Maryland Conservatarian

May 18th Draft of Immigration Act

Mild understatement to note that this is not an easy read; particularly since it amends existing law so you get a lot of:

“.(2) Z.A DEPENDENT VISA..Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall grant a Z.A dependent visa to an alien
who is.
(A) described in section 101(a)(15)(Z-A)(ii);
(B) meets the requirements of paragraph (3); and
(C) is admissible to the United States under section 212, except as otherwise provided in paragraph (4)."

I can’t claim to have read the whole thing yet but meandering through the document, I did find some goodies to highlight:

Page 304:

.(3) PROOF OF ELIGIBILITY..
31 .(A) IN GENERAL..An alien may establish that the alien meets the requirement for a Z.A visa through government employment records or records supplied by employers or collective bargaining organizations, and other reliable documentation as the alien may provide. The Secretary shall establish special procedures to properly credit work in cases in which an alien was employed under an assumed name.

I’m going to guess that an alien (or anyone) working under an assumed name probably hasn’t been too forthright in other matters like, I dunno…taxes. Any bets on whether there will be pressure for the Secretary’s "special procedures" to include credit for Social Security purposes.

Page 306:

.(B) TIMING OF PROBATIONARY BENEFITS..
32 .(i) IN GENERAL..Subject to clause (ii), an alien who submits an application for a Z.A visa under subsection (d), including any evidence required under such subsection, and any spouse or child of the alien seeking a Z.A dependent visa shall receive the probationary benefits described in clauses (i) through (iv) of subparagraph (A) at the earlier of.
(I) the date and time that the alien has passed all (Page 307) appropriate background checks, including name and fingerprint checks; or
(II) the end of the next business day after the date that the Secretary receives the alien.s application for Z.A visa.

Who among us has received the benefits of a tax refund by the end of the next business day after filing a tax return or…any benefits the next business day after filing anything with the federal government?

Page 307:

39.(B) DURING APPLICATION PERIOD..The Secretary shall provide that, in the case of an alien who presents a nonfrivolous (Page 308) application for Z.A visa during the application period described in subsection (c)(1)(B), including an alien who files such an application within 30 days of the alien.s apprehension, and until a final determination on the application has been made in accordance with this section, the alien
(i) may not be removed; and
(ii) shall be granted authorization to engage in employment in the United States and be provided an employment authorized endorsement or other appropriate work permit for such purpose.

So, you are in the country illegally and somehow you get apprehended…no problem, file a Z.A Visa application, the law can’t touch you. What if you were driving without a license – how many of you Ted Kennedy clones think a simple application for a license should cure your citation for driving, using the PC parlance of today, undocumented? (Or practicing law without a license - perhaps a quick sign up for the LSATs would establish your seriousness of purpose)

Page 309:

(g) Fine..An alien granted a Z.A visa shall pay a fine of $100 to
4 the Secretary.

See, it’s not amnesty!!!

(3) TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT..
(A) PROHIBITION..No alien granted a Z.A visa may be terminated from employment by any employer during the period of a Z.A visa except for just cause.
(B) TREATMENT OF COMPLAINTS..
(i) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCESS..The Secretary shall establish a process for the receipt, initial review, and disposition of complaints by aliens granted a Z.A visa who allege that they have been terminated without just cause. No proceeding shall be conducted under this subparagraph with respect to a termination unless the Secretary determines that the complaint was filed not later than 30 months after the date of the termination.

I’m an at-will employee and without a Z.A card so the federal government has no such interest in the circumstances of my prospective termination. I didn’t read a definition of “just cause” within so if I’m an employer I’m proceeding with EXTREME caution. This reads like a potential windfall for labor lawyers.

…and arbitrators.

Page 310:

.(iii) ARBITRATION PROCEEDINGS..The arbitrator shall conduct the proceeding under this subparagraph in accordance with the policies and procedures promulgated by the American Arbitration Association applicable to private arbitration of employment disputes. The arbitrator
shall make findings respecting whether the termination was for just cause. The arbitrator may not find that the termination was for just cause unless the employer so demonstrates by a preponderance of the evidence.

Yep – because who you gonna believe: the guy who sneaked into the country illegally, under an assumed name and only files for legal Z.A status after he gets picked up or…the U.S. citizen who decided to employ him.