The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) says it has received reports from Citizenship and Immigration Services officials that the “BCIS plans to have adjudicators at the Service Centers start issuing Notices to Appear, possibly as early as October 1, 2003.” AILA said the program is likely to begin with TPS applications, and with respect to aggravated felonies, and eventually branch out to all types of filings. The BCIS has already held training sessions and a conference on the subject, AILA said.

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A group of Cuban musicians were unable to attend last week’s Latin Grammy Awards show in Miami, because their visas were not approved. One group complained that they were denied visas, but State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the primary reason four Cuban nominees still haven't heard if they can travel to Miami is that they applied late. Since Cuba is classified by the U.S. government as a state sponsor of terrorism, more extensive background checks are required for visa applicants, which takes the government six to eight weeks to complete.

“You can’t expect us to do all the necessary, legally required, and prudent checks in a very, very short length of time with an event coming up in a few days,” Boucher said.

Officials in Cuba's Culture Ministry said earlier this month that they began the process of seeking approvals for nominees on August 2, according to the Washington Post, which also reported that seven of the applicants had been denied.

Twelve Cuban acts were nominated, including Ibrahim Ferrer, the singer of the Buena Vista Social Club, which is considered a pro-Castro group. A group of Cuban-American exiles had planned to protest the event, but the demonstrators stayed home when they learned that the Cuban artists would not be getting visas in time for the show.

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Democrat Presidential candidates held the first ever bilingual presidential debate last week on the University of New Mexico campus. The debate was sponsored by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, co-produced by Spanish-language network Univision, and moderated by the network's anchor, Maria Elena Salinas, allowing an opportunity for the candidates to make a special appeal to the increasingly important Hispanic voting community.

Hispanics are now the largest minority group, and in New Mexico, Hispanics account for 42 percent of the population.

This week the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania released a survey finding that most Hispanic voters tilt toward Democrats on economic issues, but favor Republicans on social issues such as abortion and school vouchers. The survey suggested that party affiliation varies considerably among Hispanics of different national heritages. Those of Cuban descent were more likely to vote Republican, while those of Caribbean heritage were nearly five times as likely to favor Democrats.

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Last week thirty-four Senators led by Joseph Lieberman and Patrick Leahy, all Democrats, singed a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge urging him to reconsider his decision to open the jobs of Immigration Information Officers (IIOs) to competition with private contractors. The Senators said the move "could potentially compromise the nation's security and cause yet more delays in the immigration process."

“I am deeply troubled that Secretary Ridge would consider sidelining these experienced, well trained and knowledgeable employees at a time when they are needed most. As threats to our security grow, Secretary Ridge should be focused on uniting his team at the new department, not undermining it through costly competition,” Lieberman said.

The full text of the Lieberman / Leahy letter is available online at: http://leahy.senate.gov/press/200309/090503a.html

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A group of I-485 applicants is circulating a petition to “draw the attention of BCIS to the excruciatingly slow progress of our I-485 applications at California, Nebraska, Texas and Vermont Service centers” and alert them to “the increasing processing times in which applicants and future citizens are being required to endure.”

The petition is available online at:  http://www.immigration.com/common/rsk/petition_I485.html

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The National Immigration Law Center is compiling a chart of cities that have passed laws and resolutions against police enforcement of immigration laws. The list details the specific resolutions and laws passed by about 30 state and local governments, including Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, D.C., Portland, Baltimore, Detroit, Minneapolis, Albuquerque, New York City, Philadelphia, Austin, Houston, Seattle, as well as the states of Alaska and Oregon. Readers with information about local policies in their local areas are urged to contact the NILC’s Sara Campos at campos@nilc.org

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According to a survey conducted by AILA, nearly 80% of those using the BCIS National Customer Service Center’s 800 number are dissatisfied with the experience, with 63% giving the lowest possible satisfaction rating. AILA collected results from more than 500 users and has posted the results online at http://www.aila.org/newsViewer.aspx?bc=273&docID=11045