DOL Predicts Increased Backlogs in Large States
From Matthew Perry\'s website:
www.immigration-law.com:
At the DOL-AILA Liaison Meeting of 11/30/2001, DOL released that in
fiscal year 2001, DOL received over 106,000 new regular permanent labor
certifications nationally. In addition, over 235,000 245 (i) labor certifications
were received prior to the April 30, 2001 deadline. The 245 (i) cases
impacted heavily in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Illinois and California
where 65-70% of the 245 (i) cases were filed. In these states, the current
processing times do not factor in the 245 (i) cases because the SESAs have
not reached these cases yet. In New York current processing for
permanent cases is about 5 ½ years with RIR cases taking from 10 to 12
months. In Texas, regular cases are being processed in about 2 ½ years
with RIR cases taking about 1 year. In California, regular cases are being
processed in about 2 years with RIR cases taking 7 to 8 months. When the
states with the most serious backlogs reach the 245 (i) bubble, the
processing times will increase greatly. Some smaller states such as
Vermont, West Virginia, Illinois, Oklahoma, Iowa, Nebraska, Montana,
North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Hawaii have actually passed
the 245 (i) bubble and consequently processing in these states will be
quicker. Chronic staffing shortages at the SESAs and DOL regional offices
will reportedly continue.