[October 15, 2005]

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∙         that Mexicans, who accounted for 94 percent of the U.S. Border Patrol’s 1.1 million arrests last year, rarely go to jail - unless they are serial offenders or have criminal histories?

∙          that typically, they are fingerprinted and immediately sent home on a bus as “voluntary returns?

∙          that U.S. passports are not valid for travel to Cuba and North Korea?

∙         that  U.S. citizens returning from trips to said countries where the State Department has imposed a travel ban will have their passport lifted?

∙         that a special memorandum will be sent to the Department of State containing passport data and facts surrounding the travel?

∙         that a copy of the memorandum will be provided to the bearer of the U.S. passport?

∙          that recent legislation provided for the recapture of 50,000 employment-based immigrant visa numbers that were unused in FY 2001 through FY 2004?

∙         that such numbers are to be made available to employment-based immigrants described in the Department of Labor’s Schedule A and their accompanying spouses and children?

∙         that Schedule A applies only to professional nurses, physical therapists, and certain aliens of exceptional ability in the sciences or arts?

∙          that the Schedule A category is now current, meaning that immigrant visa numbers are available to Schedule A workers?

∙          that federal regulations protect the confidentiality of asylum applicants?

∙          that the federal regulations at 8 CFR 208.6 general prohibit the disclosure to third parties of information contained in or pertaining to asylum, credible fear determinations, and reasonable fear determinations?

∙          that according to established guidelines, confidentiality is breached when information contained in or pertaining to an asylum application is disclosed to a third party in violation of the regulations?

∙          that in the absence of the asylum applicant’s written consent or the Secretary of Homeland Security’s specific authorization, disclosure may be made only to the  United States government officials or contractors and United States federal or state courts on a need to know basis related to certain administrative, law enforcement and civil actions?

∙          that public disclosure of asylum-related information may subject the claimant to retaliatory measures by government authorities or non-state actors in the event that the claimant is repatriated, or endanger the security of the claimant’s family members who may still be residing in the country of origin?

∙          that under the new changes to the L-1 visa program, L-1B ?u>specialized knowledge? workers can no longer work primarily at a worksite other than that of their petitioning employer if either (a) the work is controlled and supervised by a different employer or (b) the off-site arrangement is essentially one to provide a non-petitioning party with local labor for hire, rather than a service related to the specialized knowledge of the petitioning employer?

∙         that the agency that will interpret the “control and supervision?provisions of the new law will require an L-1B petitioning employer to retain ultimate authority over the worker?