Thomas Daschle: “I rise to congratulate all those who have worked so hard for so long on the H-1B bill. Senators Leahy, Hatch, Kennedy…”

“I rise to congratulate all those who have worked so hard for so long on the H-1B bill. Senators Leahy, Hatch, Kennedy, Abraham, Feinstein, Lieberman and Biden have all done an admirable job at putting together a good bipartisan bill that will strengthen our economy and increase the resources that go to technology education and training. I would also like to thank the Majority Leader for his efforts. While we have disagreements about how the process, here in the Senate, should work, on this bill, we have shared a commitment that the Senate must act to ensure the stability of the H-1B program in the years to come. Mr. President, as you know, this legislation responds to the pressing need many American companies are facing for highly-skilled workers. The bill increases the annual ceiling for the admission of H-1B non-immigrants to 195,000 for fiscal years 2001, 2002 and 2003. It also includes an important provision to exempt H-1B visa applicants employed by higher education institutions and other non-profits from the yearly numerical limits. This visa increase could not come at a more important time. With unemployment rates currently at or near historic lows, the H-1B program has become an increasingly important source of skilled labor for U.S. employers. U.S. employers are expected to need roughly 1.6 million information technology workers in the next year. Unfortunately, the demand far exceeds the supply of qualified individuals.”