WASHINGTON — In a bipartisan vote of 13 to 5, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved a broad overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws Tuesday evening, sending the legislation onto the floor, where the fight is expected to last through June.
The move came as the committee reached a deal on one of the final snags threatening the legislation — and agreed to hold off on another particularly controversial amendment, which would have added protections for same-sex couples.
After intense behind-the-scenes negotiations, Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah, struck an agreement with the bipartisan group of eight senators that drafted the original bill to address his concerns about the high-skilled foreign workers who could fill jobs in the high-tech industry.
By late afternoon on Tuesday, Mr. Hatch had said that he would support the bill out of committee, if not necessarily on the Senate floor, after the committee agreed, via a voice vote, to pass his amendment.
“I’m going to vote this bill out of committee because I’ve committed to do that,” Mr. Hatch said.
Authors of the measure hope for a strong vote out of committee to help the bill as it heads to the Senate floor, where the fight is expected to last through June. Mr. Hatch’s support could help persuade other conservative Republicans to back the measure.
The most moving part of the committee process, which stretched over five days and 301 amendments, came late Tuesday, when Senator Patrick J. Leahy, the Vermont Democrat who leads the committee, revealed that he would not offer a controversial amendment allowing United States citizens to apply for permanent resident status, known as a green card, on behalf of their same-sex partners.
Mr. Leahy, according to advocates for gay rights and for immigration, was under pressure from Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York and an author of the measure, as well as from the White House, not to offer this amendment. Though both President Obama and Democrats in the bipartisan group support protections for same-sex couples in the bill, Republicans in the group have warned that such provisions would lead them to abandon the legislation entirely.
Before Mr. Leahy announced his decision, Democratic senators — all of whom personally supported the provision — engaged in a lengthy and agonizing debate.
Mr. Schumer, who said that although not including the provision amounted to “rank discrimination,” ultimately concluded: “As much as it pains me, I cannot support this amendment if it will bring down the bill.”
Similarly, Senator Al Franken, Democrat of Minnesota, said, “This is the definition of a Hobson’s choice. In my bones, I believe in equality.”
But Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and a co-author of the bill, reflected the view of his Republican colleagues when he said: “You’ve got me on immigration. You don’t have me on marriage. If you want to keep me on immigration, let’s stay on immigration.”
Ultimately, Mr. Leahy withheld his amendment “with a heavy heart,” though he can still bring it up on the Senate floor.
Mr. Hatch’s amendment, which reflects the compromise he reached with the bipartisan group, raises the minimum number of visas annually for high-skilled foreign workers — known as H-1B visas — to 115,000, from 110,000 in the bill, while keeping the maximum at 180,000 a year. More important, aides to Mr. Hatch said, his provision includes a mechanism based on conditions in the labor market, intended to ensure that companies based in the United States can bring qualified foreign workers when jobs are not filled by Americans, but decreases visas when Americans are available.
His provision would also make it easier for employers to hire foreign workers, because it lightens the burden on them to demonstrate that they first tried to hire a qualified American worker.
Somini Sengupta contributed reporting from San Francisco, and Mike Shear contributed reporting from Washington.
The move came as the committee reached a deal on one of the final snags threatening the legislation — and agreed to hold off on another particularly controversial amendment, which would have added protections for same-sex couples.
After intense behind-the-scenes negotiations, Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah, struck an agreement with the bipartisan group of eight senators that drafted the original bill to address his concerns about the high-skilled foreign workers who could fill jobs in the high-tech industry.
By late afternoon on Tuesday, Mr. Hatch had said that he would support the bill out of committee, if not necessarily on the Senate floor, after the committee agreed, via a voice vote, to pass his amendment.
“I’m going to vote this bill out of committee because I’ve committed to do that,” Mr. Hatch said.
Authors of the measure hope for a strong vote out of committee to help the bill as it heads to the Senate floor, where the fight is expected to last through June. Mr. Hatch’s support could help persuade other conservative Republicans to back the measure.
The most moving part of the committee process, which stretched over five days and 301 amendments, came late Tuesday, when Senator Patrick J. Leahy, the Vermont Democrat who leads the committee, revealed that he would not offer a controversial amendment allowing United States citizens to apply for permanent resident status, known as a green card, on behalf of their same-sex partners.
Mr. Leahy, according to advocates for gay rights and for immigration, was under pressure from Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York and an author of the measure, as well as from the White House, not to offer this amendment. Though both President Obama and Democrats in the bipartisan group support protections for same-sex couples in the bill, Republicans in the group have warned that such provisions would lead them to abandon the legislation entirely.
Before Mr. Leahy announced his decision, Democratic senators — all of whom personally supported the provision — engaged in a lengthy and agonizing debate.
Mr. Schumer, who said that although not including the provision amounted to “rank discrimination,” ultimately concluded: “As much as it pains me, I cannot support this amendment if it will bring down the bill.”
Similarly, Senator Al Franken, Democrat of Minnesota, said, “This is the definition of a Hobson’s choice. In my bones, I believe in equality.”
But Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and a co-author of the bill, reflected the view of his Republican colleagues when he said: “You’ve got me on immigration. You don’t have me on marriage. If you want to keep me on immigration, let’s stay on immigration.”
Ultimately, Mr. Leahy withheld his amendment “with a heavy heart,” though he can still bring it up on the Senate floor.
Mr. Hatch’s amendment, which reflects the compromise he reached with the bipartisan group, raises the minimum number of visas annually for high-skilled foreign workers — known as H-1B visas — to 115,000, from 110,000 in the bill, while keeping the maximum at 180,000 a year. More important, aides to Mr. Hatch said, his provision includes a mechanism based on conditions in the labor market, intended to ensure that companies based in the United States can bring qualified foreign workers when jobs are not filled by Americans, but decreases visas when Americans are available.
His provision would also make it easier for employers to hire foreign workers, because it lightens the burden on them to demonstrate that they first tried to hire a qualified American worker.
Somini Sengupta contributed reporting from San Francisco, and Mike Shear contributed reporting from Washington.