House Republican Technology Working Group

Rep. Bob Goodlatte, Chairman of the House Republican Technology Working Group along with Speaker John Boehner and other technology-focused Members of Congress, launched the agenda of the House Republican Technology Working Group for the 112th Congress.

Rep. Bob Goodlatte

Here is the key language from the agenda:  Ensure American Access to the Best Workers -We will examine current education programs to make sure they are operating efficiently. We will also examine current visa and immigration laws to make sure we attract and retain the best and brightest minds from around the world.

This would be a welcome sign.  Perhaps the working group can examine bills such as the Start Up Visa Act.

The group’s agenda suggests it will re-examine how H1-B visas for international guest workers are allocated.  The current system has been criticized for not focusing on technology jobs and assigning too many slots to India-based staffing firms.  The Hill.com.

The high technology industry wants more access to H-1B visas and to make it easier for science and engineering graduates to stay in the U.S. after completing a post-graduate degree.