Maria Odom, a veteran immigration attorney with ties to Georgia, is the new ombudsman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
In her new role, the native of Puerto Rico is focused on recommending ways to improve the federal agency and helping people resolve problems with it.
A part of the federal Department of Homeland Security, USCIS grants immigration and citizenship benefits, manages the process that allows people from other countries to work here and helps administer the E-Verify work authorization program. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano appointed Odom to her post in September.
Odom graduated with a law degree from Mercer University in Macon and worked for years as a private immigration attorney in the Atlanta area. She previously served as executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc., a national network of community-based immigration programs. She also held roles at the Justice Department, where she worked as an assistant district counsel in Atlanta for the former Immigration and Naturalization Service. In that job, Odom represented the government in deportation proceedings.
Odom spoke with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution by phone this month about her new role and her assessment of USCIS. Her answers were edited for brevity.
Q: How do you describe your role as ombudsman?
A: We aim for getting a response back to our customers within 60 days because by the time folks get to our office they are frustrated. They see our office as a last resort. My job is to make sure those people are experiencing the good side of government. They are coming to us frustrated. They have been at it for a long time. For various reasons they have not gotten the response they needed from USCIS, and our role is to facilitate an outcome. We may not always achieve the outcome they want, but we will get them an answer.
Q: How is USCIS managing the new Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which is awarding certain immigrants a two-year reprieve from deportation and work authorization?
A: So far what we have seen from USCIS on (deferred action) has been very positive. … When they first announced it this summer the stakeholder engagement was very thorough. It was very open and very transparent. … It is a work in progress. But I have not heard yet from stakeholders on any particular issues that warrant CIS ombudsman intervention at this point. I think we may see some cases at some point in the future, but what I'm hearing is good. … And we are just keeping an eye on it. I'm confident that USCIS is so far managing this in a really good, positive, robust way.
Q: Many Georgia farmers have complained the H-2A guest-worker program is too costly and full of red tape. What’s your assessment of this program, and how could it be improved?
A: It is part of a broader menu of employment visas that we are looking at, but we are not prepared to comment on a recommendation at this point.
Q: What is your view of the accuracy of the E-Verify work authorization program and whether employers nationwide should be required to use it?
A: I think that the E-Verify program is improving. If you had asked me about the E-Verify program five years ago, my comments would have been sharp and very critical of many of the inaccuracies that we saw coming out of the E-Verify program. I think a lot of effort has gone into making that a more robust and a fairly accurate system. … I can't give you a position as to nationwide implementation at this point, but I would say that my opinion of E-Verify continues to progress and continues to be shaped by the efforts that I see of making it a more accurate system. It is not perfect. … I think we have to give it some more time.
Q: How does your experience working as both an advocate for immigrants and as a counsel for the former Immigration and Naturalization Service help you with your new role?
A: This work is truly an extension coming full circle to continue to provide help to those who are having difficulty navigating this complex system alone. I am very grateful to be doing it.
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