Democratic and Republican senators have agreed on a plan to grant legal status to most of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., which could form the foundation for comprehensive reform to immigration laws this year, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The Senate set a blueprint drafted during weeks of closed-door meetings by eight senators, who plan to release their plan to the public on Monday. The number of immigrants affected by the proposal would likely be three times larger than the 3 million who were legalized under President Ronald Reagan's amnesty plan in 1986.

Immigration activists hope that a bipartisan Senate vote would apply more pressure on the House to act. More from the L.A. Times:

Many members of the House Republican majority represent districts where proposals for legalization remain highly unpopular, but many Republicans also worry about the political price if the party takes the blame for killing immigration reform.

The Senate proposal would allow most of those in the country illegally to obtain probationary legal status immediately by paying a fine and back taxes and passing a background check. That would make them eligible to work and live in the U.S. They could earn a green card — permanent residency — after the government certifies that the U.S.-Mexican border has become secure, but might face a lengthy process before becoming citizens.

Experts appear to sound optimistic that chances for sweeping reform are better than in past years.

"When both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue are talking about the issue in calm tones but with a sense of urgency, that is the makings for legislative action," said Angela Kelley, an expert on immigration policy at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank in Washington.

 

Read the full story at the L.A. Times. Find more Neon Tommy coverage of immigration here.

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