PAUSE Act: Freeze all immigration, put Americans first, says US lawmaker

A controversial Bill seeks to halt almost all legal immigration to the United States, overhaul family and work visa categories, and introduce tighter national security restrictions

United States Representative Chip Roy of Texas last week introduced a sweeping proposal to freeze almost all immigration to the country, except for temporary visitor visas. The Pausing All Admissions Until Security Ensured Act, or PAUSE Act, arrives at a moment of fierce political debate over migration and national security.

 

Announcing the Bill on X on Tuesday, he said, “Biden and Mayorkas broke our immigration system deliberately. The PAUSE Act follows historical precedent to freeze immigration, end abuses, close loopholes and put Americans first.”

 

The legislation sets out a long list of conditions that would need to be met before any immigration channels could reopen. Congressman Roy’s office said the Bill is intended to ensure the system works “on behalf of the American people.”

 

 

His office noted that the foreign-born population has reached 51.9 million, or more than 15 per cent of the national population. It said the US now takes in more immigrants than all other nations combined and raised questions about assimilation and how current numbers fit with “economic, cultural, and security interests.”

 

Speaking about the Bill, Congressman Roy said, “The problem isn’t just illegal immigration; it’s also legal immigration. While the Biden administration opened our borders and allowed millions to flood into our country, they also rubber-stamped millions more arriving through convoluted legal schemes, completely overwhelming the system.”

 

He argued that younger Americans are struggling in the job market, claiming that “a lion’s share of H-1B visas are being awarded for entry-level positions.” He also said families are dealing with rising insurance costs while “aliens are receiving taxpayer-funded healthcare.”

 

He added that key life goals such as “marriage, parenthood, and homeownership” are becoming harder for Americans, while extended family migration continues.

 

His statement continued, “Everyday Americans are working to advance their careers through merit, while our immigration system uses a lottery that doesn’t bring the best, but the luckiest. Many Americans strive to live their life practising their faith, while our immigration system is actively importing radical Islamic Sharia adherents and communists. The American people are done being taken advantage of by the rest of the world. Our immigration system is supposed to benefit Americans. We must put a pause on immigration until we fundamentally fix our broken system.”

 

What are the key provisions of the PAUSE Act?

 

The Bill would suspend most legal immigration until Congress completes major changes, including:

 

• Ending Plyler v. Doe to let states limit public school access to citizens and lawful permanent residents

• Revising birthright citizenship so that at least one parent must be a citizen or green card holder

• Ending chain migration and the Diversity Visa Programme, allowing only spouses and unmarried minor children to immigrate under family routes

• Blocking entry for people who follow Sharia law, members of the Chinese Communist Party, individuals on terrorism lists, and members of Foreign Terrorist Organisations

• Restricting access for noncitizens to means-tested federal benefits such as SNAP, SSI, TANF, Medicaid, Medicare, WIC, federal student loans, and public housing

• Removing the option of adjustment of status for H-1B workers and ending the Optional Practical Training programme

 

Representatives Keith Self, Brandon Gill, Andy Biggs, Lauren Boebert, Eli Crane, and Andy Ogles are serving as original co-sponsors.

 

What have other lawmakers proposed?

 

Earlier in November, Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene said she was preparing a separate Bill to “completely eliminate” the H-1B visa programme and strip the pathway to citizenship it offers, which she said would “force” foreign workers to “return home” when their visas expire. The H-1B route is widely used by Indian professionals, who receive more than 70 per cent of approved petitions each year, largely due to the country’s large STEM workforce and strong employer demand in the US.

 

“My dear fellow Americans, I’m introducing a Bill to completely eliminate the H-1B visa programme, which has been riddled with fraud and abuse and has been displacing American workers for decades,” said Greene, a congresswoman from Georgia, in a video posted on X.

 

She said her proposal would allow one exception: a cap of 10,000 visas a year for medical professionals such as doctors and nurses who provide essential care. Greene said her Bill would “completely end the H-1B visa programme and all other sectors in the job force and in the workforce.”

 

“This is America first. It’s time to put American citizens first instead of foreigners first, and this has been an abuse for far too long. Americans deserve a future. They deserve a chance. And I believe Americans are the most talented people in the world and the most creative, and I want them to have their American dream,” she said.