Dianne Feinstein: “I am introducing today the COMPETE Act of 2006, along with Senators Collins and Cornyn. This is a bill which amends the…”

“I am introducing today the COMPETE Act of 2006, along with Senators Collins and Cornyn. This is a bill which amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow certain minor league athletes and ice skaters to be admitted temporarily into the United States to compete or perform in an athletic league, competition or performance under the same non-immigrant visa category as professional athletes. The purpose of this legislation is to level the playing field for minor league sports teams that depend on getting the best athletic talent, regardless of where in the world that talent is discovered. Under current law, minor league players and ice skaters who use the H-2B temporary visa category face severe visa shortages, while major league players qualify for uncapped P-1 temporary visas. This unfair discrepancy in the law needs to be remedied, and the bill we are introducing today provides a commonsense solution because it allows minor league athletes--whether in baseball, basketball, hockey, or ice skating--who will perform competitively in the United States to apply for a P-1 temporary visa as opposed to an H-2B visa. By way of background, The H-2B temporary visa category allows U.S. employers in industries with seasonal or intermittent needs to augment their existing labor force with temporary workers or augment their labor force when necessary due to a one-time occurrence which necessitates a temporary increase in workers.…”