DHS Publishes Semiannual Regulatory Agenda
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has published its semiannual regulatory agenda, which is a summary of all current and projected rulemakings, reviews of existing regulations, and completed actions of the DHS.
Among the upcoming actions, the DHS and the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (DOL) plan to propose changes “to reduce the incentives and opportunities for fraud and abuse related to the permanent employment of aliens in the United States.” The DHS is considering the elimination of the substitution of beneficiaries on permanent labor certifications, among other options. In addition, the DHS is proposing to reduce further the likelihood of the submission of “malafide” Forms I-140, Immigration Petitions for Alien Worker, which the DHS defines as employment-based petitions “that are supported by fraudulent or stale labor certification applications,” by proposing a 45-day period for employers to file approved permanent labor certifications in support of I-140 petitions with the DHS after the issuance of an approved labor certification by the DOL. The notice of proposed rulemaking is targeted for publication in March 2008.
Also targeted for publication in March 2008 is a notice of proposed rulemaking that will modify DHS regulations governing the established Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) I-901 and the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification fees to defray actual costs of related SEVP operating expenses. The proposed rule also would establish a fee to defray SEVP operating expenses related to oversight and recertification of SEVP-certified schools.
Portions of the DHS’s semiannual regulatory agenda are available in PDF. The federal government is moving agencies’ full regulatory agendas online. Because publication in the Federal Register is mandated, the DHS’s printed agenda entries include regulatory actions that are in the agency’s regulatory flexibility agenda, in accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, because they are likely to have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. Printing of these entries, however, is limited to fields that contain information required by the Act’s agenda requirements. For more information on the full regulatory agendas, see website.
