Breyer, Gorsuch join to promote education about Constitution
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Recently retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer has become the honorary co-chairman of a nonpartisan group devoted to education about the Constitution, joining Justice Neil Gorsuch at a time of intense political polarization and rising skepticism about the court’s independence.
The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia said Thursday that Breyer and Gorsuch, who has served since 2019, will be spokesmen for civics education and civility in politics.
The justices’ decision to work together “is especially meaningful in this polarized time,” Jeffrey Rosen, the center’s president and CEO, said.
The 84-year-old Breyer retired at the end of June after nearly 28 years as a justice. His seat was taken by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the high court’s first Black woman.
Breyer has been a constant voice for seeing the court as something other than “politicians in robes” even as the court has issued a string of conservative-driven decisions topped by eliminating the constitutional right to abortion and overturning Roe v. Wade.
In recent months, the court with six Republican-appointed conservatives and three liberals appointed by Democrats also has expanded gun rights, weakened the separation of church and state and constrained the Biden administration’s efforts to combat climate change and the coronavirus pandemic.
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USCIS Adjusting Premium Processing Fee
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today it is adjusting the premium processing fee for Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker and Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers beginning on Oct. 1, 2018 to more effectively adjudicate petitions and maintain effective service to petitioners.
The premium processing fee will increase to $1,410, a 14.92 percent increase (after rounding) from the current fee of $1,225. This increase, which is done in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, represents the percentage change in inflation since the fee was last increased in 2010 based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers.
“Because premium processing fees have not been adjusted since 2010, our ability to improve the adjudications and service processes for all petitioners has been hindered as we’ve experienced significantly higher demand for immigration benefits. Ultimately, adjusting the premium processing fee will allow us to continue making necessary investments in staff and technology to administer various immigration benefit requests more effectively and efficiently,” said Chief Financial Officer Joseph Moore. “USCIS will continue adjudicating all petitions on a case-by-case basis to determine if they meet all standards required under applicable law, policies, and regulations.”
Premium processing is an optional service that is currently authorized for certain petitioners filing Forms I-129 or I-140. The system allows petitioners to request 15-day processing of certain employment-based immigration benefit requests if they pay an extra fee. The premium processing fee is paid in addition to the base filing fee and any other applicable fees, which cannot be waived.