On the recordJune 18, 2013
Madam President, I rise to discuss the report by the Congressional Budget Office that was just released. This is a long- awaited report, and we have all been waiting with bated breath to see what they would say. The report assesses the economic and fiscal impact of S. 744, the bipartisan immigration bill being debated here in the Senate. We are still digesting the report, but at first glance it contains some very positive news for comprehensive immigration reform on a number of fronts. At the beginning of our bipartisan negotiations on this bill, we made an important promise: Our bill will not add to the deficit. CBO found that we kept our promise--and then some. Let me review some of the top- line findings of the CBO report. CBO found our bill decreases Federal budget deficits by $197 billion over the 2014-2023 period. CBO finds we achieve about $700 billion in deficit reduction in the second decade of implementation, from 2024 to 2033. So the first 10 years, our bill, according to CBO, decreases the deficit by $175 billion and in the second 10 years by $700 billion. The CBO also released an economic analysis that found the bill will increase GDP by 3.3 percent in 2023, and between 5.1 percent and 5.7 percent in 2033. The second-decade figure on deficit reduction is quite relevant and remarkable. Many of the bill's opponents were specifically urging the CBO to look at the second decade in hopes it would show major costs, but CBO found just the opposite.…





