SO what happens if a temporary worker program, now being debated in Congress, actually winds up on President Bush’s desk for a signature? Millions and millions of happy undocumented will rejoice, but United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USICS) will have a ton of extra work on its already overburdened hands.

Most people who have dealt with the agency have the requisite horror stories to relate — lost files, rude staff members, etc. How in the heck will USCIS cope with all the immigration reform proposals that may be on tap?

For now the agency is taking the deliberations in stride, and trying to be as helpful as possible, it says. Here’s a note from the agency’s April newsletter on the possibility of immigration reform:

“At print deadline, all eyes are on the Senate as they continue to debate immigration reform. On March 27, the Senate Judiciary Committee completed its consideration of the “Chairman’s Mark,” a bill that drew upon several of the Senate-sponsored immigration bills introduced by Senators Cornyn, Kyl, McCain and Kennedy. The bill that was the result of several long days of mark-up consisted of both enforcement and benefits measures, including a temporary worker program.

“At this time, the Senate has embarked on floor debate of immigration reform, beginning with the enforcement-focused bill introduced by Senate Majority Leader Frist. As the debate progresses, many amendments are anticipated, including the possibility of substituting the chairman’s mark for Senator Frist’s bill.

“USCIS has been working with the Department of Homeland Security and the White House to support requests for information, views and statistics to inform the debate. While Congress debates these bills, USCIS has been busy preparing for the potential operational realities of a temporary worker program and expanded employment verification system responsibilities. Stay tuned for further developments on this historic legislative debate.”

Obviously, the agency is going to require a massive funding increase to cope with the Herculean task of processing legalization papers for up to 11-12 million undocumented residents. The $1,000 fee that each undocumented applicant for benefits will have to pay should help ease the financial crunch, but an operational nightmare is sure to ensue, at least in the short-term.

At present there are 15,000 federal and contract employees under the jurisdiction of USCIS, in 250 offices worldwide. The agency says that on a daily basis, staffers conduct 135,000 security background checks, process 30,000 applications for immigration benefits, and field 82,000 phone calls on the toll-free helpline.