By Bob Krauss
Advertiser Columnist

David McCauley, one of Honolulu's top immigration attorneys, has more work than he can handle since the new immigration rules under the Patriot Act went into effect.

He's concerned that the pendulum has swung too far with new policies of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (formerly the Immigration and Naturalization Service) of the Department of Homeland Security.

"A church here has petitioned to bring in a pastor from India," said McCauley. "He's a Protestant minister. In the past, what used to be the Immigration and Naturalization Service would review the evidence and approve him. This time they ask for additional evidence, which means sending in all his transcripts."

This is not a suspect on a terrorist list — this is a minister of the Gospel.

"I had a call from Japan," McCauley said. "The parents of a 13-year-old boy want to send him to a private school here. They are required to show that his purpose is not to stay in America. His visa was denied on the grounds that he didn't have strong enough ties to his native country. This is a 13-year-old boy. Ties to mom and dad, apparently, aren't enough."

In Honolulu, all interviews scheduled for August, September and October with people applying for green cards have been postponed. The process for a citizen to get his or her foreign-born spouse a green card used to take four to five months, McCauley said. Now it takes more than a year in Hawai'i.

McCauley said the problem isn't with the immigration service but with Congress for failing to appropriate money to do all the extra work the new law requires.

"In the interests of protecting the country from terrorism, they have become more strict," McCauley explained. "The result has been to dramatically increase the immigration workload. As of Aug. 1, if you apply for a visa anywhere in the world you have to be scheduled for an interview. This puts a tremendous workload on embassies. But Congress has not provided funds for extra staff to handle the work.

"All of the immigration offices have been mandated to do additional background checks (as in the case of the Indian pastor), which adds up to an overwhelming workload. But Congress hasn't appropriated money for additional personnel."

McCauley said many of his clients are business firms trying to hire foreign nationals, or foreign investors trying to open businesses in the United States. Now the process takes much longer and is more expensive.

"What concerns me as a taxpayer is that I'm not sure we are making our country more secure in doing this," he said. "It seems to me we're spending a lot of money on people who don't pose a threat.

"What upsets me is that we are a nation of immigrants. That's why this country is as great as it is. It isn't appropriate for a country whose strength is based on immigrants to behave like this. But don't call the immigration. Call your congressman."

Reach Bob Krauss at 525-0873.