FY 2005 USCIS Budget and 6-Month Processing Time by 09/30/2006

[BaSh]

In parallel with release of the fee increase proposal, the USCIS announced that the FY 2005 USCIS included 60% increase in backlog reduction initiative fund allocation and the USCIS planned to achieve the Bush promise to reduce the processing time to six months by FY 2006 (September 30, 2006). For the details, please click here.
It is indeed surprising that the USCIS had a backlog reduction plan considering the fact that the backlog has been mounting sky high. One questions where the backlog reduction money was and where it went. In FY 2005, it earmarks a substantial amount for the alleged backlog reduction initiatives, but one cannot but notice two ironies in the budget. The fact sheet does not describe how and to what extent the backlog will be reduced during the FY 2005. We really look forward to the details of its backlog reduction initiatives. All these monies are expected to come from the fee funds. Without doubt, it will come from increased filing fees and expansion of premium processing services to other applications. Again, inasmuch as a substantial reduction is achieved in the near future, we have no problem with the FY 2005 budget. The second irony is that the immigration and nonimmigrant function funds will be decreased from the FY 2004 budget. Uh!? Even with the current year budget, the backlog has been mounting to a level unparallel with the record in the recent immigration history. When allocation of these funds are decreased, one wonders how the USCIS will deal with the new backlogs which will be generated by the decrease of the budget in these functions. We strongly believe that reduction of backlog or processing times involves much more than simple increase in funding. Improvement in management towards achievement of efficiency and effectiveness may be as important as the funding increase. The USCIS may want to review the AILA's view on this issue.

BaSh

 

[patiencelessTX]

pure wishful thinking

I wish that the budget cut would mean some job cuts threat to the TCS dudes. Thus starts a competition among them on who can adjudicate the most cases per month.

 

[BaSh]

Not Up to the Challenge -- Statement of AILA on Proposed USCIS Fee Increase

AILA Press Release: Not Up to the Challenge -- Statement of AILA on Proposed USCIS Fee Increase and the President’s Proposed FY 2005 Budget

Cite as "Posted on AILA InfoNet at Doc. No. 04020311 (Feb. 3, 2004) ."


American Immigration Lawyers Association

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 3, 2004

Contact: Judith Golub
(202) 216-2403
jgolub@aila.org
or Julia Hendrix
(202) 216-2404
jhendrix@aila.org

Not Up to the Challenge
Statement of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) on Proposed USCIS Fee Increase and the President's Proposed FY 2005 Budget

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) bureau of the Department of Homeland Security today proposed increases in fees for immigration applications of up to 55%. These fees cover almost all of the bureau's expenses. However, at a time when the quality of service is at an historic low, increases of this magnitude are difficult to justify. Processing backlogs have reached crisis proportions, while the agency wastes resources revisiting issues already resolved and harassing honest petitioners with requests for paperwork unrelated to their immigration eligibility. Making matters worse, the public's only available avenue to resolve government errors and problems is a contractor-run 800 number that has proven to be useless to deal with these issues.

Adding insult to injury, the proposed fee increase would force applicants to pay for these failures. As USCIS loses files, errs on more and more applications, and provides no viable avenue to resolve problems, lawsuits to force action have increased. The proposed budget for USCIS factors the costs of these suits into the fees by proposing a surcharge to pay for them. The Equal Access to Justice Act mandates that government agencies pay certain costs when they take a substantially unjustified position in litigation. USCIS proposes to evade this law by forcing the very people who are harmed by its actions or inaction to pay the costs of the agency's unjustified positions.

The Department also has announced that it intends to outsource the immigration information officer (IIO) function and factors into the proposed fee increase the cost of conducting an expensive study of this problematic initiative. Despite numerous problems associated with contracting out the deeply flawed 800 number system, the USCIS budget would mandate that applicants pay the costs of this study to expand this failed concept to cover all user assistance functions.

In January 1998, the Commissioner of the INS, USCIS's predecessor, stated that the fee increase announced at that time would not be implemented until applicant wait times started to decrease. Today, no such reticence is shown. Even though the ordinary wait times on many applications are double or triple today what they were in 1998, USCIS offers no such concession to those who must pay increasing amounts for deteriorated service. AILA urges the Director of the USCIS to follow the example of his predecessor and demonstrate good faith by foreswearing the fee increase until the pandemic backlogs throughout the agency are noticeably decreased.

The Bush Administration's proposed FY 2005 budget for USCIS only deepens our concerns with the $140 million included for the bureau. Such a sum recognizes neither current challenges nor realities. AILA long has supported direct Congressional appropriations to supplement user fees: USCIS adjudications and security checks are in the national interest and such appropriations are necessary to ensure a rational and predictable funding stream. The President's proposed budget is going in the wrong direction. The $140 million marks a 41% reduction from the inadequate $236 million the bureau received in FY 2004. Furthermore, Administration spokespersons have indicated their goal of covering costs wholly with fee revenue. AILA calls on the Administration to conduct a study to determine what level of funding is necessary to adequately support USCIS's adjudications functions, eliminate the backlog, and put this bureau on sound financial footing. Both the Administration and Congress need to step up to the plate and recognize that the current funding system is deeply flawed and needs to be changed.