H.R.3012 passed the House on November 29, 2011, and was read in
the Senate and placed on its calendar on December 17, 2011. It is
not clear when it will be debated and voted on in the Senate. There
are 3 related bills in the Senate, two of which have the same bill
title and were introduced by Senator Mike Lee of Utah (S.1857) and
Senator Charles Schumer of New York (S.1983).
The version passed by the House amends the Immigration and
Nationality Act to: (1) eliminate the per country numerical
limitation for employment-based immigrants, and (2) increase the
per country numerical limitation for family based immigrants from
7% to 15% of the total number of family-sponsored visas. It also
amends the Chinese Student Protection Act of 1992 to eliminate the
provision requiring the reduction of annual Chinese (PRC) immigrant
visas to offset status adjustments under that Act.
