WASHINGTON, D.C. – With the border crisis raging on and a record breaking over 300,000 border encounters in December, Congressman Matt Rosendale (MT-02) has introduced five new bills to address the crisis and reinstate rule-of-law at our southern border. The immigration package will stop illegal aliens from coming into our country, provide much needed updates to our legal immigration system to give Americans an advantage for American jobs, and force those coming here through our southern border to remain in Mexico until it is time for their case to be heard.
“Biden is destroying our country with his open border policies,” said Rep. Rosendale. “My immigration bills will set the proper mechanisms in place to shut down the border, give DHS the tools to pursue criminals evading border check points, encourage American companies to hire American employees, protect taxpayer dollars by only counting only citizens in the census, and require those waiting on an immigration hearing to wait in Mexico.
“This package puts into statute the many successful policies that President Trump implemented, and will not only tackle the crisis head-on, but it will also reverse the reckless, crime encouraging, open-border policies of the Biden Administration.”
1) REMAIN In Mexico Act
This bill would require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to implement the Migrant Protection Protocols that were enacted under President Trump.
The protocols dictate that non-clearly admissible aliens, including asylum seekers arriving by land along the U.S.-Mexico border, should be returned to Mexico while their immigration proceedings are pending, rather than staying in the United States.
Co-sponsors: Rep. Gooden, Lance (TX-05), Rep. Reschenthaler, Guy (PA-14) Rep. Malliotakis, Nicole (NY-11), Rep. Harris, Andy (MD-01) Rep. Boebert, Lauren (CO-03) Rep. Waltz, Michael (FL-06), Rep. Good, Bob (VA-05), Rep. Burlison, Eric (MO-07), Rep. Baird, James R. (IN-04), Rep. Gonzales, Tony (TX-23), Rep. Van Drew, Jefferson (NJ-02), Rep. Biggs, Andy (AZ-05) Rep. Perry, Scott (PA-10), Rep. Norman, Ralph (SC-05), Rep. Balderson, Troy (OH-12), Rep. Gosar, Paul A. (AZ-09), Rep. Fry, Russell (SC-07), Rep. Carter, Earl L. "Buddy" (GA-01), Rep. Duncan, Jeff (SC-03) Rep. Arrington, Jodey C. (TX-19), Rep. LaMalfa, Doug (CA-01), Rep. Ogles, Andrew (TN-05) Rep. Yakym, Rudy (IN-02), Rep. Wilson, Joe (SC-02), Rep. Collins, Mike (GA-10)
"The Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) was an extremely effective tool to discourage fraudulent asylum claims and regain control during the previous border surge, and when the Biden Administration abandoned the program, numbers at the border began to increase. Congressman Rosendale's REMAIN in Mexico Act would restore the program and help bring about order on the border." - Grant Newman, Director of Federal Government Relations, NumbersUSA
2) Criminalize Fleeing from Immigration Enforcement Act
This bill would make it a federal crime to flee from law enforcement at checkpoints.
Current law makes it a crime to flee from law enforcement, but only if it is at high speed in a car. This bill would amend that law to make any type of fleeing criminal, whether in a car or not.
The bill also clarifies that fleeing from a law enforcement officer who is enforcing immigration laws counts as an offense.
Co-sponsors: Rep. Higgins, Clay (LA-03), Rep. Gooden, Lance (TX-05), Rep. Harris, Andy (MD-01), Rep. Boebert, Lauren (CO-03), Rep. Good, Bob (VA-05), Rep. Burlison, Eric (MO-7), Rep. Gonzales, Tony (TX-23), Rep. Biggs, Andy (AZ-05), Rep. McCaul, Michael T. (TX-10), Rep. Fry, Russell (SC-07), Rep. Norman, Ralph (SC-05) Rep. Ogles, Andrew (TN-05), Rep. Weber, Randy K., Sr. (TX-14), Rep. Collins, Mike (GA-10)
Bill text can be found here.
3) American Worker Protection Act
President Trump instituted a DHS Rule that changed the selection method of H-1B (tech workers) visas. The rule eliminated the random lottery system, replacing it with a wage-based system to protect American workers from suppressed wages while preserving a robust tech industry.
This bill would codify that rule so that companies offering the highest wages to their H-1B workers are prioritized for visas.
Co-sponsors: Rep. Harris, Andy (MD-01), Rep. Boebert, Lauren (CO-03), Rep. McCaul, Michael T. (TX-10), Rep. Collins, Mike (GA-10), Weber, Randy K., Sr. (TX-14)
4) Count Only Citizens Act
This bill would require the Census Bureau to include a check box for citizenship or lawful presence in the United States on the Census so that only American citizens are counted for Congressional representation
As of 2023, estimates suggest there are nearly 17 million illegal aliens in the U.S., many of whom are counted in our Census. These aliens are giving certain states unfair advantages in the apportionment process, stealing representation from Americans.
Co-sponsors: Rep. Harris, Andy (MD-01), Rep. Boebert, Lauren (CO-03), Rep. Good, Bob (VA-05), Rep. Burlison, Eric (MO-07), Rep. Biggs, Andy (AZ-05), Rep. Gosar, Paul A. (AZ-09), Rep. Fry, Russell (SC-07), Rep. Duncan, Jeff (SC-03), Rep. Norman, Ralph (SC-05), Rep. Weber, Randy K., Sr. (TX-14), Rep. Collins, Mike (GA-10), Rep. Wilson, Joe (SC-02)
Bill text can be found here.
5) Mass Immigration Reduction Act
This bill would create a moratorium on most types of immigration for 5 years. After this period of 5 years, the moratorium would only be lifted once fewer than 10,000 illegals cross the border per year (currently, as many as 10,000 cross per week) and there is evidence that increased legal immigration would not harm Americans.
This bill will keep a modest number of immigration visas for spouses, children, refugees, and some employment-based immigrants during the five-year moratorium. Temporary visas (work visas, etc.) would not be affected.
This bill would also end chain-migration and the diversity lottery until the moratorium ends.
This bill would require any individual naturalized during the immigration moratorium to renounce citizenship of any other country.
Finally, this legislation would limit automatic birthright citizenship to only individuals where at least one parent is a citizen, national, or lawful permanent resident of the United States at the time of birth.
Co-sponsors: Rep. Harris, Andy (MD-01), Rep. Boebert, Lauren (CO-03), Rep. Gosar, Paul A. (AZ-09), Rep. Collins, Mike (GA-10), Rep. Weber, Randy K., Sr. (TX-14)
"Recent data suggests that the Biden Administration's systematic catch-and-release policies, combined with its unlawful use of parole, have resulted in an influx of illegal aliens that may have exceeded our entire legal immigration system for the latest fiscal year. Without question, our immigration system is already over capacity, and the impact of these policies could last for generations. Congressman Rosendale's Mass Immigration Reduction Act is a strong, sensible and creative response to this crisis that border-minded Members on both sides of the aisle can and should support. The bill would hit the pause button on chain migration, the visa lottery, and low-skilled immigration until the southern border is under control and the President can demonstrate to Congress that the existing legal immigration system is actually serving the national interest. It would bring immigration numbers down to sensible levels and allow for a national discussion about a better immigration system. We applaud Congressman Rosendale for introducing this bold solution." - James Massa, CEO, NumbersUSA
“When I introduced the Mass Immigration Reduction Act back in the early 2000s, I never dreamed that an administration would actively encourage mass illegal immigration to the United States. The Biden Administration has done just that. This bill allows Congress to turn off mass legal immigration until the administration brings illegal immigration under control. I thank Congressman Rosendale for recognizing the need for urgent action.” - Congressman Tom Tancredo, Immigration Accountability Project.
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