Washington, D.C. – Today, Humanity Forward and the Institute for Progress applaud a bipartisan effort from a group of lawmakers in the House that are chartering a path toward a solution to the bottleneck of talent within critical STEM industries.

Reps Lofgren (D-CA) and Salazar (R-FL) led a coalition of Democrats and Republicans in attempting to move an amendment (“1094”) as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) process. Amendment 1094 would have lifted the cap on green cards for qualified STEM PhDs in the defense industry and related fields, fulfilling a call to action from 49 former national security officials who signaled the importance of such a policy for competing with China. Due to procedural reasons, the Amendment did not proceed. 

The current bottlenecks can’t continue if we want to remain competitive with China.

Jeremy Neufeld, Senior Immigration Fellow at the Institute for Progress

“While procedural issues prevented this amendment from moving forward in the House NDAA process, we are encouraged by the bipartisanship which this national security issue has generated,” said Paolo Mastrangelo, Head of Policy & Government Affairs for Humanity Forward. “We look forward to building more support for this common-sense fix as the NDAA process continues in both chambers of Congress.”

“We thank Reps. Lofgren and Salazar for their leadership. Today, over 80% of companies in the defense industrial base report that it is difficult to find qualified STEM workers, and over half of advanced STEM degree holders working in the defense industrial base are foreign-born,” said Jeremy Neufeld, Senior Immigration Fellow at the Institute for Progress. “The current bottlenecks can’t continue if we want to remain competitive with China.”

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