Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) has introduced the Immigration in the National Interest Act, which is the House companion bill to Sen. Tom Cotton’s (R-Ark.) RAISE Act. The RAISE Act would end chain migration and the visa lottery and transform the existing employment-based system to a merit-based one. Rep. Lamar Smith Introduces House Version of the RAISE Act Numbers USA, September 11, 2017

Rep. Smith’s bill, like the RAISE Act, would limit family immigration to only spouses and minor children, ending chain migration. This would reduce overall legal immigration by 50% over the next 10 years. The bill would also move our immigration system to a points-based, merit system giving priority to “immigrants who have the skills and abilities needed to contribute to our economy”.

The RAISE Act is in the Senate, and now it has a companion bill in the House. Numbers USA reports thatWhat’s in it?So both the RAISE Act and Smith’s companion bill would eventually reduce legal Green Card immigration by half and would replace chain migration with a points system.

For those who want a radical reduction in immigration, this is a huge step in the right direction.

In Representative Smith’s press conference statement on two immigration proposals (the other mandating E-Verify), the congressman began with this key statement which should be repeated again and again:

Immigration impacts every aspect of our society. For this reason, it is one of the most challenging issues we face as a nation.

Numerous objective studies show that low-skilled immigrants depress wages or take the jobs of lower-skilled American citizens and other legal immigrants. The Heritage Foundation has determined that low-skilled immigrants cost the United States $150 billion each year. A legal immigrant without a high school degree typically receives $4 in government benefits for every $1 they pay in taxes. (Robert Rector, The Heritage Foundation – The Daily Signal, August 17, 2017.) In addition, the National Academy of Sciences estimates that a lower-skilled immigrant costs taxpayers $142,000 over the immigrant’s lifetime. Opening Statement by Congressman Lamar Smith - Immigration Reform Press Conference Congressman Lamar Smith Press Release, September 7, 2017

Congressman Smith (of Texas’ 21st District and with an A+ from Numbers USA ) explained how costly today’s immigration is, with data that needs to be repeated again and again.The RAISE Act and Immigration in the National Interest Act could, if passed, signed and enacted, could revolutionize U.S. immigration. It would be true immigration reform.

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