McSally, McCaul bill would beef up immigration enforcement, resolve DACA

U.S. Reps. Martha McSally (R-AZ) and Michael McCaul (R-TX) on Jan. 10 introduced the Securing America’s Future Act to strengthen legal immigration and border security while providing a legislative solution for persons in the U.S. under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

H.R. 4760 aims to ensure that American workplaces are staffed with workers legally in the country. It would halt the Diversity Visa program, increase green card availability for skilled workers by 45 percent, and establish a better guest agricultural worker program to support the U.S. agriculture industry, McSally’s office said in a statement. The bill would also make it easier to remove illegal immigrants who are gang members and criminals.

“Our legislation finally strengthens America’s borders. It moves us towards a merit-based immigration system,” said McSally, who chairs the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security. “America is the most generous and welcoming nation in the world, and that will continue. But we won’t be taken advantage of any longer.”

DACA beneficiaries would receive three-year renewable legal status under the measure without granting legal status to gang members, people with criminal convictions or juvenile court convictions for serious crimes.

According to a bill summary, the legislation would authorize construction of a southern border wall and beef up the ranks of U.S. Border Patrol agents by 5,000 and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers by an additional 5,000.

On that point, Homeland Security Committee Chairman McCaul said, “This bill offers common sense solutions that will finally secure our borders, better support our frontline defenders, strengthen interior enforcement, and get tough on those who break our immigration laws.”

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) joined McSally and McCaul in introducing the bill. Goodlatte said the legislation presents “an historic opportunity to fix our broken immigration system.” He added that the bill dovetails with Trump administration priorities and will “ensure the door remains open to law-abiding immigrants, and restore the rule of law.”