The first weeks of the new year have come with welcome news that the U.S. Congress may be ready to tackle immigration reform, a resolution that should be kept in 2014.

Before the holiday season it looked as if legislative gridlock might continue indefinitely, but Congress recently seems to have turned a corner. First, legislators passed a budget resolution that should avert another government shutdown, and now, the New York Times and other outlets are reporting that House leadership seems to be ready to tackle one of the most pressing problems on the domestic agenda.

Last year, the Senate passed a forward-looking immigration bill that offers many common-sense solutions to the problems that plague our current system and would be a boon to the economy. It seems that politics have kept and will keep the House from passing that particular measure.

With some fresh new year perspective — after an autumn that left both sides in need of some image repair — it’s looking like immigration and visa reform could prove to be an issue that could, perhaps, rehabilitate this Congress.

Those of us in the travel industry are watching closely. We know practical immigration reform in America is good for our industry. The U.S. must do a better job welcoming international guests, who are traveling outside their home countries in unprecedented numbers. If the U.S. had the same share of global travel it had in 2000, the U.S. would be welcoming roughly 35 million visitors every year. We estimate that would create one million more jobs in the U.S. As unemployment inches downward, we also need a functioning immigration system that helps us staff positions that might otherwise go unfilled, especially in our seasonal resorts. Our sector is already one of the bright spots in the economy – we’ve seen 14 consecutive quarters of job growth. Just imagine how much brighter it would be with these changes.

So, kudos to Congressional leaders who seem to be on track to make 2014 the year we break some bad old partisan habits. Let’s put extreme partisanship aside and get to work on immigration. We are ready for reform.

UPDATE:

Thanks to everyone for your comments. It is great to have platforms, such as LinkedIn, where we can have these open forum discussions. In addition to advocating for a functional immigration system, we are laser focused on expansion and job creation in the U.S. We make those jobs as attractive as possible by offering industry-leading pay and benefits packages and by encouraging our associates to grow in their careers with us. Meantime, I hope you keep reading my blog. I'll certainly be listening.

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