Senate Parliamentarian's Decision Likely Kills Dem Immigration Proposal in Biden's Plan

Elizabeth MacDonough, the Senate's nonpartisan parliamentarian, has reportedly ruled that a Democratic proposal that would allow an estimated 6.5 million illegal immigrants to temporarily stay in the country should be removed from the $2 trillion "Build Back Better" bill currently being debated in the Senate, according to The Associated Press.

The proposal would allow the unauthorized immigrants who have been in the country since at least 2010 to file for one or two five-year temporary work permits that would allow them to find a job and not risk being deported if they pass background checks and other requirements.

The Congressional Budget Office released an estimate last month saying the proposal would remove obstacles in the permanent residency process for about 3 million of the estimated 6.5 million immigrants affected by the plan. That would likely lead to most of that 3 million remaining in the country after the permits expire.

The opinion from MacDonough is based on the parliamentarian being responsible for determining whether the elements included in a spending bill, like the social, environmental and healthcare bill that "Build Back Better" is, are mostly tax- and spending-based and not policy changes.

The decision means the proposal will likely be removed from the bill entirely, since the bill would almost certainly be unable to clear the necessary 60-vote threshold if it can not be passed with a simple majority or a tie broken by Vice President Kamala Harris.

The decision marks the third time since September that MacDonough has ruled against a Democrat-led policy that is focused on immigration issues being included in the bill as she said it would violate Senate rules.

When the Senate considers the overall legislation, Democrats are expected to try reviving the immigration provisions, or perhaps even stronger language giving migrants a way to become permanent residents or citizens. But it seems likely that such efforts would face solid opposition from Republicans and probably a small number of Democrats, which would be enough for defeat in the 50-50 chamber.

The people informed of MacDonough's decision were not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.

Nonetheless, her decision was a painful setback for advocates hoping to capitalize on Democratic control of the White House and Congress for gains on the issue, which have been elusive in Congress for decades.

Immigration advocates and their Democratic Senate allies have said they will continue seeking a way to include provisions helping migrants in the legislation.

But their pathway is unclear, and the bill itself is stalled in the chamber due to Democratic divisions. Work on the legislation seems all but certain to be delayed until at least January.

"Disappointed. And we're considering what options remain," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told reporters about the parliamentarian's ruling.

The rejected plan would create no new pathway for those getting work permits to remain in the U.S. permanently.

Many progressives have urged Democrats to vote to overrule the parliamentarian, whose opinion is advisory. But it seems unlikely that the party would have the unanimous support it would need to do that.

The latest proposal fell well short of Biden's initial plan this year to give the 11 million immigrants in the U.S. without legal authorization a way to seek permanent residency and even citizenship.

Even so, it would have been Congress' most sweeping move in decades to help migrants in this country. A 1986 immigration overhaul helped an estimated 2.5 million immigrants win permanent residency.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.