Translate

EIIC News

Advocacy at City Hall and Albany

 

EIIC participated in a number of advocacy events in New York City and Albany over the last few weeks, highlighting the difficulties that immigrants face and encouraging legislators to enact solutions.

EIIC was well represented at the NYIC’s Annual Day of Action on April 17 at City Hall. Staff, including Executive Director Siobhan Dennehy and Director of Legal Services John Stahl, Esq., met with city politicians to discuss the issues facing immigrants in New York City. The Center also brought a group of community members who joined over 200 immigrants at the event.

On March 14 EIIC staff and a bus full of community members went upstate to participate in the Immigrants’ Day of Action in Albany. The event was organized by New York Immigration Coalition of which the Center is an active and engaged member. Thanks to all of those who traveled and delivered a message to legislators about the needs of immigrants in New York.

Photos of both advocacy days are available on the EIIC Facebook page.

St. Patrick’s Day Roundup

 

Comptroller John Liu honors Community Members

Emerald Isle would like to recognize Rosemary Lombard, Peter Quinn and Pádraig Ó Cearúill who were honored by Comptroller John Liu this March. They are great ambassadors for their community and worthy recipients.

City Council Irish Heritage Night

Emerald Isle Staff and Board were present at the City Council’s Irish Heritage Night on March 27th at the New York Historical Society. Congratulations to the honorees Chris Matthews and Sheila Lynott-Houircan, and the Queens Sanitation worker and Irish scholar Ed Shevlin who was presented to the audience. Detective Kevin Brennan and Detective Kevin H. Herlihy were also recognized for their wonderful service to the NYPD.

Woodlawn Saint Patrick’s Day Parade

Congratulations to the organizers of the inaugural St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Woodlawn. The Parade was a great success and will undoubtedly grow even stronger over the coming years. EIIC participated with the Merchants Association who created a banner for the Parade. Thanks to all of those involved.

Saint Patrick’s Parade in Queens

Board Member Peter Quinn had the honor of being the Grand Marshal for this year’s St. Pats for all Queens Saint Patrick’s Day Parade, leading it through Sunnyside and Woodside. The popular event was attended by many of the Center’s staff.

Irish American Legislators Society

Congratulations to Chair Brian O’Dwyer who was honored by the Irish American Legislators Association at Hibernian Hall in Albany on March 12. The event was preceded by a lunch, hosted by Jeff Cleary of the Irish American Heritage Museum, to mark the event.

The White House Reception

Chair Brian O’Dwyer was present for the meeting of An Taoiseach Enda Kenny and the President Barack Obama, and the customary presentation of a bowl of shamrock to the President.

The Celtic Cruise to Benefit the EIIC, June 6, 2012

Celtic Charity Inc & AOH div. 7 Present

The Celtic Cruise – Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Music, Dancing, Great Food and Fun Aboard The Spirit of New York to Benefit the Emerald Isle Immigration Center!

Featuring Live Music by Celtic Cross The Cunningham Brothers The Shay Mac Band The Chris Kelly Band

Full open Bar – Hot & Cold Buffet Dinner – Dessert

General Admission, Presale: $100, After April 30: $110

For more info visit: www.celticcharity.com or call 212-717-9955

Board at Chelsea Piers, Pier 62, West 23rd Street & 12th Ave. NYC
Board 6:00 pm/Sail 6:45 pm Return 10:00 pm Party ‘til 10:30

Amazing raffle prizes 1st prize: Two R/T tickets to Ireland 2nd prize: $500 gift certificate to Broadway.com 3rd prize: Dine around Manhattan

USCIS to Accept H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2013, Beginning April 2, 2012

Petitioners are Reminded to Follow Regulatory Requirements

WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it will begin accepting H-1B petitions subject to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 cap on Monday April 2, 2012.  Cases will be considered accepted on the date that USCIS takes possession of a properly filed petition with the correct fee.  USCIS will not rely upon the date that the petition is postmarked.

The congressionally mandated numerical limitation on H-1B petitions for FY 2013 is 65,000.  Additionally, the first 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of individuals who have earned a U.S. master’s degree or higher are exempt from the fiscal year cap.

USCIS will monitor the number of petitions received and will notify the public of the date on which USCIS received the necessary number of petitions to meet the H-1B cap.  If the number of applications received exceeds the numerical cap, USCIS will randomly select the number of petitions required to reach the numerical limit from the pool of petitions received on the final receipt date.  USCIS will reject cap-subject petitions that are not selected, as well as those received after the final receipt date.

Petitions for new H-1B employment are exempt from the annual cap if the beneficiaries will work at institutions of higher education or related or affiliated nonprofit entities, nonprofit research organizations or governmental research organizations.  Petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries who will work only in Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are exempt from the cap until December 31, 2014.  Employers may continue to file petitions for these cap-exempt H-1B categories seeking work dates starting in FY 2012.

Petitions filed on behalf of current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap also do not count towards the congressionally mandated H-1B cap.  Accordingly, USCIS will continue to process FY 2012 petitions filed to:

  • extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States;
  • change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;
  • allow current H-1B workers to change employers; or
  • allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second H-1B position.

H-1B petitioners should follow all statutory and regulatory requirements as they prepare petitions to avoid delays in processing and requests for evidence.  USCIS has developed detailed information, including a processing worksheet, to assist in the completion and submission of FY 2013 H-1B petitions.

U.S. businesses use the H-1B program to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields, such as scientists, engineers, or computer programmers.

For more information on the H-1B nonimmigrant visa program and current Form I-129 processing times, visit www.uscis.gov or call the National Customer Service Center at (800) 375-5283.

Petitioning Cuomo, at City Hall, to get involved in the Dream Act in Albany

Petitioning Cuomo, at City Hall, to get involved in the Dream Act in Albany

Capital New York.

BY ELIZABETH GONZALEZ 1:06 pm Mar. 21, 2012

Against a backdrop of more than 50 students holding banners and chanting “si se puede” on the steps of City Hall at high noon on Tuesday, council members and immigration advocates took turns demanding passage of the so-called New York State Dream Act, a proposal on which Governor Andrew Cuomo has yet to take a position.

The legislation would give undocumented young immigrants access to tuition aid, and Cuomo’s support is crucial if the bill is to get through Albany. But the governor has kept his distance so far, possibly out of concern that support for it could adversely affect a bid for president in 2016.

Participants in the event included Council speaker Christine Quinn and Councilmen Ydanis Rodriguez and Daniel Dromm. Most of them appealed to the governor directly, urging him to include the act in the state budget.

“It makes economic sense,” Councilwoman Gale Brewer. “It makes student sense. It makes all kinds of sense.”

“Governor Cuomo, we were so proud of you with what you did with gay marriage last year,” said Jose Calderon, of the Hispanic Federation. “Do the same thing you did for the gay community, for the immigrant community.”

An hour after the rally, a portion of the same crowd filed into a committee room at 250 Broadway, where a joint hearing of the Council’s committees on immigration and higher education pursued the subject further, calling for a “New York Dream Fund” to accompany the act.

“New York has always been a leader in immigration law,” said Quinn. “We must continue to be.”

While Dream acts have been passed in California and Texas, and a fund created in Illinois, New York State’s immigration population arguably stands to benefit the most from passage of such a bill.

Of the nearly 1.8 million young undocumented immigrants in the United States, 400,000 of them could benefit from a New York Dream Act, according to Emerald Isle Immigration Center, an organization that advocates for the legislation.

According to the EIIC, workers in New York with a bachelor’s degree earn a median income of $25,000 more than those with only a high school diploma.

(See EIIC written testimony in support of NY DREAM Act and Fund)

Ydanis Rodriguez, chair of the Council’s higher education committee, said it’s vital to provide tuition help to give the immigrant population a chance to enter the middle class.

Katherine Tabares, who spoke at the rally and at the committee hearing, called the legislation “investment in intellectual capital.”

“The money you spend now will be returned,” she said.

Tabares, 16, emigrated from Colombia two years ago and is now a senior and president of her class at International High School at La Guardia Community College, with a 3.9 grade-point average and hopes of a career in environmental engineering.

“With the G.P.A. that you have, there shouldn’t be any obstacle,” said chairman Ydanis Rodriguez, standing up and addressing Tabares along with three other students who testified.

“You will graduate from college,” Rodriguez said, pointing at the students. “You are a role model.”

EIIC written testimony in support of NY DREAM Act and Fund