The easier way is to just have ratios. Companies that already employ lots of Americans should be able to easily hire foreigners. Companies that hire predominant

The easier way is to just have ratios. Companies that already employ lots of Americans should be able to easily hire foreigners. Companies that hire predominantly foreigners should have a difficult time getting more. A few rules to prevent gaming the system and you've got a system that works well for everyone involved and doesn't need CoL adjustments. Plus, ensuring that foreigners work closely with Americans helps both integrate those foreigners into American culture as well as helping them learn from those foreigners. The H1-B system seems designed to allow big companies to exploit foreign labor to drive down wages and hold those foreigners hostage while they're here. Ratios better allow mobility of foreign workers and allow them to seek market rate salaries. If I were in control of immigration policies, I'd set a 3:1 American-to-foreigner ratio based on job classification/salary bands and make it apply to any company with more than 50 employees. Any immigrant who passes a DHS background check and can get an offer from an eligible company should be able to get a work permit, regardless of their home country, with no time limit when they'd be sent home. Only failing to find employment at an eligible employer within, say, 6 months should force someone to leave. And after a 5-year working period, they should be able to apply for citizenship. At worst, it becomes a jobs program that forces employers to employ American citizens to get the workers they need.