Marco Rubio Says Immigrants Should Have Better English Proficiency To Get Green Cards

Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), one of the eight senators on the bipartisan "Gang of Eight" team which crafted the current immigration reform bill, announced this morning that he will propose an amendment toughening English-language proficiency requirements for immigrants seeking green cards. "On the day we announced the principles that would shape the immigration bill, we made it clear that English proficiency would now be required for permanent residency for the first time in American history," said Rubio in the announcement. "This amendment ensures that will be the case."

The amendment would cut out a clause in the bill which allows those deemed "residential provisional immigrants" to prove they're learning English by enrolling in a course.

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The bill currently reads, "A registered provisional immigrant who is 16 years of age or older shall establish that he or she (i) meets the requirements set forth in section 312; or (ii) is satisfactorily pursuing a course of study, pursuant to standards established by the Secretary of Education, consultation with the Secretary, to achieve an understanding of English and knowledge and understanding of the history and Government of the United States, as described in section 312(a)." Rubio's amendment would strike the second clause.

"Since the bill was introduced two months ago, the open and transparent process it has undergone has elicited constructive criticisms to improve it. This is one of the bill's shortcomings that came to light, which we can now fix."

The amendment would, in addition to eliminating the second provision, require that undocumented immigrants prove themselves capable of reading, writing and speaking English before they earn a green card for permanent residency. Currently, English proficiency is only required for full citizenship. The Washington Post notes that the current version of the Senate bill allows undocumented immigrants to apply for green cards after 10 years. They would face another three-year wait to apply for full citizenship.

Rubio is widely considered an important figure in immigration reform negotiations as a Tea Party favorite who helped craft the bill. He has been pushing recently for the bill to contain more specific provisions on border security instead of giving the Department of Homeland Security discretion over how to go about achieving the apprehension and monitoring goals. Like many Republicans, he wants previously undocumented immigrants to be able to proceed on their path to citizenship only if the goals are met, and advocates for provisions within the bill which would make this explicit. Rubio is an early favorite for the Republican presidential candidacy in 2016.