• About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
Friday, May 9, 2025
The Iowa Torch
  • Home
  • State Government
  • Federal Government
  • Local Government
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • State Government
  • Federal Government
  • Local Government
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Opinion
The Iowa Torch
The Iowa Torch
No Result
View All Result
Home Federal Government

Miller-Meeks Introduces Legislation to Preserve Unused Visas

U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks' bill would allow U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to preserve unused employment-based visas for use in Fiscal Years 2020 and 2021.

Iowa TorchbyIowa Torch
October 6, 2021
in Federal Government
Reading Time: 1 min read

U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, represents Iowa's 1st Congressional District.

WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, introduced the Preserving Employment Visas Act. This legislation would allow the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to preserve unused employment-based visas for use in Fiscal Years 2020 and 2021 (FY20 and FY21).

RELATED POSTS

EPA issues emergency fuel waiver for E15 sales

Grassley says feds are ‘dragging feet’ on bolstering cybersecurity defense

Sarah’s Law passes House Judiciary Committee

This legislation is the House companion to S. 2828, introduced by Senator Thom Tillis, R-NC, in September.

“Ensuring that our immigration system is fair and orderly is one of my top priorities in Congress. These visas are already authorized by Congress and would have been used if not for the COVID-19 pandemic,” Miller-Meeks said in a released statement. “My legislation would fuel the American recovery from COVID-19, contribute to long-term economic growth, and provide relief for healthcare providers by reducing the green card backlog. As a member of the Homeland Security Committee, I look forward to working with USCIS to make sure that our immigration system works for everyone.”

ADVERTISEMENT

During FY20, 122,000 family-preference visas went unused. This caused the number of employment-based visas available in FY21 to rise to 226,000. This dramatic increase in employment-based visas represents a unique opportunity to reduce the green card backlog and improve American competitiveness through legal immigration.

Processing delays at USCIS could cause employment-based visas to be wasted. According to recent court filings, USCIS is currently at risk of wasting almost 83,000 employment-based visas which expired on October 1st, 2021. This is in addition to 9,100 unused employment-based visas from FY20.

Miller-Meeks believes wasting these visas would be a major loss to American economic competitiveness and to the healthcare industry. American businesses and healthcare providers were already struggling to fill both skilled and unskilled jobs before COVID-19 and continue to face labor shortages during our recovery from the pandemic.

Read the bill below:

117 Miller-Meeks Preserving Employment Visas Act
Tags: 117th Congressemployment visasImmigrationMariannette Miller-MeeksU.S. Citizenship and Immigration ServicesU.S. House of Representatives
ShareTweetShare
ADVERTISEMENT
Previous Post

Editorial: Democrat Accusations of Gerrymandering Are Premature and Partisan

Next Post

Reynolds Announces Funds Available to Support Rural Communities

Iowa Torch

Iowa Torch

The Iowa Torch​ is a for-profit, news organization that focuses on political news as it relates to Iowans.

Related Posts

Hinson: Use biofuels to bring down the cost of gas today
Federal Government

EPA issues emergency fuel waiver for E15 sales

April 19, 2024
Opinion

Miller-Meeks: Iowa has become a border state under the Biden Administration

April 19, 2024
Opinion

Feenstra: There’s no such thing as ‘canceling’ student loan debt

April 17, 2024
Opinion

Miller-Meeks: The time for practical energy solutions is now

April 11, 2024
help wanted sign on glass
Opinion

Feenstra: Growing and Strengthening Iowa’s Workforce

April 9, 2024
Editorial: Elected Officials Should Stay Out of Private Labor Disputes
Opinion

Feenstra: The Farm Bill is a strong investment in American agriculture

April 2, 2024
Next Post
Reynolds Announces Funds Available to Support Rural Communities

Reynolds Announces Funds Available to Support Rural Communities

Study: $1,702 Collected in Property Taxes Per Capita in Iowa

Hendrickson: Placing Property Taxpayers First

Recommended Articles

COVID-19 Exposure Ends Grassley’s Over 27-Year-Long Voting Streak

COVID-19 Exposure Ends Grassley’s Over 27-Year-Long Voting Streak

November 17, 2020
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds delivers the Condition of the State address in the House Chambers at the Iowa Capitol Building on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021. Photo Credit: Bryon Houlgrave/The Des Moines Register

Iowa Christian Schools Group Says Reynolds’ K-12 Education Bill Needs Improvement

January 23, 2021
Hinson, Miller-Meeks, Axne, and Feenstra Sworn Into 117th Congress

Axne Is Only Iowa U.S. House Member to Vote for Gender Wage Gap Bill

April 16, 2021

Popular Stories

  • Three LGTBQ Books with Sexually Explicit Material Pulled from Waukee School

    Three LGTBQ Books with Sexually Explicit Material Pulled from Waukee School

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Rozenboom: Reflecting on the First Week of the 2021 Legislative Session

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Iowa Dept. of Health & Human Services fill two leadership roles

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Reynolds Appoints Joshua Schier as District Court Judge

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Fauci ends taxpayer-funded experiments on dogs

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
The Iowa Torch

The Iowa Torch​ is a for-profit, news organization that focuses on political news as it relates to Iowans

Categories

  • Current Events
  • Education
  • Federal Government
  • Iowa History
  • Local Government
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Politics
  • State Government

Newsletter

© 2022 The Iowa Torch, a publication of 4:15 Communications, LLC.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • State Government
  • Federal Government
  • Local Government
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Opinion

© 2022 The Iowa Torch, a publication of 4:15 Communications, LLC.