H-1B Denial Rates Are the Lowest In A Decade
After court rulings and a legal settlement halted the previous administration’s restrictive H-1B visa policies, denial rates for H-1Bs have dropped 83% in just two years — from 24% in 2018 to 4% in 2021. Many H-1B policies put in place under the previous administration hurt not just visa holders and employers, but the U.S. economy by sending more talent to other countries.
Recent reports have shown that decreased immigration in the U.S. has exacerbated the labor shortage and stymied economic growth during the pandemic.
Cases surge 520% as Covid-19 rips through U.S. immigration detention centers
In the first three weeks of 2022 the number of people held in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers infected with Covid-19 has surged by 520%, renewing calls for ICE to improve its vaccination efforts and release vulnerable migrants with underlying health conditions.
According to government records, there were 5,200 migrants in ICE detention as of late December at higher risk of getting severely ill or dying if they caught the coronavirus, due to health issues or age.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, over 32,000 migrants have tested positive for covid-19 while in ICE custody, and 11 have died. ICE did not begin offering Covid-19 vaccinations to detainees until July 2021, and didn’t begin offering booster shots until late November 2021. The agency has also actively fought against releasing medically vulnerable migrants at risk of contracting the virus, despite the fact that 76% of people in ICE custody have no criminal record.
California Gov. Proposes Budget To Expand Healthcare to Immigrants
Last week, California Governor Gavin Newsom introduced a budget that would cut taxes but also cover the healthcare expenses of undocumented immigrants. The state has a $45.7 billion surplus due to increased taxes during the pandemic.
California taxpayers already cover the healthcare costs of low-income immigrants who are 26 or younger and will offer healthcare coverage to those who are 50 or older in May. The new plan would cover everyone else, and could begin as soon as Jan. 2024.
Congress considers independent immigration courts as backlog soars
The House Judiciary Committee had a hearing Thursday on whether the immigration courts, currently part of the Department of Justice, should become independent courts under Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution.
Immigration judges are supposed to be neutral decision-makers, but immigration courts are inside the Department of Justice (DOJ), which is a federal law enforcement agency whose leader is appointed by the President. Thus, judges are often subject to political whims leading to sudden changes in immigration law.
Congress is considering this option in light of news that the immigration court backlog hit 1.6 million cases in 2021, with an average time in process of 4 to five years.
Bar association seeks free legal counsel for asylum-seekers in fast-tracked deportation proceedings
The American Bar Association launched a nationwide campaign to enlist pro bono attorneys for asylum-seekers in fast-tracked deportation proceedings.
At this time, only 15% of the migrants in the “Dedicated Docket” program have access to legal representation. This is less than half of the estimated 37% of people in other types of immigration proceedings who have an attorney.
Though someone with legal representation is 3.5 times more likely to win their immigration case, roughly two thirds of people in deportation hearings do not have access to an attorney.