NATURALIZATION RE-ENGINEERING As you are aware, Commissioner Meissner has established naturalization as a Service priority. To wem this goal, we must review current processos to increase officiency, improve customer service, cod casero the kutoguity of the process. The Servico dosision is to proceed with a course of action that logorporates Businesa Prosesa Re-enginewing (BPR) as a vehicio so fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of our naturalization processes in order in hing about improvements needed to respond to the incased domand for naturalization. The goal of BPR is to improve the lutogcky of the naturalization process, while at the same timo Improving the service we give to our customora, both the applicants and the American public. Integrity in this process is achieved by making the right decisions, utilizing appropriate resources to meet the Kemands, and completing the work within established time lines. The main point of the re-engivesting effort outlined in the attached summary is that the Service needs to batter villion its resources. One of the most time consuming parts of the process is the interview. To better serve the pliblic while allowing better use of an adjudicator's time, the report. proposta use of an "Expanded Examination Process", which will allow the adjudicator a way to determine the scope of the interview needed. This concept, will be tested at the Los Angeles Re-engineering Pilot. Other areas stressed in the report include an expansion of outside testing for Section 312 requirements, and a greater reliance on community based organizations to assist applicants with information and form preparation, and to assist the Service with logistics at final hostings. The report also recommends the ms of Service Centers for data entry, and contractor support for records functions. Some regulations and policy will change. This is consistent with our goal to stop over-regulating and to conduct most of our business through Operation Instructions and bandbook which can more readily be revised to accommodaio chris. Even with the recent reprogramming and the resources it will bring, the naturalization receipts 1990,000 projected for FY 95) still require that we improve our process if we are to achieve a reasonablo processing time, and confer a timely adjudication while improving integrity in the decision-making FCC33. The BPR report includes short and long term proposals. Some of these proposals we may adopt, while we may defor others, or determing they tre not approprime. Arcos to be addressed in the long term by the BFR initiative include whether we should sook a law change to replace citizenship certificates with some other documentation, and reduction of cycle time by diminating fimctions that do not add valuo to çur work product. These recommendations represent a fundamental change in the way we go about the business of naturalization. To assist with the planning decisions of this project, please review the summary report and share your comments. Fe-Engineering Implementation Plan 9: Executive Synopsis of "Re-Engineering the Naturalization Process" Background Recent events are dramatically changing the importance and urgency of attaining citizenship. The stimulus of the green card replacernent progrim, the increase in the number of individuals made eligible for naturalization because of the legalization program, the passage of California's Proposition 187, and the draft welfare reform legislation are causing naturalization applications to spiral upwards in record numbers. At 134,489 receipts for the first six months of FY 95 (through March 1995), Los Angeles is experiencing a 176% increase over last your. Receipts of naturalization applications have increased by 141% in California, 100% in the seven key cities, and 83% Service-wide." Those receipt levels are expected to continue throughout the immigration debate that is dominating the country. They could cyen continue beyond should a re-engineored and more customerfricadly process prove as effective as anticipated. Source: 022.3 report as of March 1995. which compares N-400 receipts for the first six months of FY 94 (blue bars) with the first six months of FY 95 (pink bars). Re-Engineering Implementation Plan~ 9. Redesigning the Exploring Partnership Option's with Parallel Focus Groups On April 1, in rapid response to the Commissioner's request, the Naturalization Re-Engineering Tomm commenced a 30-day “fast track” initiative. The team included representation from the Now York, Newark, Los Angeles, Miami, Baltimora, Honolulu, and Chicago District Offices; the California and Nebraska Servico Camera; one of the national unions; and HQ (Public Affxira, Examinations, and IRM). To cusure that the efibat fbrood people · to look for non-traditional solutions and to think “out of the box,” profissionals from PRC, Inc. were contracted to provide professional expertise. The team was facilitated by Business Process Re-Enginecting and Change Management experts from PRC. Within four weeks' time, the group completed the following activities: • Identified the “as is” naturalization process, including Simultaneous and integrated with the efforts of the BPR Team, the INS convened a team to look at the potential for dramatically increasing community involvement in the naturalization procARS. This town is lod by a uprosentative from the HQ Policy and Planning organization. On several coorsions the Commissioner participated in this effort. The team visited key communities to work with Service Provider organizations (0.g., CBOs, NGOs, voluntary organizations, Community colleges) to identify capacity, regulatory, financial, legal, and relationship issues that nood to be addressed. The results have been interwoven into the Re-Engineering team's work to produos a more coshprehensive Implementation Plan. Re-Enginearing Implementation Plan |