119th (2025–2027)
S. 4546
The ASSIMILATION Act (S. 4546) would significantly reshape U.S. immigration policy by imposing stricter requirements on who can enter and remain in the country. The bill establishes a "national interest standard" requiring immigrants to demonstrate material public benefit to the U.S., eliminates the diversity visa program that allocated 55,000 annual visas to underrepresented countries, and restructures employment-based immigration around merit factors like salary and English proficiency while capping such visas at 140,000 yearly. The legislation tightens public charge rules that can trigger deportation if immigrants use government benefits for over 12 months, restricts the executive branch's humanitarian parole authority to 90 days maximum, and fundamentally alters birthright citizenship by requiring at least one parent to be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident at birth. Additionally, the bill permits family detention of immigrant children, accelerates removal procedures for unaccompanied minors, mandates employers use E-Verify to confirm work authorization nationwide, and includes a severability clause protecting the law if individual provisions are challenged in court.