Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday, July
2, 2021 is now posted.

You can find the online version of the bulletin
here: [link removed]

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All the best,

Danilo 

**LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN - Friday, July 2, 2021**BILLS INTRODUCED AND
CONSIDERED

LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR

UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS

THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK

GOVERNMENT REPORTS

SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES

**BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED**S. 2261

**Healthcare Opportunities for Patriots in Exile (HOPE) Act of 2021**

This bill would allow deported veterans who committed non-violent crimes
to temporarily re-enter the U.S. to receive medical care from a U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility.

Sponsored by Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois) (4

cosponsors - 4 Democrats, 0 Republicans)

06/24/2021 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Duckworth

06/24/2021 Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

**S. 2265**

**Veterans Visa and Protection Act of 2021**

The bill would prohibit the deportation of veterans who are not violent
offenders and establish a visa program that permits certain deported
veterans to re-enter the U.S. as lawful permanent residents (LPRs). The
bill is a companion to H.R. 4138
.

Sponsored by Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois) (5

cosponsors - 5 Democrats, 0 Republicans)

06/24/2021 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Duckworth

06/24/2021 Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

S. 2268

**The Immigrant Veterans Eligibility Tracking System (I-VETS) Act of
2021**

This bill would require the Secretary of Homeland Security to identify
noncitizens who have served, or are serving, in the Armed Forces of the
United States when those noncitizens apply for an immigration benefit or
are placed in an immigration enforcement proceeding. This information
will enable DHS to "fast track" veterans and service members who are
applying for naturalization, while also allowing officials to practice
prosecutorial discretion, if appropriate, when adjudicating their cases.

Sponsored by Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois) (6

cosponsors - 6 Democrats, 0 Republicans)

06/24/2021 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Duckworth

06/24/2021 Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

H.R. 3385

**Honoring Our Promises through Expedition (HOPE) for Afghan SIVs Act of
2021**

This bipartisan legislation would waive the requirement for Afghan
Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants to undergo a medical examination
while in Afghanistan.

Sponsored by Representative Jason Crow (D-Colorado) (1 cosponsor - 1
Republican, 0 Democrats)

05/20/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Crow

05/20/2021 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

06/29/2021 Passed the House under Suspension of the Rules by a vote of
336-46

H.R. 4137

**Veterans Visa and Protection Act of 2021**

The bill would prohibit the deportation of veterans who are not violent
offenders and establish a visa program that permits certain deported
veterans to re-enter the U.S. as lawful permanent residents (LPRs). The
bill is a companion to S. 2265
.

Sponsored by Representative Raul Grijalva (D-Arizona) (16

cosponsors - 16 democrats, 0 Republicans)

06/24/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Grijalva

06/24/2021 Referred to the House Committees on Armed Services,
Veterans' Affairs, and on the Judiciary

H.R. 4138

**CBP Workload Staffing Model Act**

The bill would require Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to develop
and prioritize a workload staffing model for Border Patrol officers and
requires CBP to develop standard operating procedures for a workforce
tracking system.

Sponsored by Representative Clay Higgins (R-Louisiana) (4

cosponsors - 3 Republicans, 1 Democrat)

06/24/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Higgins

06/24/2021 Referred to the House Committees on Foreign Affairs and on
the Judiciary

H.R. 4142

**The Golden Visa Accountability Act**

The bill would direct the State Department to create a database of
instances in which EB-5 investor visas were denied on the basis of
corruption or human rights abuses.

Sponsored by Representative Adam Kinzinger (R-Illinois) (9

cosponsors - 6 Democrats, 3 Republicans)

06/24/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Kinzinger

06/24/2021 Referred to the House Committees on Foreign Affairs and on
the Judiciary

H.R. 4179

**Improving Opportunities for New Americans Act**

The bill would direct the Secretary of Labor to conduct a study
examining the barriers to employment opportunities for immigrants and
refugees in the United States who have international degrees or
credentials.

Sponsored by Representative John Katko (R-New York) (4

cosponsors - 3 Democrats, 1 Republican)

06/25/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Katko

06/25/2021 Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor

H.R. 4209

**The Illicit Border Tunnel Defense Act**

The bill would direct CBP to develop a plan to counteract illegal
underground cross-border tunnels under the U.S. - Mexico border.

Sponsored by Representative August Pfluger (R-Texas) (1

cosponsor - 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)

06/28/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Pfluger

06/28/2021 Referred to the House Committee on Homeland Security

H.R. 4288

**Workforce for an Expanding Economy Act**

The bill would create a new "H-2C" nonimmigrant visa category for
non-agricultural, low-skilled workers. The bill would create an initial
ceiling of 85,000 visas for primarily construction, hospitality, and
hospital workers.

Sponsored by Representative Lloyd Smucker (0 cosponsors)

06/30/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Smucker

06/30/2021 Referred to the House Committees on Ways and Means, Oversight
and Reform, and on the Judiciary

H.R. 4331

**America's Cultivation of Hope and Inclusion for Long-Term Dependents
Raised and Educated Natively (CHILDREN) Act**

The bill would protect dependents of long-term nonimmigrant visa holders
who risk deportation after turning 21 and aging out of dependency
status. In addition to age-out protections, the bill would provide a
pathway to permanent status for those who came here legally as dependent
children, have lived in the U.S. for a minimum of 10 years, and who have
graduated from an institution of higher education.

Sponsored by Representative Deborah Ross (9

cosponsors - 7 Democrats, 2 Republicans)

07/01/2021 Introduced in the House by Representative Ross

07/01/2021 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**The U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of
Representatives will not be in session the week of July 5, 2021

**UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS**There are no immigration-related
hearings or markups currently scheduled in the U.S. Senate or the U.S.
House of Representatives

**THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK**

**Federal**

****Trump, GOP Lawmakers Visit Texas-Mexico Border****On June 30, former
President Donald Trump and over twenty Republican lawmakers visited the
Texas-Mexico border

at the invitation of Governor Greg Abbott (R-Texas). Abbott, Trump, the
director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, and two local county
sheriffs spoke at a meeting among the group that was open to the press.
The speakers highlighted recent increases in unauthorized border
crossings and discussed security vulnerabilities at the southern border.
According to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data
,
apprehensions of unauthorized migrants has plateaued in recent months
after rising sharply in February and March.

During the meeting and border visit, Trump touted

his administration's efforts to construct barriers on the border and
claimed that the Biden administration ending certain border policies has
resulted in an increase in unauthorized migration. The former president
referenced a policy to return asylum seekers to Mexico while they
continued their immigration court proceedings in the U.S. called the
Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), as well as planned agreements to
send asylum seekers to Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras to pursue
claims there. President Biden has terminated both programs, although
neither were in effect
during
the majority of 2020 after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Governor Abbott has continued his plans to initiate a series of actions
on the border. These include attempts to construct additional border
barriers
,
encouraging local law enforcement officials to attempt to charge and
prosecute migrants with trespassing and other state offenses, and
attempting to revoke the licenses

of shelters housing unaccompanied migrant children in Texas.

****Legislation to Expedite Visas for Afghan Allies Passes House as
Administration Clarifies Plans for an Evacuation****On June 29, the
House of Representatives voted 366 to 46
to
pass legislation that would expedite the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV)
process for thousands of Afghans who have assisted U.S. efforts and who
may be under threat as troop withdrawal in the country continues. The
HOPE for Afghan SIVs Act would waive the requirement that applicants
complete an in-person medical exam in Afghanistan, instead requiring the
exams be conducted within 30 days of their entry into the U.S.

Approximately 18,000 applicants - as well as their families - remain
stuck in the SIV backlog, which can take over three years from start to
finish and was recently exacerbated when the U.S. embassy in Kabul
halted processing

in June amid a COVID-19 outbreak. Representative Jason Crow
(D-Colorado), who introduced the legislation in May, said the bill would
save applicants about 30 days in processing time, noting that, "A month
will save many, many lives." The bill was moved quickly to the House
floor under an agreed suspension of the rules due to the increasing
urgency of the situation.

A July 2 Bloomberg News report

revealed additional details about the Biden administration's plans to
evacuate some of those waiting in the SIV backlog from Afghanistan as
the troop withdrawal accelerates. The administration has asked

Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan to take in approximately 9,000
SIV applicants and their families while the U.S. continues military
withdrawal from the region.

Other pieces of legislation that would further expedite the process and
add SIV visa slots have been introduced and are pending in committee in
both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

****Biden Administration Planning to Review and Reverse Some Trump-Era
Deportations****According to a June 29 Politico report
,
the Biden administration is planning to review and reverse thousands of
deportations that occurred under the Trump administration. According to
DHS officials cited in the report, the White House is working to review
deportations of individuals who may have been removed despite retaining
strong ties to the U.S., including those who previously served for the
U.S. military.

The administration is working on

a "rigorous, systematic approach" to review the deportations and
planning an "orderly process" for deported persons to present their
claims. It is not clear how those who have been determined to be
unjustly deported will be allowed back into the U.S., although the
administration may make use of parole as a temporary solution.

****Lawmakers Express Concern Over DACA Application Backlog****According
to data recently released

by USCIS, just 763 of 50,000 new Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA) applications filed from January to March 2021 have been approved.
The average wait time

for a DACA application currently sits at 10 months. In a statement, the
agency said the slow rate of processing is due to several factors,
including continuing effects from the COVID-19 pandemic, a recent
increase in the number of petitions, and difficulty scheduling in-person
biometrics appointments. A USCIS spokesperson said
,
"we are committed to clearing out backlogs and minimizing processing
delays to help facilitate access to benefits and restore confidence in
the system."

The slow application approval process has elicited concern from
legislators and immigration advocates, particularly given a federal
court in Texas could rule on the legality of the program at any time. In
a statement, Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) said

that "DACA processing delays are harming Dreamers, as well as their
families, livelihoods, and security." Durbin urged the Biden
administration to work "expeditiously" to reduce the backlog.

****Investor Visa Program Expires Despite Last-Ditch Congressional
Effort****On June 30, the Immigrant Investor Regional Center Program,
also known as the EB-5 investor visa, expired

after lawmakers failed to reach a deal on its extension. The program
provides a limited number of green cards to immigrants who have invested
significant financial sums in certain economically depressed areas, or
targeted employment areas (TEAs). The program was first implemented in
1992.

Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont)
introduced legislation
in March
that would extend the program for an additional five years. However,
lawmakers could not agree on the terms of the extension, with
disagreement in particular over whether the TEAs should be determined at
the state or federal level.

Grassley attempted to hotline

the bill through the Senate just before the expiration of the program,
but the effort was blocked by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina).

With the program no longer in effect, it is not clear what will happen

to investors who applied before June 30 and continue to have pending
applications.

****House Appropriators Unveil Homeland Security Spending Bill****On
June 29, the House Appropriations Committee released

a draft Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 budget for the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS). The legislation would provide funding for a number of
immigration-related items, including setting the budget for CBP,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS).

The budget contains several provisions

concerning the U.S.-Mexico border, including $20 million for
improvements in migrant processing, $132 million for new border security
technology, $20 million for body worn cameras for Border Patrol
officers, and $655 million for construction and modernization at ports
of entry. The bill would rescind approximately $2 billion in previously
allocated funding for additional border wall construction. The House DHS
budget also includes an increase in funding for USCIS to address visa
and naturalization backlogs.

The draft budget was approved

by the Homeland Security Subcommittee on June 30, and will now be
considered before the full Appropriations Committee. The 2022 DHS budget
will still need to be reconciled with priorities from the Senate and the
Biden administration before it has a chance to become law.

****9,400 People Become U.S. Citizens amid Independence Day
Celebrations**

** ****Amid Independence Day festivities, more than 9,400

people across the country will become U.S. citizens in 170 ceremonies
between June 30 and July 7. Twenty-two of those naturalization
ceremonies will be Independence Day-themed

and will take place in various locations, including George
Washington's Mount Vernon and Thomas Jefferson's Monticello.

On July 2, the Biden administration announced

a new effort to encourage long time U.S. residents to start
naturalization proceedings. The actions will call for multiple agencies
to promote the citizenship process. President Biden attended

a naturalization ceremony on the day of the announcement.

****Legal****

****Supreme Court Rules Certain Immigrants Seeking Protection May be
Detained Without Bond Hearings****On June 29, the Supreme Court ruled

that certain immigrants seeking humanitarian protection from the U.S. do
not have the right to a bond hearing to request release from ICE
detention while their court cases continue. The case concerned
individuals in "withholding only" proceedings, which are for those who
may be ineligible for asylum but still risk facing persecution should
they be deported to their home countries. These include immigrants who
have been previously deported, faced persecution, and have attempted to
return to the U.S. to seek protection.

The Court ruled that ICE can hold

these immigrants in detention without the approval of an immigration
judge. Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the relevant statute "implicitly
allows the Government to deny bond hearings" for these immigrants during
a 90-day period.

****State and Local****

****Conservative Donor Funds South Dakota Deployment of National Guard
Troops to the Border****On June 29, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem
(R) announced she had
received a "private donation" that would allow her to deploy up to 50
state National Guard troops to the Texas-Mexico border to assist with
border security efforts. According to an Axios report
,
the funds came from billionaire conservative donor Willis Johnson.
Neither Johnson nor Governor Noem disclosed the amount of the donation.

Noem joins a series of other Republican governors in deploying National
Guard troops for brief stints at the border. The troops are forbidden
from serving on federal mobilization, meaning they are unable to
participate in many CBP border security actions. In the past, troops
have been assigned
to
paint border barriers and have assisted at the border in a
reconnaissance and surveillance capacity.

**GOVERNMENT REPORTS**

**Government Accountability Office (GAO):****Immigration Detention: ICE
Efforts to Address COVID-19 in Detention Facilities**

**; June 30, 2021**This report from the Government Accountability Office
(GAO) summarizes U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE)
response to COVID-19. GAO reports that despite normal operations being
impacted by the pandemic, ICE developed protocols to facilitate facility
intake processing, screening and testing, and social distancing. Some
ICE facilities did experience challenges appropriately quarantining
detainees who tested positive and enforcing mask mandates.

**SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES****What's
Happening at the Southern Border, Explained**
This
explainer breaks down what is happening at the U.S.-Mexico border,
analyzing CBP data on recent apprehensions, describing the impact and
use of Title 42 expulsions as well as the treatment of arriving UACs. It
also provides additional context on reports of increased migration to
the U.S. and the treatment of migrant families seeking entry at the
border.

**Essentials of Naturalization for Military Service Members and
Veterans**
This
resource provides additional information about special naturalization
processes for military service members and their families. It also
provides a number of facts about deported veterans.

**Fact Sheet: Immigration Detention in the United States**
This
updated resource provides details about the U.S. immigration detention
system. It describes detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the Office of Refugee
Resettlement (ORR), and answers a number of frequently asked questions
about the detention system.

* * *

*This Bulletin is not intended to be comprehensive. Please contact
Danilo Zak, National Immigration Forum Policy and Advocacy Associate,
with comments and suggestions of additional items to be included. Danilo
can be reached at [email protected] .
Thank you.

 

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