Key issues in the debate over immigration reform are not being addressed according to some Republicans in Congress, especially after the recent influx of undocumented women and children from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

A 2008 law is under scrutiny because it deals with human trafficking victims in Mexico and Canada more quickly than other countries, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

The law defines how Border Patrol should handle unsupervised child immigrants who cross over from neighboring countries, which includes a quick decision on whether to allow them to stay or release them to their native country's officials.

Within 72 hours of being apprehended by officials, children from other countries must be taken to a safe house and wait for their case to be heard -- which can take up to two years because of the backlog in immigration courts.

This is unintentionally sending the message to Central Americans that these children, who are often fleeing violent situations, are being protected and allowed to stay in the U.S.

But the reality is that the children's cases are complex and require counseling, Randy Capps, director of research for U.S. programs at the Migration Policy Institute, told the Christian Science Monitor.

"These children in a lot of cases have been through a lot of terrible things, and differentiating which rise to the level of asylum claims and trafficking claims are not always that easy," he said.

Changes to the 2008 law have been discussed but no action has been taken yet by President Barack Obama's administration, and many in the Legislative Branch of government are hesitant because it is an election year, according to Bloomberg.

Most of the House of Representatives seats are up for election, as are some Senate seats in key immigrant states including Texas, New Mexico and New Jersey.

"Both sides, months before an election, are viewing this through a political prism," said John Feehery, a Republican strategist, once an aide to former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, told Bloomberg. "There's not any real consensus on how to deal with it other than throwing more resources at the border."

Obama recently asked for $3.7 billion to strengthen border security and halt the deportation of the Central American immigrants.

One of the individuals that will be responsible for responding to the request is California Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downey), who is in the House Appropriations Committee.

She spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the recent transfer of hundreds of Central American immigrants from Texas to California since July 1.

"The buses the protesters tried to stop weren't filled with dangerous criminals," she said. "They were carrying women and children, many of whom fled their homes in Central America to escape violence and death."

While many of the migrants are likely to be eventually deported, "we must afford them access to basic due process and treat them with simple human dignity while they are in our government's custody," she said.

But Republicans blame Obama for the immigration crisis, criticizing his decision in June 2012 to protect children of illegal immigrants from deportation.

"This is not amnesty. This is not immunity. This is not a path to citizenship. It's not a permanent fix," Obama said, according to CNN. He added that children of illegal immigrants "study in our schools, play in our neighborhoods, befriend our kids, pledge allegiance to our flag,"

But some critics say that Obama is out of touch with the situation and has not visited the border himself, according to Bloomberg.

Estimates from the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Immigration Statistics indicate a growth of illegal children immigrants from 6,500 in 2011 to about 142,000 in 2015.