Comprehensive Immigration Reform

AGC Urges the Senate to vote for Comprehensive Immigration Reform (AGC Key Vote Letter)

June 25, 2007

Dear Senator:

The Associated General Contractors is the largest and oldest commercial construction trade association. Construction employs more than 7 million people in this country and the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that construction employment will add 180,000 net new workers annually. The immigration legislation currently before the Senate will have a significant impact on how our members hire and fire, who they can hire and fire, and how long they can keep workers that they hire, train and employ.  Now is the time for real action on immigration reform.

AGC is encouraged that Congress will be able to move forward on this critical topic with the Senate returning to work on this issue.  Though we continue to have significant concerns about a number of provisions in S. 1639, we realize that it is a true compromise.  We also understand that certain core principles need to be preserved for this to move forward.  AGC sees this legislation as an opportunity to secure the border, to carefully document who is inside the borders already and create a mechanism for our members to accurately and reliably verify the legal employment status of both applicants and current employees. It should provide strong preemption protection against the patchwork of state and local laws that have sprouted up because of Congressional inaction on immigration.

AGC will be watching the process closely next week, especially the amendment process, and will be weighing in on this process to fight those amendments which would affect the “Y” visa program or the “Z” visa program, as well as attempts to modify the tough debarment provisions that are already contained in the base bill.

The fact that the Senate is able to consider this compromise legislation at all is a significant step in the process and should continue. It will create a legal framework to address the future flow of workers into the country and some of them may find their way into our industry if they will work safely and competently.

Please continue the careful debate on this compromise legislation. I encourage you to oppose efforts that would scuttle the bipartisan compromise and embrace opportunities to improve this legislation to assist our industry’s need to legally fill the 180,000 net new job openings that we confront annually.

We urge you to vote for cloture on the Motion to Proceed to S. 1639.  This will be a key vote for our association. 

Sincerely,

Stephen E. Sandherr
Chief Executive Officer