William F. Smith: “I want to recognize two Members on the House floor tonight. The gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), who is chairman…”

“I want to recognize two Members on the House floor tonight. The gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), who is chairman of the House Committee on Rules, has been a tireless advocate on behalf of the high-tech industry. I do not know of anyone who has worked harder, invested more time and energy, or is more responsible for the bill that we are considering tonight being on the House floor, and I would like to congratulate him in advance on the expected passage of this bill. Second of all, the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Cannon), who just yielded me the time, is an active member of the Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims, and he too has been a steadfast advocate of the high-tech industry. The gentleman from Utah himself is an entrepreneur and he understands firsthand the needs of the high-tech industry. Mr. Speaker, although there is still no objective credible study that documents the shortage of American high-tech workers, the INS said recently that the demand for highly skilled foreign workers is running at least 50,000 ahead of last year. Such a demand can indicate an actual shortage of American workers, a spot shortage, a preference for cheap labor or replacement workers, or something else. But because of the importance of the high-tech industry to our economy, I think we should give the industry the benefit of the doubt. But giving high-tech companies the benefit of the doubt is not without risk, unless we safeguard American workers.”