Pressure mounts for action on immigration laws

An unlikely mix of Latinos, farmers and high-tech businesses has stepped up pressure on Congress to overhaul US immigration laws, boosting prospects for a bill that would allow more foreign workers into the country. Last year, the Republican-led House of Representatives derailed an immigration bill because it would have given a path to citizenship for those who entered the country illegally. Pressure to allow in more workers has been mounting since Congress passed a law in September to fund hundreds of miles of new fences along the border with Mexico and a series of raids against illegal workers last month by the US Department of Homeland Security. Farm groups said farmers faced millions of dollars in losses this year if a crackdown against illegal immigration continues without a balancing program to bring in workers legally. US companies are also clamoring for more H1B visas to allow foreign software engineers and other skilled workers into the country. The 65,000 visas allotted for 2007 were taken by the end of May last year, months before the end of the fiscal year in September, said Jack Krumholtz, the head of Microsoft Corp.'s government affairs office. It is also difficult to get permanent US residency for foreign workers who would like to stay, he said. Last year, a bill passed the Senate that would have provided more visas for highly skilled workers, combined tougher border enforcement measures with a guest worker program, and given millions of illegal immigrants a chance to earn US citizenship. But the bill was never considered by the House, where a solid group of Republicans opposed it, calling it an amnesty for people who broke US law. Instead the House passed enforcement-only legislation that further criminalized illegal presence in the United States and tried to make tough immigration enforcement an issue in the 2006 congressional elections.