Uscis Fee Increase Rule Hearing Committee on The
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USCIS FEE INCREASE RULE HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON IMMIGRATION, CITIZENSHIP, REFUGEES, BORDER SECURITY, AND INTERNATIONAL LAW OF THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION SEPTEMBER 20, 2007 Serial No. 110–50 Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://judiciary.house.gov U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 37–846 PDF WASHINGTON : 2007 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate 0ct 09 2002 10:06 Dec 06, 2007 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 H:\WORK\IMMIG\092007\37846.000 HJUD1 PsN: 37846 COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY JOHN CONYERS, JR., Michigan, Chairman HOWARD L. BERMAN, California LAMAR SMITH, Texas RICK BOUCHER, Virginia F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, JR., JERROLD NADLER, New York Wisconsin ROBERT C. SCOTT, Virginia HOWARD COBLE, North Carolina MELVIN L. WATT, North Carolina ELTON GALLEGLY, California ZOE LOFGREN, California BOB GOODLATTE, Virginia SHEILA JACKSON LEE, Texas STEVE CHABOT, Ohio MAXINE WATERS, California DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California WILLIAM D. DELAHUNT, Massachusetts CHRIS CANNON, Utah ROBERT WEXLER, Florida RIC KELLER, Florida LINDA T. SA´ NCHEZ, California DARRELL ISSA, California STEVE COHEN, Tennessee MIKE PENCE, Indiana HANK JOHNSON, Georgia J. RANDY FORBES, Virginia BETTY SUTTON, Ohio STEVE KING, Iowa LUIS V. GUTIERREZ, Illinois TOM FEENEY, Florida BRAD SHERMAN, California TRENT FRANKS, Arizona TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin LOUIE GOHMERT, Texas ANTHONY D. WEINER, New York JIM JORDAN, Ohio ADAM B. SCHIFF, California ARTUR DAVIS, Alabama DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Florida KEITH ELLISON, Minnesota PERRY APELBAUM, Staff Director and Chief Counsel JOSEPH GIBSON, Minority Chief Counsel SUBCOMMITTEE ON IMMIGRATION, CITIZENSHIP, REFUGEES, BORDER SECURITY, AND INTERNATIONAL LAW ZOE LOFGREN, California, Chairwoman LUIS V. GUTIERREZ, Illinois STEVE KING, Iowa HOWARD L. BERMAN, California ELTON GALLEGLY, California SHEILA JACKSON LEE, Texas BOB GOODLATTE, Virginia MAXINE WATERS, California DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California WILLIAM D. DELAHUNT, Massachusetts J. RANDY FORBES, Virginia LINDA T. SA´ NCHEZ, California LOUIE GOHMERT, Texas ARTUR DAVIS, Alabama KEITH ELLISON, Minnesota ANTHONY D. WEINER, New York UR MENDOZA JADDOU, Chief Counsel GEORGE FISHMAN, Minority Counsel (II) VerDate 0ct 09 2002 10:06 Dec 06, 2007 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 0486 H:\WORK\IMMIG\092007\37846.000 HJUD1 PsN: 37846 C O N T E N T S SEPTEMBER 20, 2007 Page OPENING STATEMENT The Honorable Zoe Lofgren, a Representative in Congress from the State of California, and Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law ........................................... 1 The Honorable Steve King, a Representative in Congress from the State of Iowa, and Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law ........................................... 2 WITNESSES Mr. Jonathan R. Scharfen, Deputy Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigra- tion Services; accompanied by Mr. Rendell Jones, Chief Financial Officer, and Mr. Michael Aytes, Associate Director for Domestic Operations, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Oral Testimony ..................................................................................................... 5 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 8 Mr. Arturo Vargas, Executive Director, NALEO Educational Fund Oral Testimony ..................................................................................................... 21 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 23 Mr. William R. (Bill) Yates, Executive Consultant, Border Management Strat- egies (BMS) Oral Testimony ..................................................................................................... 44 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 45 Mr. Rhadmes Rivera, Vice President of 1199, SEIU United Health Care Workers East Oral Testimony ..................................................................................................... 52 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 54 LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC., SUBMITTED FOR THE HEARING Prepared Statement of the Honorable Zoe Lofgren, a Representative in Con- gress from the State of California, and Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law ........................................................................................................................ 2 Prepared Statement of the Honorable John Conyers, Jr., a Representative in Congress from the State of Michigan, and Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary ......................................................................................................... 4 APPENDIX MATERIAL SUBMITTED FOR THE HEARING RECORD Letter to David Walker, Comptroller General of the General Accounting Office (GAO) dated September 12, 2007 ....................................................................... 62 Fee Increases Imposed by USCIS Fee Rulemaking for Selected Immigration Applications, Effective July 30, 2007, Compiled by NALEO Educational Fund ...................................................................................................................... 64 Letter to Dr. Emilio Gonzalez, Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services dated February 20, 2007, from the American Friends Service Com- mittee .................................................................................................................... 66 (III) VerDate 0ct 09 2002 10:06 Dec 06, 2007 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 H:\WORK\IMMIG\092007\37846.000 HJUD1 PsN: 37846 IV Page American Friends Service Committee Recommendations on DHS Docket No. USCIS–2005–0056 of September 19, 2007 ......................................................... 68 Prepared Statement of Fred Tsao, Policy Director, Illinois Coalition for Immi- grant and Refugee Rights .................................................................................... 71 Prepared Statement of Michael A. Knowles, President, National Citizenship and Immigration Council (AFGE/AFL-CIO) ...................................................... 82 ‘‘EXHIBIT A (text of petition by USCIS District Adjudications Officers)’’ by the National CIS Council 119 ............................................................................. 85 Letter to Linda Swacina, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services District Director dated April 11, 2007, from Citizenship and Immigration Services Adjudications Officers .......................................................................................... 86 Responses to Post-Hearing Questions from Jonathan R. Scharfen, Deputy Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services ....................................... 93 VerDate 0ct 09 2002 10:06 Dec 06, 2007 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 H:\WORK\IMMIG\092007\37846.000 HJUD1 PsN: 37846 USCIS FEE INCREASE RULE THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2007 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON IMMIGRATION, CITIZENSHIP, REFUGEES, BORDER SECURITY, AND INTERNATIONAL LAW COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, Washington, DC. The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:01 a.m., in Room 2141, Rayburn House Office Building, the Honorable Zoe Lofgren (Chairwoman of the Subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Lofgren, Gutierrez, Delahunt, King, and Goodlatte. Staff present: Ur Mendoza Jaddou, Chief Counsel; R. Blake Chisam, Majority Counsel; George Fishman, Minority Counsel; and Benjamin Staub, Professional Staff Member. Ms. LOFGREN. Since we have sufficient Members here to begin our hearing, the Subcommittee will come to order. I would like to welcome the Immigration Subcommittee Mem- bers, our witnesses, and members of the public to the Subcommit- tee’s hearing on the immigration fee increase rule and H.J. Res. 47, a resolution that would render the recent immigration fee increase rule by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services null and void and require the Agency to issue a new rule to modify its fees. Our Subcommittee held its first hearing on the 2007 fee increase rule on February 14, when the rule was initially proposed. At that time, I had many questions about the methodology used to cal- culate the new fees, including how and if actual costs were accu- rately calculated, whether those actual costs included financial mis- takes made by the Agency, and whether USCIS had properly pre- pared a plan for technology transformation, a cost that was used to justify the increase in fees. Every answer I received to questions I had at that time led to even more questions and concerns about the rule. So, for the last 7 months, my staff and I have engaged USCIS and outside experts to understand the rule and its methodology, and I am still con- cerned. As a result, I have introduced H.J. Res. 47 to render the fee rule null and void and require the Agency to issue a new rule to modify its fees. The Subcommittee has sought detail on how the technology transformation will work.