Most of the following comments were previously organized and published by the Cato Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy research organization in Washington, D.C. They contain the views and proposals of leading immigration scholars. The commenters include previous presidents of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, authors of the most widely used immigration law reference texts in the United States, a former Department of Homeland Security official, and other well‐​known immigration law experts.

While some of these proposals are addressed partially or wholly to agencies other than USCIS, the Department of Homeland Security and USCIS often have the authority to determine the immigration rules of the Department of State or Department of Labor. The Secretary of Homeland Security has the responsibility of “establishing and administering rules … governing the granting of visas or other forms of permission, including parole, to enter the United States to individuals who are not a citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States,” which grants them authority over most aspects of State Department visa issuance procedures. USCIS also has joint regulatory authority with the Department of Labor over the H‑2B nonagricultural visa program.

The unifying principle behind these reforms is that the agency has far more power to streamline the immigration process and prevent problems for U.S. citizens and immigrants than it is currently using. It should exercise its full authorities to ease legal immigration to the United States. The United States is currently experiencing one of the lowest rates of legal immigration in decades, and USCIS can do a lot to facilitate faster and more equitable processing. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of immigrant visa issuance plummeted, causing the United States to lose out on hundreds of thousands of contributors to its economy and society. USCIS should work with Department of State and Department of Labor to reverse this trend.