Your letter will have a much greater impact if you take a minute to personalize it with a couple of lines describing your own experience, why this is an important issue to you, or, if you're an immigration lawyer, the implications for your clients and practice.
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
http://www.house.gov/writerep/
Subject:
Please Support the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act of 2005 (S. 1033/H.R. 2330)
I urge you to support the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act of 2005 (S. 1033). This bill offers the necessary fix to our broken immigration system: comprehensive reform that combines tough enforcement measures with rational laws that make sense in today's world. This bipartisan and bicameral measure seeks to transform our immigration system into one that is safe, legal, controlled and orderly. It would:
Fix Our Broken Borders: This bill would create a much needed national strategy for border security and enhanced border intelligence. Such initiatives are aimed at deterring those who mean to do us harm but still allow for the orderly, controlled flow of goods and people.
Create a "Break-the-Mold" Essential Worker Program: This bill would create a workable temporary worker program that would decrease illegal immigration by matching willing workers with willing employers and creating a legal avenue for people to enter the U.S.
and return, as many wish, to their countries, communities, and families. Among other provisions, this program would provide the necessary visas, allow workers to change jobs, set forth employer obligations, provide labor protections and an enforcement scheme to deal with program violations, and allow people to earn their permanent residency if they would not displace a U.S. worker.
Allow People Who Are Here the Opportunity to Earn their Adjustment: This measure would give undocumented immigrants currently in the U.S. who work hard, pay taxes, are learning English, and pass security clearances the opportunity to earn their permanent residency. This measure also includes strict fines and penalties for those already in this country and tough punishments for employers who hire undocumented workers. It would mandate the creation of a secure identification document and an employment eligibility confirmation system so employers will know that people seeking work are here legally.
Reunify Families: This bill would clear out the long backlogs in family-based immigration that keep close family members separated, some for up to twenty years. Such long separations make no sense in our pro-family nation, reflect poorly on us, and ultimately encourage illegal immigration.
I urge you to support the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act of 2005 (S. 1033). By tackling the tough issues, it would address the problems that have long plagued our current immigration system and help make us more secure.