One More Week For Sotomayor Vote
Headline Legal News
The National Law Journal reports that the Senate Judiciary Committee has delayed today's vote on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.
The delay was expected as Republicans exercise their right for a one-week delay, commonly used by the minority party when voting on controversial issues. The vote will now take place July 28 where Sotomayor is expected to receive the nomination.
Democrats are anxious to vote, so that Sotomayor will be one step closer to filling her seat. The court has a finance case on Sept. 9 and the sooner she is confirmed, the more time she will have to prepare.
"We all know that Judge Sotomayor will be confirmed," Leahy said. "I hope that, when she is passed out of this committee, that there will be no delay on the floor because she will have a very, very few weeks after confirmation to move to Washington, set up her law clerks, set up her office, and prepare for a major, major case."
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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.