Washington, D.C. – TechNet, the national, bipartisan network of innovation economy CEOs and senior executives, today commented on a new report, U.S. Immigration Policy and the Competition with China, from the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP), which shows that admitting more foreign-born scientists and engineers is essential for U.S. economic growth and our ability to compete with China.

The following statement can be attributed to TechNet President and CEO Linda Moore:

“Throughout our history, immigrant innovators, entrepreneurs, and workers have come to the U.S., started businesses, created jobs, fueled innovation, and grown our economy. Today, we are in a global race for talent. We aren’t producing enough home-grown STEM talent to fill current vacancies. We must enact solutions that make it easier to attract and retain the world’s best talent. Not only will this help shrink the skills gap that exists in this country, it will spur innovation and create new opportunities for American workers, as the policy brief highlights.”

“NFAP’s report should open the eyes of every lawmaker, no matter their party. At a time when China continues to make generational investments to overtake the U.S. in innovation leadership, the report very clearly shows why it’s critical Congress must take urgent action to invest in American innovation and our talent pipeline. The data is clear: adding more high-skilled foreign-born workers will not displace American workers. It will lead to an increase in U.S. innovation, create new opportunities for workers across the country, and help ensure the U.S. wins the next era of innovation. Failure to do so will put our economy and our national security at risk.”

The National Foundation for American Policy’s analysis found:

  • Foreign-born scientists and engineers have been increasingly important in the U.S. labor force and are not displacing American workers.
  • China’s government has designed policies and incentives to attract, retain, and entice scientists and engineers to strengthen its capacity in key technology fields.
  • The domestic pipeline gives little hope that U.S.-born scientists and engineers alone can provide a sufficient quantity or quality of scientists and engineers to power industry, create innovations, and engage in essential research.
  • America’s most significant challenges in attracting and retaining talent remain its immigration policies.
  • Immigrants remain vital to the U.S. economy as entrepreneurs and researchers. Immigrants have started more than half (319 of 582, or 55%) of America’s startup companies valued at $1 billion or more and 65% of the top U.S. AI companies.

Employers have exceeded the 85,000 H-1B visa limit every fiscal year for two decades, resulting in qualified workers going to a foreign competitor, like China or India, for employment.

You can read the policy brief here.