By ASHLEY PARKER
JAN. 30, 2014 - New York Times

WASHINGTON — House Republican leaders released a one-page “standards for immigration reform” document on Thursday that calls for a path to legal status — but not citizenship — for many of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country, as well as “an opportunity for legal residence and citizenship” for young immigrants brought here illegally by their parents.

The immigration blueprint, unveiled to the Republican conference during a three-day retreat in Cambridge, Md., specifies that “there will be no special path to citizenship for individuals who broke our nation’s immigration laws.” It also lays out the Republican belief that “specific enforcement triggers,” as well as border security and interior enforcement measures, must be in place before any undocumented immigrant can gain legal status.

Democrats, including President Obama, quickly seized on the Republican principles as an opening to move forward on bipartisan legislation. “I actually think we have a good chance of getting immigration reform,” Mr. Obama told Jake Tapper of CNN in an interview in Wisconsin.

Many activists said they were heartened that the Republican proposal, at least in its broad rendering, does not seem to preclude citizenship for many of the undocumented immigrants who receive legal status.

“It is a step forward, but opens up several battle fronts,” said Kevin Appleby, the director of migration policy at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. “But there is a sweet spot there where both sides could reach an agreement. We see this as a floor, not a ceiling.”

The Republican proposal seeks to walk a fine line: offering legal status — but not citizenship, and not through a special path — to undocumented immigrants who meet certain conditions.

Immigrants seeking legal status, the document says, must “come forward and get right with the law.” Under the Republican plan, undocumented immigrants would be required to admit “culpability” for breaking the law, pass background checks, pay fines and back taxes, display proficiency in English language and American civics, and demonstrate they can support themselves and their families without requiring public benefits.

Undocumented immigrants with a criminal record, gang members, and sex offenders, would not be eligible under the Republican proposal.

The principles are intended to help Speaker John A. Boehner and his leadership team gauge the conference’s willingness to embark on legislation to overhaul the nation’s immigration system. The document, in an attempt to appease the conference’s more conservative members, explicitly states that the nation’s immigration problems cannot be solved with “a single, massive piece of legislation,” and promises that the Republicans will take a “step-by-step, common-sense approach” that does not involve conference negotiations between the House and the Senate.

Though the Senate passed a broad immigration bill with bipartisan support in June, many conservative Republicans are wary of the legislation, which includes a 13-year path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants already here that conservatives consider “amnesty.”

Even some House Republicans who would like to see an immigration overhaul questioned the political strategy of trying to pass legislation during the 2014 midterm elections, when it could detract from their focus on the president’s health care law.

“Unifying behind principles would be a very useful thing,” said Representative Patrick McHenry, Republican of North Carolina. As for legislation, he added, “It’s very debatable about whether we do it now or later.”

The principles also aim to deny Mr. Obama, or any future president, the ability to make large changes in the nation’s immigration enforcement policy. In June 2012, Mr. Obama used an executive action to allow hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who came to the country as children to remain here without fear of deportation.

Still, the principles seemed to show at least some willingness to consider a broad immigration overhaul, albeit through a series of smaller, narrower bills.

“Our nation’s immigration system is broken, and our laws are not being enforced,” the opening statement of the document says. “Washington’s failure to fix them is hurting our economy and jeopardizing our national security. The overriding purpose of our immigration system is to promote and further America’s national interests, and that is not the case today. The serious problems in our immigration system must be solved, and we are committed to working in a bipartisan manner to solve them.”

Initial reaction from Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, indicated that his party would consider the principles a starting point in negotiations.

“While these standards are certainly not everything we would agree with, they leave a real possibility that Democrats and Republicans, in both the House and Senate, can in some way come together and pass immigration reform that both sides can accept,” Mr. Schumer said in a statement. “It is a long, hard road, but the door is open.”

Mr. Schumer and his office did have some contact with Mr. Boehner’s immigration team before the principles were released, but did not have any say on the Republican document, nor did Mr. Schumer see an advance copy.