Why does Dallas have the pilot program for I-485's, etc. when there was an announcement that all I-485's, I-765's, etc are now to be sent to Chicago?

http://uscis.gov/graphics/publicaffairs/newsrels/LockBox11_23_04.pdf

Still,

Not all I-485s go to Chicago yet. Only the states in Phase 1. Texas is not part of Phase 1.

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, as well as the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands of the United States

Thanks for answering, Sphyra... it's 36+ states going to Chicago already, it just really limits those available to use the pilot program, guess I wonder why they even did it. Is this something they're considering implementing everywhere?

I think Pilot Programs are designed to test out new ideas and procedures and to evaluate how they work. NYC also has (had) a similar pilot program. Recent rumors are suggesting the NYC program has ended but I've only heard that from one source so far.

The overall backlog reduction plan says that most petitioners will be adjudicated within 6 months. If that is the case, then all AOS'ers will have their cases adjudicated in a timely manner. Some places like Atlanta take a couple of years. Others like NYC take 3 months (if one filed in 2004 but over 2 years if one filed prior to 2004). It would be nice to see the inequities end. Maybe this new lockbox procedure in Chicago will even the playing field a bit more. Who knows?

Wonder why there's no processing report on I-485 for Missouri?

For the same reason family-based I-485s are not listed for Service Centers. It's adjudicated at the local office so it is the local office that dictates how long the process will take (not the service center or NBC).