Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday,
January 21, 2022 is now posted.

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

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All the best,

Arturo 

**LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN - Friday, January 21, 2022**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. 3463

**Coronavirus Origin Validation, Investigation, and Determination
(COVID) Act of 2022**

The bill would prohibit the issuance of any type of visas to individuals
who concealed the initial outbreak of COVID-19 in the People's
Republic of China.

Sponsored by Senator Marco Rubio (R-Florida) (19

cosponsors- 19  Republicans, 0 Democrats)

01/10/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Rubio

01/10/2022 Placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar

S. 3469

**Multilateral Aid Review Act of 2022**

The bill would establish the United States Multilateral Aid Review
(USMAR). The USMAR would assess U.S. investments in multilateral
entities such as the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and
the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the
Near East (UNRWA), among others.

Sponsored by Senator James Risch (R-Idaho) (0

cosponsors)

01/10/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Risch

01/10/2022 Placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar

S. 3488

**Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022**

The bill would prohibit the issuance of any type of visas to Russian
officials engaged in or knowingly supporting a significant escalation in
hostilities against Ukraine.

Sponsored by Senator Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) (41

cosponsors- 40 Democrats, 1 Independent)

01/18/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Menendez

01/18/2022 Placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar

H.R. 6383

**National Security Moratorium on Foreign Purchases of U.S. Land**

The bill would require the President of the United States to take all
necessary actions to prohibit noncitizens from purchasing public or
private real estate located in the U.S.

Sponsored by Representative Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) (11

cosponsors- 11  Republicans, 0 Democrats)

01/12/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Gohmert

01/12/2022 Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**The U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of
Representatives will have district work periods the week of Monday,
January 24, 2022.

**UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS**There are no immigration-related
hearings scheduled for the week of January 24, 2022.

THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK

****Federal****

****Covid Infections Inside US Immigration Detention Centers Surge to
11.7% of Total Population****On January 19, U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE), released

data on Covid-19 infections and deaths among the immigrant detainee
population. The numbers show that out of the 21,805 immigrants currently
detained, there are 2,544 positive cases of Covid. That number
represents around 11.7% of the total population, a sharp increase from
the start of 2022. Moreover, according to the released data, more than
34,000 immigrant detainees have tested positive since the beginning of
the pandemic, including 11 detainees who have died from Covid-19
complications while in ICE custody.

The recent surge in cases at ICE detention sites comes amid the rapid
nationwide spread

of the Omicron variant. It also comes four months after the Department
of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General (DHS OIG) published
a report

highlighting that DHS needed to improve its Covid-19 policies and
protocols at the southwest border and in detention centers

across the country.

****US Immigration Court Backlog Reached Nearly 1.6 Million Cases in
December 2021****On January 18, a Syracuse University report
stated that the U.S.
immigration court backlog has reached 1,596,193 cases as of December
2021 - the largest backlog on record. The report also shows that
immigration courts, which fall under the Department of Justice (DOJ),
have been increasingly overburdened

over the years as more cases are added to the docket than can be
addressed.

On January 20 - amid a House Judiciary Committee hearing
on
immigration courts - Mimi Tsankov, President of the National
Association of Immigration Judges, stated

that "to fix the backlog, Congress should remove the immigration courts
from the DOJ and create an independent immigration court." She noted
that the independent immigration courts could more effectively manage
their dockets and tackle their caseloads, noting that independence would
separate the politics of a given administration from the needs of
immigration adjudication.

Other witnesses during the hearing, including a representative for the
Federal Bar Association, emphasized

that DOJ's political influence over immigration courts led to a lack
of impartiality and accentuated backlogs.

According to expert testimony

in the hearing, individuals wait an average of over 900 days between
receiving initial charging documents and the final hearing on their
cases in immigration court. The backlog also affects the Board of
Immigration Appeals, where over 91,000 cases are pending.

****Biden Administration Unveils Plan to Attract and Retain STEM
Talent****On January 21, the Biden administration unveiled a new plan

to help attract and retain global talent in science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The new policy will expand and
enhance the efforts to retain international students earning Bachelors,
Masters, and Doctorates in STEM fields to remain in the United States
for up to three years after earning their degrees from American
universities. The new plan

also aims to make more accessible the O-1A nonimmigrant status for
immigrants of extraordinary ability in STEM fields. Additionally, the
new policy clarifies the use of national interest waivers for persons
with advanced STEM degrees and entrepreneurs.

**Legal**

**Biden Administration Defends Use of Title 42 in Court**

On January 19, the Biden administration defended
in
court the use of Title 42 as a necessary means to avoid the transmission
of Covid-19 in border facilities. Title 42 is a public health order
based on a 1944 statute that both the Trump and Biden administrations
have used during the Covid-19 pandemic to rapidly expel arriving
migrants without providing them the opportunity to seek asylum. Recent
estimates suggest that over one million

migrants have been deported under Title 42 during the Biden
administration.

Advocacy groups and international organizations have widely criticized

the policy. They argue

that deportations under Title 42 are inconsistent with international
norms and fail to uphold the fundamental human rights of migrants.
Moreover, public health experts, including the President's Chief Medical
Advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, have stated

that policies like Title 42 are "not the solution to an outbreak."
However, the DOJ argued

- amid the Huisha-Huisha v. Mayorkas
case - that
Title 42 is rooted in "scientific expertise." The DOJ also warned

that the sudden termination of the policy could increase coronavirus
transmission inside Border Patrol facilities and pose a "serious danger"
to public health.

The case stems from an American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) lawsuit
arguing Title 42
violates longstanding immigration statutes which guarantee asylum
seekers a full and fair proceeding to determine their right to
protection in the United States.

**Local**

**Poor Working and Living Conditions of Operation Lone Star**

**Troops Raise Concern Among Texas' Lawmakers**

On January 13, thirteen Democratic members of Congress from Texas
expressed

their concern over the conditions of Texas' National Guard troops
participating in Operation Lone Star

(OLS). After two Army Times

stories

reported that four OLS troops had ended their own life, the lawmakers
called for an inspector general investigation. They wrote

that OLS is disrupting the lives of over 10,000 service members without
adequate compensation or oversight. In addition, they highlighted that
OLS troops lack cold-weather equipment, body armor, first aid kits, and
adequate sleeping facilities. Moreover, the lawmakers added

that OLS is severely eroding the readiness of Texas' National Guard and
their ability to be deployed on other federal orders.

Operation Lone Star

is a controversial enforcement strategy that Texas Governor Abbott
launched on the Texas-Mexico border on March 6, 2021 that includes a
number of efforts to use state resources to restrict and apprehend
migrants. The rationale for the operation is to "combat

the smuggling of drugs and people into Texas," although OLS has run into
legal

and logistical

challenges as border management and enforcement is generally the
responsibility of the Federal government.

**GOVERNMENT REPORTS**There were no immigration-related government
reports the week of January 17, 2022.

**SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES****One Year In: The
Biden Administration's Treatment of Vulnerable Migrants**

The report focuses on three separate pathways to protection: Asylum at
the border, refugee resettlement, and Afghan evacuation. The report also
makes a series of recommendations for how the administration should
approach year two.

**Explainer: What's Happening at the U.S.-Mexico Border**

This regularly updated 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, and providing additional context on reports
of increased migration to the U.S. and releases of migrant families into
the interior. The explainer also includes a Facebook live discussion
covering recent developments at the border.

**Bill Summary: Veteran Deportation Prevention and Reform Act**

The bill aims to prevent the deportation of noncitizen veterans, improve
the pathway to citizenship for noncitizen military service members, and
grant deported noncitizen veterans an opportunity to return to the
United States.

* * *

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

 

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