On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives began debate on two immigration bills aiming to enhance border and interior enforcement of immigration law, among other matters. The two bills were the result of House Republican Majority discussion on approaches to effectively address the Administration’s call to secure America’s borders and provide for Deferred Action Childhood Arrival (DACA) participant status in the United States.
Both bills were similar in major concepts with differences in method of “wall” funding and treatment of DACA and DACA-related DREAMer populations. The two bills, HR 4670, Securing America’s Future Act, and HR 6136, Border Security and Immigration Reform Act, were considered under closed rules providing for up and down votes without amendment.
The House rejected HR 4760, Securing America’s Future Act, by a vote of 193-231 on Thursday. After this bill failed to gain the majority to pass and with many questions surrounding the Border Security and Immigration Reform Act, House Leadership held a lengthy conference education session late Thursday while delaying any further votes on the Border Security and Immigration Reform Act until, reportedly, “sometime next week.”
As of this writing, House Leadership has not rescheduled consideration of HR 6136, Border Security and Immigration Reform Act. Please check back for additional updates.
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