Bill aims to break migration deadlock

Reforms could help ease way to citizenship for 12 million

Mike Madden
Republic Washington Bureau
Mar. 23, 2007 12:00 AM

WASHINGTON - A new immigration-reform bill introduced in the House on Thursday tries to duck the partisan stalemate that doomed similar legislation last year by being tougher in some ways and more generous in others for immigrants and employers alike.

The bill would delay any new benefits for foreign workers until the federal government has improved border security. It also would require undocumented immigrants to leave the United States briefly and re-enter before they would be eligible for citizenship.

But those requirements would be balanced against the promise of legal status for about 12 million people living here illegally now, along with an easier system for employers to verify that workers are eligible for jobs and a new visa allowing up to 400,000 foreign workers to come here temporarily each year.