After months of close to no action, senators are finally updating their proposed reforms to the controversial EB-5 investor visa program and circulating draft legislation ahead of an April 28 expiration date. On Tuesday, the offices of Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), two of the EB-5 investor visas’ loudest voices for reform, began shopping a tweaked draft of a bill they introduced in the previous Congress.
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The bill would further mandate that some EB-5 visas be reserved exclusively for rural projects, which could mean the backlog for investors who want to invest in urban projects just grows larger, said Allison Berman, head of EB-5 at Greystone. “By making the set asides, you’re not guaranteeing that funds are going to those areas,” Berman said. Ultimately, investors will decide where they are willing to put their money and where they just aren’t interested, she said.
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