Sides forming in next immigration-reform push

he prospect of millions of illegal immigrants earning a path to citizenship is now back on the table in Congress, though the first bill out of the chute has already split some California progressives and has zero support from Republicans.
Bay Area immigrant families and their allies rallied Friday at a San Francisco high school to promote legalization and other measures that would overhaul U.S. immigration policy, which has not substantially changed for more than a decade.
They were united in favor of a humanitarian approach to reforming immigration policy, though disagreed on the finer details of a 650-page reform bill introduced last week by 92 liberal Democratic lawmakers, including four from the Bay Area.
At its crux, the bill introduced by Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., would allow people living in the U.S. without legal documents to pay a $500 fee and show they made contributions to the U.S. through work, school, volunteering or military service. After six years on a conditional visa, those who qualify can get a green card visa and eventually obtain citizenship.
The bill is designed in part to put pressure on President Barack Obama, who has pledged to take on immigration reform next year and has advocated an overhaul that would include a path to citizenship. Opponents have characterized the bill as permissive and doomed to fail.

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