After long hours of debate and voting on various proposed amendments to the bill, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to support the new US immigration reform bill.

None of the amendments approved in committee appear to have any bearing on the provisions relating to Canadian tourism or the Retiree visa. By all accounts these provisions of the bill have not changed. An amendment extending immigration rights to same-sex partners failed to gain approval in committee, and is not part of the bill being presented to the full Senate.

The bill will now be sent to the Senate for debate on the Senate floor. The Senate may schedule the debate for the next available slot on its calendar, or Senate leaders may push forward the debate to an earlier date.

Once debate begins in the Senate we hope to see a vote follow. Unfortunately, the US legislative process can be long and convoluted. While the Senate may choose to vote on the bill, it may also choose to send the bill back to a committee for further review and revision.

If the bill receives approval in the Senate the process will need to repeat in the House. If the House passes the bill, any differences between the two versions of the bill will need to be reconciled before it can be sent to the president for signature.