Washington, D.C. - Senators Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas), David Perdue (R-Georgia), and Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) re-introduced the Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy (RAISE) Act, a bill that would spur continued economic growth and raise working Americans' wages by giving priority to the best-skilled immigrants from around the world and reducing overall immigration levels. Representative Francis Rooney (R-Florida) will introduce companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
The RAISE Act is supported by President Trump and has been described by the White House as a bill that "will create a merit-based immigration system that protects our workers, our taxpayers, and our economy."
"I'm proud to reintroduce the RAISE Act supported by the White House. For decades, our immigration system has been completely divorced from the needs of our country and has harmed the livelihoods of working-class Americans. The RAISE Act would build an immigration system that increases working-class wages, creates jobs, and gives every citizen a fair shot at achieving the American Dream, no matter whether their family came over on the Mayflower or just took the Oath of Allegiance," said Cotton.
"Our current immigration system is broken and is not meeting the needs of our growing economy. If we want to continue to be the global economic leader, we have to welcome the best and brightest from around the world who wish to come to the United States legally to work and make a better life for themselves. This will require a skills-based immigration system that is pro-growth and pro-worker. The RAISE Act is proven to work and is still the only plan that responds to the needs of our economy, while preserving quality jobs and wages for American workers," said Perdue.
"We need an immigration system that puts American workers first. Our broken immigration policies hurt hardworking Americans and the talented individuals who are stuck in line, waiting to contribute to our country. With the RAISE Act, the United States can finally end chain migration and move to a merit-based system. All Americans deserve rising wages, a growing economy, and an equal shot at the American Dream," said Hawley.
"The United States immigration system is broken. Only one in every 15 immigrants to our country are granted visas because of their skills, and we do not prioritize the ultra high-skilled immigrants who spur innovation, create jobs, and make America more competitive. The system we have now supports programs like the Diversity Visa Lottery, which does not add skills or competitive workers to our workplace, and "chain migration," whereby once a person enters, their family relations can automatically come to the U.S. regardless of their employability. Together with Senator Tom Cotton, I introduced the RAISE Act to end these failed programs and replace them with a merit-based system that considers education, English-language ability, high-paying job offers, age, record of extraordinary achievement, and entrepreneurial initiative. Passing this legislation, along with legislation that I have cosponsored to fix the asylum-seeking process and mandate e-verify, will provide significantly better immigration policy and greater control of our borders," said Congressman Rooney.
Specifically, the RAISE Act would:
Click here to read the full text of the legislation. Additionally, click here for a section by section summary and here for a fact sheet on the legislation.
Click here for a full fact sheet from the White House on President Trump's support for the RAISE Act, first introduced in 2017.
Click here for examples of praise from the White House and others for the RAISE Act.