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The BRAIN Act

A P Kamath

The hi-tech industry cannot appreciate her views because it could cost the industry dearly. Trade unions dislike her because she backs foreign hi-tech students. But Zoe Lofgren, Congresswoman from Silicon Valley, thinks she has a formula to help the hi-tech industry that moans the lack of high skill workers and American hi-tech workers.

Though many Democrats are uneasy about siding with the hi-tech industry for the fear of alienating labor unions, Lofgren has no qualms about it. For she has introduced a bill this week to create a visa for skilled foreign students.

How much of support her bill will muster will be known in the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, Senator Phil Gramm (R-Texas), backed by a handful of powerful Republican leaders, have sponsored legislation that would raise current visa limits from 115,000 to 200,000.

But Lofgren thinks otherwise. She is not for increasing the numbers. She is aware of the accusation that many H1-B visa holders are not qualified for hi-tech or skilled jobs, and that there are cases of corruption in granting of visas.

Her proposal reduces the possibilities of corruption, she says. But she is unhappy that the White House and powerful Congressional leaders have not taken cognizance of her bill. The debate over the number of foreign workers needed in the country has not been productive, she says.

"We need to focus on excellence instead of arguing about shortage," she said this week.

She calls her bill BRAIN Act, BRAIN being an acronym for Bringing Resources from Academia for the Industry of our Nation.

It seeks to create a class-T "tech" visa that lets any international student with a science or engineering degree work for five years if he has a job offer worth at least $ 60,000. She wants the bill to last for four years. Meanwhile, she hopes, America will create enough number of hi-tech workers.

How would her bill help American workers?

She says it would impose a $ 1,000 filing fee per visa on companies. The money collected will be used for a hi-tech academic trust fund to improve science and math education in public schools.

EARLIER REPORTS:
Top senators urge huge increase in H1-B visas
Legislation planned to nearly double H1-B visas
H1-B visa quota getting exhausted

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