The Bush administration recently named two senior officials to oversee the handling of Iraqi refugees in response to complaints that federal authorities have not kept the pledges in assimilating the thousands who have left the war-torn country.  Lori Scialabba, a top immigration official with over 20 years experience in immigration law, and former ambassador to Haiti James Foley were announced this week by the Department of Homeland Security.  

According to The Associated Press, processing time for Iraqis is now eight to ten months, with fewer than 1,000 being admitted to the country over the past 11 months despite promised to admit 7,000 by the end of the current fiscal year.  The initial target of 7,000 has been reduced to 2,000 but is still unlikely to be met, officials say.  About 50,000 Iraqis are fleeing their war-torn country each month, making them the fastest growing refugee population in the world, according to many refugee advocacy groups.  

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Beginning this week, the national cap on H-2B guest worker visas will return to the statutory limit of 66,000 workers each year, down from the 72,000 from 2006.  Dallas Morning News reports that the news has come at a bad time for companies who have relied on employing legal immigrants to perform labor for their companies.  Demand for H-2B workers has seen a sharp increase; the number of H-2B workers sought by US employers jumped from about 100,000 in 2000 to nearly 250,000 in 2006.  

The continuous crackdown on undocumented immigrants from USCIS has made law-abiding companies reliant on the visa process.  "We don’t know what we would do without this program," said Leslie Moore, general manager of Balcones Springs Executive Center , which employs seven H-2B workers.  "We’re in a rural area.  We have a tough time finding workers out here," he said, adding that without H-2Bs, "it would be pretty near impossible to run this business."  

Mike Shutley, director for the National Restaurant Association, said his industry’s traditional labor pool – teens and people in their early 20s – is expected to have little growth.  "This 16-to-24-year-old demographic is half our workforce," he said.  "The only other way to get seasonal workers is to turn to the H-2B visa."  

"It’s terrible timing," said Texas attorney Robert Kershaw.  "If they fail to [keep the expanded number], it will mean more than a hardship.  Many of these businesses will not be able to stay in business.  I think you’ll have a lot of outrage from business owners."