# Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 > [!info] Not the intelligence Gang of Eight > This bill was written by the 2013 bipartisan Senate group nicknamed the "Gang of Eight." That group has nothing to do with the [[Gang of Eight]] of congressional leaders who receive covert-action briefings. **S. 744**, the last comprehensive immigration bill to pass either chamber of Congress. It passed the Senate on **June 27, 2013, by 68–32**, with 14 Republicans voting yes. The House never voted on it, and it died with the 113th Congress. ## The eight senators Four Democrats: [[Chuck Schumer]] (sponsor, D-NY), [[Dick Durbin]] (D-IL), [[Bob Menendez]] (D-NJ), and Michael Bennet (D-CO). Four Republicans: [[John McCain]] (R-AZ), [[Lindsey Graham]] (R-SC), [[Marco Rubio]] (R-FL), and Jeff Flake (R-AZ). ## What it would have done - **Legalization:** immigrants in the U.S. before December 31, 2011 could apply for renewable six-year Registered Provisional Immigrant status. After 10 years they could seek a green card, the path that led to citizenship. - **Enforcement:** a large border-security buildup, including tens of thousands of additional Border Patrol agents, plus mandatory E-Verify for all employers, phased in over five years. - **Legal immigration:** a new W visa for lower-skilled workers, an INVEST visa for entrepreneurs, and expanded visas for STEM graduates. - **Budget:** the Congressional Budget Office estimated it would reduce deficits by about $197 billion over its first decade. ## Why it died Speaker [[John Boehner]] declined to bring the Senate bill to the floor, and House Republicans said they preferred a piecemeal approach. In January 2014 the House Republican leadership said flatly: *"We will not go to a conference with the Senate's immigration bill."* Outside Congress, the restrictionist movement led by [[NumbersUSA]] mobilized against it, and [[Jeff Sessions]] led the Senate opposition. ## Why it matters in this vault The bill passed three months after the [[RNC Autopsy]] told Republicans to "embrace and champion comprehensive immigration reform." It was the party establishment's attempt to follow that advice, and the House killed it. Two years later the 2016 primary electorate rewarded the opposite position. Rubio's co-authorship of the bill became a liability in his 2016 presidential campaign, and he abandoned the position (see [[Marco Rubio]]). ## Connections - [[Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986]]: the last comprehensive bill that actually became law - [[US Immigration Timeline]] - [[RNC Autopsy]] · [[FWD.us]] · [[NumbersUSA]]