will handle duplicate filings in accordance with the interim final rule published on March 24, 2008 in the Federal Register.

The agency will conduct the selection process for “advanced degree” exemption petitions first. All “advanced degree” petitions not selected will be part of the random selection process for the 65,000 limit.

By:  Martha James

USCIS AND FBI RELEASE JOINT PLAN TO ELIMINATE BACKLOG OF FBI NAME CHECKS

Partnership Establishes Series of Milestones To Complete Checks

WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) today announced a joint plan to eliminate the backlog of name checks pending with the FBI.

USCIS and the FBI established a series of milestones prioritizing work based on the age of the pending name check. The FBI has already eliminated all name check cases pending more than four years. “This plan of action is the product of a strong partnership between USCIS and the FBI to eliminate the backlogs and to strengthen national security,” said USCIS Director Emilio Gonzalez.

By increasing staff, expanding resources, and applying new business processes, the goal is to complete 98 percent of all name checks within 30 days. USCIS and the FBI intend to resolve the remaining two percent, which represent the most difficult name checks and require additional time to complete, within 90 days or less. The goal is to achieve and sustain these processing times by June 2009.

The joint plan will focus on resolving the oldest pending FBI name checks first. USCIS has also requested that the FBI prioritize resolution of approximately 29,800 pending name checks from naturalization applicants submitted to the FBI before May 2006 where the naturalization applicant was already interviewed.

The target milestones for processing name checks are:

Completion Goal and Category

May 2008-Process all name checks pending more than three years
July 2008-Process all name checks pending more than two years
Nov. 2008-Process all name checks pending more than one year
Feb. 2009-Process all name checks pending more than 180 days
June 2009-Process 98 percent of all name checks within 30 days and process the
remaining two percent within 90 days.

By Michelle Richart

Professor Klineberg suggests that Texas has a burgeoning diversity which is a tremendous asset to the State.  However, unless educational differentials can be reduced between ethnic and immigrant groups and if Texans continue to live and work in segregated enclaves full of mutual misperceptions, Texas will not be able to fully capitalize on this diversity.  Professor Klineberg surmised that in order for Texas to continue to be successful with its multi-ethnic society, the state will need to grow more unified and inclusive with a commitment to civil rights and full participation for all residents. In nearly three decades of researching demographics in the Houston area, which began at approximately the same time as the oil bust in the 1980s, Klineberg believes that the traditional ‘blue collar’ approach to financial security has predominately disappeared.  Almost all good-paying jobs now require higher levels of education and technical skills.  With this in mind, consider the following below history and statistics as presented by Professor Klineberg. 

It was not until the past decade that the United States surpassed the 1900’s high level of immigrants to the United States, which, at the time, was almost exclusively comprised of individuals of European decent.  According to the U.S. Census, immigration levels were at a historical low during the Great Depression and it has taken nearly 70 years to rebound to levels prior to the Great Depression.  It is noteworthy that in the past few years, immigration has once again slowed, mostly due to Congressionally-imposed caps on various types of immigrant categories. 

Additionally, until 1965, it was virtually impossible for any non-Anglo individual to immigrate to the United States.  In fact, it was not until 1965, when President Kennedy announced that the United States was no longer a ‘racist nation,’ were immigrant visas to the United States available to other parts of the world such as Asia and Africa.  As immigration is primarily based and sponsored on the basis of family reunification or employment, and because those from Africa and Asian nations had no family with whom to reunify, beginning in the late 1960s, those individuals primarily immigrated to the United States based on employment and had high levels of education.  They mostly came from predominant and educated families.  In the meantime, individuals from areas such as Europe and Central America often had relatives whom could apply on their behalf. Professor Klineberg uses Houston as a model for the rest of Texas and believes that while Houston is a few years ahead of Texas in general, Texas demographics frequently follow that of Houston within a few years.  In 1960, the U.S. Census showed that Houston was 73.9% Anglo, 19.3% Black, 6% Hispanic, and 0.3% Asian and other groups.  Since that time, however, the demographics have greatly changed both before and after the oil bust in the 1980s.  Unlike other cities such as Detroit, Cincinnati, and others without such an immigrant surge, but who also suffered from an economic depression, such as the oil bust, Houston continues to thrive economically through a greater balance of groups of individuals working together.  In 2006, Houston was estimated to be 36.9% Anglo, 18.4% Black, 38.2% Hispanic, and 6.5% Asian and other groups.  Klineberg also points out that today’s seniors are primarily Anglos, with that number expected to double in the next 30 years.  Therefore, the younger generation, which is predominately non-Anglo and less privileged will replace the baby boom generation.  It is projected that by 2040, 80% of all Texans will be non-Anglos, primarily Blacks and Latinos.   

Because of this shift in demographics, and considering a high school diploma no longer ensures financial security, it is important to look at educational and technical statistics for those populations.  Currently, approximately 44.7% of individuals aged 14-29 in the Houston area are Hispanic.  According to Klineberg’s Houston Area Survey, between 1997 and 2004, of all ethnic groups 36% of Asian Immigrants have a college degree, with another 25% having a post-graduate degree.  This number was higher than all U.S.-born groups including U.S.-born Anglos, U.S.-born Blacks, U.S.-born Latinos and Latino immigrants.  In fact, 50% of first-generation Latino Immigrants have less than a high school diploma and only 7% have a college degree.  However, all groups of U.S.-born populations, whether Anglo, Black, or Latino, have approximately one-third percent of respondents with at least have some college education.  Some attribute this to a process of assimilation for those individuals who were born in the United States, whether or not their previous generations had immigrated.  In any case, within the past decade, the State of Texas rated last among all 50 states for individuals over the age of 25 who have a high school diploma.  During that same time, Texas rated 35^th for those over the age of 25 who had a college degree.  This lack of education could greatly hinder Texas’ increased growth and prosperity in the future. 

Professor Klineberg has also done extensive research on assimilation indicators among different immigrant groups.  It is important to note that according to his research, beginning in 2004 when immigration reform and debates came to the forefront of politics, attitudes toward both diversity and immigration drastically took a downturn with increased negativity. 

To read more about the Houston Area Survey, its findings, and methodology since 1982, click here.  The website also has contact information for Professor Klineberg and information about his many publications and articles.

By Michelle Richart 

The Department of Homeland Security today  announced a “supplemental proposed rule” concerning the actions required of employers who receive “no-match” letters from the Social Security Administration. Rather than making changes in the substance of the previous rule, which was enjoined by a Federal District Court, DHS reiterates its same old arguments. The rule’s bottom line remains unchanged: employers may believe they have no choice but to fire any employee who cannot resolve within 90 days a social security records discrepancy.

“The Social Security Administration is charged with administering social security benefits, and is not structured or oriented to be an immigration enforcement tool. This misguided attempt to fit the square peg of immigration enforcement into the round hole of social security benefits is a guarantee of increased discrimination and erroneous terminations,” stated Kathleen Campbell Walker, President of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

One predictable result of implementation of this rule will be unwarranted firings due to database errors and predictable delays in obtaining documentation of status or database corrections. The SSA has emphatically and consistently stated that there are many reasons for a no-match record to be generated other than a lack of work authorization. Some of these reasons include: spelling errors, incomplete names, inversion of date order, valid name changes pursuant to divorce or marriage, as well as cultural differences in name order. The Administration should suspend the “no-match” effort until the database achieves acceptable levels of accuracy and until employers and employees have efficient mechanisms to correct data errors and to obtain status confirmation.

“This unchanged regulation clearly leaves employers holding the bag as to Congress’ failures to create legal avenues to fill legitimate labor needs,” said Campbell Walker. “Employers will be left with a Hobson’s choice - keep the employee while potentially being exposed to employment verification penalties or terminate the employee and face possible wrongful termination or discrimination charges. Where are the rational and predictable legal protections for employers trying to do the right thing?”

AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 08032140 (posted Mar. 21, 2008)