The IEEE-USA is asking the U.S. Department of Justice to consider whether the business model used by many offshore outsourcing firms — replacing U.S. workers with visa holders — violates the law.

Former U.S. Rep. Bruce Morrison (D-CT), who represents the IEEE-USA, recently sent a “technical assistance letter” to the DOJ’s Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices. This letter is a formal request for help interpreting the law. But the DOJ isn’t obligated to answer the questions posed in the technical assistance request.

Morrison wrote the 1990 immigration law creating the H-1B program. But Morrison has said that they had no idea, 25 years ago, that this temporary work visa would help create the IT offshoring industry. The IEEE-USA has become a strong critic of the visa program, and has opposed legislative efforts to raise the cap.

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