May 30, 2013

Patch.com: Immigrant Investors Getting Poor Service That's Costing Jobs, Local Reps Claim

"Our region cannot afford to lose more jobs because of bureaucratic red tape," said Rep. Ken Calvert, who serves Lake Elsinore and Wildomar, among other cities.

Inland Empire congressional representatives upset about the apparent inaction of a federal agency responsible for processing applications that pave the way for immigrant investors to set up businesses in the U.S. are seeking changes at the agency, whose chief spokesman said today he couldn't understand why.

Reps. Ken Calvert, R-Corona, Duncan Hunter, R-Temecula, Raul Ruiz, D- Palm Springs, and Mark Takano, D-Riverside, jointly penned a letter to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Alejandro Mayorkas, asking him to address issues that they allege are stymieing efforts to establish EB-5 regional centers in Riverside County.

Calvert represents the cities of Lake Elsinore and Wildomar, among others.

"These issues include a lack of customer service and communication, in addition to lengthy wait times for the approval of new ... centers," the congressmen said in the letter, dated May 27.