Democrats reveal updated framework of budget reconciliation bill allotting $100 billion for immigration reform

The Biden administration revealed an updated framework of its budget reconciliation bill on Thursday, with $100 billion allotted for immigration reform.

The $1.75 trillion spending plan includes watered-down immigration provisions after Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough blocked Democrats’ last two proposals to provide a pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrants.

According to the reports, the democrats are now getting ready to present a “Plan C’ to MacDonough in coming weeks.

The legislative package include a provision to change the registry date from 1972 to 2010 for the legalization of immigrants and it could be passed using budget reconciliation.

The bill also includes provision to recapture family and employment green cards that were unused under yearly immigration caps from 1992 to 2021. Recapture provisions could provide relief to an estimated 4 million people waiting for family-based green cards and about 1 million stuck in the employment-based list, according to think tank the Niskanen Center, a Boundless Immigration report said.

It also includes a provision that would allow foreigners to pay additional fees to skip the green card queue, helping curb the backlog.

The provision aimed to give a path to citizenship for millions, including so-called Dreamer immigrants, brought to the United States as children, who are protected from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Farmworkers, essential workers and immigrants with temporary protected status, which gives work permits and deportation relief to those hailing from nations hit by violence or natural disasters, also stood to benefit.