Complaint letter to Senator about local Field Office

[A&H2018 146]

1 minute ago, hispany said:

I'm not upset. I'm having fun.

 

By the way, do you know if the OP a pure-bred Canadian? Would it make a difference if he wasn't?

Haha :). Maybe if they had aboroginial ties to neighbouring tribe in the USA.

[hispany 23]

Just now, A&H2018 said:

Haha :). Maybe if they had aboroginial ties to neighbouring tribe in the USA.

My question was more aimed at if OP had any prior citizenship before Canadian...

[Going through 5,668]

57 minutes ago, mindthegap said:

Amazed how quick yours went.... certainly the exception rather than the norm.

Honestly, I think part of that was how quicker background checks seems to get performed when it comes to Canadians since both countries openly share immigration, border and criminal info with each other.

 

Or it was the 4 times I extensively bothered an L2 officer ad nauseam about my case after filing, and they somehow helped speed things up to just get me out of their hair finally.  

[.yana 586]

OP

 

How come you think that the Senator's Office will look at your application & start tending to those who have waited a while rather than look at your application? If anything - the staff will review your application (most likely briefly), realize you're complaining about wait times, then look at your file & deem it within normal processing times. And - voila - your generic response is waiting for you in your mailbox. They way you approach this larger issue will not get it resolved or even talked about, I'm sorry. 

 

I would save your email to the Senator for the time when your case is out of normal processing times, and you want to reach out to them so they can actually help you.

 

My case took 1 year and 1 week. In comparison, people who filed in the same month as I did (or even later) received their green cards within 6 months at latest (I was the only person left in my specific subforum). Once my case was out of normal processing times (I can't remember if it was 9 or 10 months at a time), I reached out to my Congressman, and his office was able to get me a response as to what exactly was taking so long, and also get me an interview date.

 

They are most definitely doing their job. But they will always focus on cases that have more urgency and more priority. From that perspective - your case will be at the bottom. And if you want to speak for masses - this is not a proper route.

 

All the best.

[A&H2018 146]

31 minutes ago, hispany said:

My question was more aimed at if OP had any prior citizenship before Canadian...

For initial checks absolutely I would say so. But guess this raises a better question. Maybe instead of stating their own experience/case you mention. One should just be writing letters saying "I am queued for an interview", dear Senator can you please find out why the backlog on interviews has become so bad. Theoretically if all the checks etc is done at NBC, it should be just sheer number of interviews needing to be done vs possible staff and times in a day. Maybe just finding out verification of how the local office works is more important.

 

Then everyone whos "queued for an interview" can write letters. We would not need to aruge over nationality/intent/etc...

Edited June 19, 2018 by A&H2018

[Ash.1101 1,755]

9 minutes ago, .yana said:

OP

 

How come you think that the Senator's Office will look at your application & start tending to those who have waited a while rather than look at your application? If anything - the staff will review your application (most likely briefly), realize you're complaining about wait times, then look at your file & deem it within normal processing times. And - voila - your generic response is waiting for you in your mailbox. They way you approach this larger issue will not get it resolved or even talked about, I'm sorry. 

 

I would save your email to the Senator for the time when your case is out of normal processing times, and you want to reach out to them so they can actually help you.

 

My case took 1 year and 1 week. In comparison, people who filed in the same month as I did (or even later) received their green cards within 6 months at latest (I was the only person left in my specific subforum). Once my case was out of normal processing times (I can't remember if it was 9 or 10 months at a time), I reached out to my Congressman, and his office was able to get me a response as to what exactly was taking so long, and also get me an interview date.

 

They are most definitely doing their job. But they will always focus on cases that have more urgency and more priority. From that perspective - your case will be at the bottom. And if you want to speak for masses - this is not a proper route.

 

All the best.

The OP believes that by stating the plight of others it could help. It would be super beneficial to get affidavits of the people who are waiting and want change and have actually waited two years, as then there’s a poster child for waiting that they can go, oh ya that person HAS waited that long. 

 

When you’re trying to prove something to someone, especially a topic like this, it’s your burden to prove there is actually a problem. Expecting them to look into it and research it when, according to the OP, there’s plenty of people here on VJ to testify is asking for failure. 

Youre better off sending this information to a journalist who may put in the effort to research, than to a senators paperperson who is going to brush it off as complaining.

 

[Boiler 43,824]

With Politicians there are two things you need to focus on:

 

How this will help them financially.

 

How this help them politically.

[KeratNY 76]

6 hours ago, missileman said:

Since you are well within normal processing times, I actually don't think you have standing to complain now.

Not sure how many more times I can explain this. Here's the sequence of facts:

 

1) I have an application pending at the NYC Field Office (I am an interested party, affected by processing timelines ("standing") even if not admittedly damaged by it yet)

2) As a current applicant, I am aware of some material facts regarding the slowdown in processing time for ALL applications at this specific office, both in comparison to past timelines and some other field offices

3) My wife is a constituent of a Senator

4) Said Senator may or may not know some background info and context regarding the recent developments at the local office in her jurisdiction of a Federal agency

5) Senator has a website with a way to directly contact her office regarding issues or any message a constituent would like to send

6) Wife uses said method and endeavors to inform her elected representative of the circumstances of the field office so she is aware

7) Senator (or staffer) reads letter and understands this addresses an issue that affects thousands of applicants, not just the writer

8) Senator takes no action, or a minor action, or a meaningful action, to attempt to help out thousands of her constituents (her "job") which either changes something at the Field Office or it doesn't

 

You'll notice that not one action, fact, or sequence above is different whether my application has been waiting for 6 months or 6 years.  Therefore it is not relevant in this scenario. 

 

Here's where that fact would be relevant:

1) I have an application pending at the NYC Field Office (I am an interested party)

2) My application is pending for 6 months

3) My wife is a constituent of a Senator

4) Wife endeavors to inform her elected representative that her husband's case is taking too long and they are impatient

5) Senator (or staffer) throws the letter away because her husband's case is well within processing times

6) Guaranteed that nothing of consequence happens to effect timelines

 

You see,  the variable of my application's timeline is only relevant in scenario 2, not scenario 1.  And my current scenario is scenario 1 which you'll see has a more optimal conclusion than scenario 2. 

1 hour ago, Orangesapples said:

So you don't think it's barbaric to separate children from their families? I can't even imagine how traumatizing this is for the children. 

 

And BTW, adultery is a crime in some places. I guess you support arresting people for that reason, too? 

you and @Boilerquit hijacking my thread to discuss a political current event! There is a forum for that

[KeratNY 76]

5 hours ago, .yana said:

OP

 

How come you think that the Senator's Office will look at your application & start tending to those who have waited a while rather than look at your application? If anything - the staff will review your application (most likely briefly), realize you're complaining about wait times, then look at your file & deem it within normal processing times. And - voila - your generic response is waiting for you in your mailbox. They way you approach this larger issue will not get it resolved or even talked about, I'm sorry. 

 

I would save your email to the Senator for the time when your case is out of normal processing times, and you want to reach out to them so they can actually help you.

 

My case took 1 year and 1 week. In comparison, people who filed in the same month as I did (or even later) received their green cards within 6 months at latest (I was the only person left in my specific subforum). Once my case was out of normal processing times (I can't remember if it was 9 or 10 months at a time), I reached out to my Congressman, and his office was able to get me a response as to what exactly was taking so long, and also get me an interview date.

 

They are most definitely doing their job. But they will always focus on cases that have more urgency and more priority. From that perspective - your case will be at the bottom. And if you want to speak for masses - this is not a proper route.

 

All the best.

If you think there is a more proper route to effect change at a local office of a Federal agency, I'm all ears. Reaching out to elected representatives about an issue affecting said representative's constituents seems like the right thing to do, because, well, it's literally their jobs. Don't believe me? let's go to the source herself - from her website:

 

I am honored to serve the people of New York State in the United States Senate.

My office will make every effort to assist you on a broad range of issues, provided that you:

1. Are a New Yorker, and;
2. Need help from a Federal Government agency

 

My wife and I fulfill both criteria to reach out to her to ask for "every effort" to assist her constituents. 

[KeratNY 76]

6 hours ago, hispany said:

 

But don't you get it? These ARE extenuating circumstances, OP is Canadian, and has legally studied, worked and visited the US before... Plus, he's been waiting for 7 months! 7 MONTHS! Never mind that he already has EAD and AP, he wants his green card, and he wants it NOW!

And don't you get that he's not doing this for himself? He's doing this for the thousands waiting around the world. He is fighting the good fight for all of us. He is Ghandi, MLK, the Dalai Lama, and Mother Teresa all in one, fighting against the injustice that are USCIS processing times. Everybody is disagreeing with him because he's an iconoclast, he's a Steve Jobs, a Bill Gates; he's here to change the world for better. You just won't get it.

Clearly you don't agree with the concept of reaching out to elected representatives about an issue. You know who does agree? Senators themselves! From her website:

 

I am honored to serve the people of New York State in the United States Senate.

My office will make every effort to assist you on a broad range of issues, provided that you:

1. Are a New Yorker, and;
2. Need help from a Federal Government agency

So on one hand, I have an angry, irrational, insulting person who has misunderstood 11 posts that clearly say I know they will not do anything for my own application as I am well within processing timeline and that I am grateful and lucky to be in the position I am in; and on the other hand, the Senator herself who encourages New Yorkers who need help from a federal government agency (we qualify on both counts) to reach out to her. 

 

I think I'll go with her and not you. Agree to disagree. You also need to work on your reading comprehension skillz. 

[KeratNY 76]

5 hours ago, Ash.1101 said:

Youre better off sending this information to a journalist who may put in the effort to research, than to a senators paperperson who is going to brush it off as complaining.

 

Well, that is the Senator's job. Like, literally. To improve the federal government for her constituents. Don't believe me? Ask her! From her website:

 

I am honored to serve the people of New York State in the United States Senate.

My office will make every effort to assist you on a broad range of issues, provided that you:

1. Are a New Yorker, and;
2. Need help from a Federal Government agency

We qualify on both counts. Sure they can brush all messages off as complaining. And her office could be just playing videogames all day. And they could hate all the people in their state. There are a lot of potential theories. Then there is the fact that she is encouraging people to reach out so she can do her job. So yea, that is what we're doing. 

 

[hispany 23]

@KeratNY quick question, did you have any other Citizenship before Canadian?

[KeratNY 76]

Just now, hispany said:

@KeratNY quick question, did you have any other Citizenship before Canadian?

Not relevant to the letter

[hispany 23]

Just now, KeratNY said:

Not relevant to the letter

Good point. What was your other citizenship?

[KeratNY 76]

3 minutes ago, hispany said:

Good point. What was your other citizenship?

I was an Afghan warlord married to a North Korean dictator and we vacationed in Syria