Compares It to Aiding Taxpayers : Kennedy Would Grant an Extension to Aliens

With proponents of an extended immigration amnesty period intensifying their efforts, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) declared Thursday that giving illegal aliens more time to apply for legal resident status should be no more objectionable than giving taxpayers extensions to file their federal returns--an accepted practice.

“Fair is fair,” Kennedy said, testifying before a Senate subcommittee he heads that is weighing the issue. However, an official from the General Accounting Office countered that extra time “may not encourage” many aliens to come forward after the current May 4 deadline.

Arnold P. Jones, senior associate director of the GAO, said the fees, fear of the Immigration and Naturalization Service and fear of family separation are key factors in keeping aliens from coming forward. An extension will not resolve these impediments, he testified.

Legislation extending the deadline until Nov. 30 has been approved in the House Judiciary Committee and is expected to be voted on in the full House this month. Congressional aides have said the Senate will take up the measure after the House acts. Kennedy’s statement sends a new signal that the extension effort will get a strong push when it reaches the Senate floor.

The INS recently stepped up a campaign to encourage aliens to apply and announced that applicants must submit only their basic paper work by May 4. They will have 60 more days to provide the supporting documents.

INS Commissioner Alan C. Nelson, testifying before the subcommittee, defended the agency’s efforts as adequate, but critics said many INS actions came too late to attract the maximum number of aliens who are eligible.

Proponents Buoyed

Increased efforts to educate the public about the legalization program “are just starting to take effect,” said Richard Ryscavage of the U.S. Catholic Conference, one of the largest groups helping illegal immigrants apply for legal status.

The proponents of an extension have been buoyed by the House committee action, Kennedy’s support and several court rulings that broadened the category of applicants for the program. Linda Wong of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund said that, if the extension legislation does not pass, “there will be a huge population of undocumented people who will be left in the underground economy. The social and economic costs are going to be tremendous.”

Under the 1986 immigration law, illegal immigrants who have lived in the country continuously, except for brief absences, since Jan. 1, 1982, may apply for legal residency. So far 1.5 million people have come forward.

At one point during Commissioner Nelson’s testimony, Kennedy shook his head and said: “With all due respect, I find it exceedingly difficult to see the rigidity” of the Administration. He said there is a “strong case in favor of that extension,” citing the tax extension precedent.

Nelson said an extension would cost $7.6 million a month and that 300,000 additional applicants would be needed to ensure that the program continued to pay for itself.

However, Jerry M. Tinker, staff director of the Kennedy subcommittee, said an extension would not be that costly because INS could on May 4 close the 107 special offices that were opened for the program nationwide and begin channeling applications through the 35 permanent district offices.