The USCIS has proposed a major revision of form I-129, including the instructions to the form. This request in now pending before the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). They have published their request in the Federal Register and have requested public comment on the proposal. The comment period closes on April 9, 2010. After the public comment period closes, the USCIS is required to take all public comments into consideration and them put forward a proposed final version of the form and instructions. The OMB will review both the public comments and the USCIS final proposal to make sure that the agency has not exceeded its authority, violated federal statutes, and taken public comments into account. Once the OMB approves the final proposal, the USCIS will publish a final notice and the form will become effective. It is safe to say that once this new form takes effect, prior versions will not be accepted for filing.   

CIR remains stalled in Congress. Following the resolution of the health care legislation, individual Republican senators seem to be rethinking their commitment to the uniform opposition pushed by their leadership. The day after the final health care vote, the two Republican senators from Maine jumped ship and voted with Democrats on a bill opposed by the Republican leadership. That same day, when the rest of the Republicans were walking out on committee hearings, Sen. Lindsey Graham refused to walk out on a hearing considering an extension of benefits for homeless vets, even though he had to defy his leadership to do this. 

There is both good and bad news to report concerning PERM processing. The bad news is that the Department of Labor (DOL) prevailing wage system has not improved in the nearly three months that it has been operating. The good news is that PERM processing times are finally starting to drop significantly.