Local News in Brief : Costa Mesa : INS Expects Late Surge of Amnesty Applicants
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About 855,000 amnesty applications have been received in the western United States as of this week, the regional commissioner for the Immigration and Naturalization Service said Thursday at a Costa Mesa press conference.
But Commissioner Harold Ezell said the INS is steeling for the biggest single surge of applications on May 4, the last day of the amnesty period. As many as 100,000 filings are expected that day alone, he said.
Last week the INS announced that the deadline for accepting applications would be extended 60 days, until May 4. Beginning April 4, immigrants can submit applications without supporting documentation. Those papers may be filed later. The change, Ezell said, should encourage last-minute applications.
The western region, consisting of Arizona, California, Nevada, Hawaii and Guam, has received 60% of the 1.4 million applications nationwide, he said.
The year-old program, created by the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Law, grants amnesty to undocumented aliens residing continuously in the United States since Jan. 1, 1982.
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