Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday, March
18, 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, March 18, 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. 3795

**Legacies of War Recognition and Unexploded Ordnance Removal Act**

The bill would appropriate $100,000,000 from 2022 through 2026 to
provide humanitarian assistance for the refugee and immigrant
communities from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam who supported and defended
the American Armed Forces during the conflicts in Southeast Asia in the
1960s and 1970s.

Sponsored by Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) (1

cosponsor- 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)

03/10/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Baldwin

03/10/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations

S. 3805

**United States-Colombia Strategic Alliance Act of 2022**

The bill, among other provisions, would require the Department of State
to develop and implement a strategy, to be known as the "Colombia Relief
and Development Coherence Strategy", to support Colombia's refugees,
asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, vulnerable migrants, and
people affected by natural disasters.

Sponsored by Senator Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) (1

cosponsor- 1 Democrat, 0 Republicans)

03/10/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Menendez

03/10/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations

S. 3850

**Securing America's Ports of Entry Act**

The bill would increase the number of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
officers and support staff by at least 600 hundred people per year until
the agency's staffing needs are met. The bill would also require the
agency to present a report identifying staffing, infrastructure, and
equipment needs to enhance security at ports of entry

**.**

Sponsored by Senator Gary Peters (D-Michigan) (1

cosponsor- 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)

03/16/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Peters

03/16/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs

H.R. 6984

**Ukraine Humanitarian Support Act of 2022**

The bill, among other provisions, would require the Department of State
to develop a strategy to address humanitarian access challenges and
ensure protection for vulnerable refugees and migrants from Ukraine.

Sponsored by Representative William Keating (D-Massachusetts) (18

cosponsors- 1 Republican, 17 Democrats)

03/08/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Keating

03/08/2022 Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs

H.R. 7024

**Every Town A Border Town Act**

The bill would categorize the criminal organization Mara Salvatrucha
(MS-13) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, thereby revoking and
prohibiting the issuance of any type of visas to MS-13 members.

Sponsored by Representative Bob Good (R-Virginia) (15

cosponsors- 15 Republicans, 0 Democrats)

03/09/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Good

03/09/2022 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R. 7028

**Ensuring Security for Military Spouses Act**

The bill would eliminate the 3-month State residency requirement for
non-U.S. citizen spouses of members of the Armed Forces serving on
active duty in the United States who apply for naturalization.

Sponsored by Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Washington) (1

cosponsor- 1 Democrat, 0 Republicans)

03/09/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Herrera Beutler

03/09/2022 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R. 7056

**Visa Transparency Anti-Trafficking Act of 2021**

The bill would require the Department of Homeland Security to submit a
report to Congress on the number of citizens from the Republic of Palau,
the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of
Micronesia - commonly referred to as the Compacts of Free Association
- who have been authorized to reside indefinitely in the United States
as nonimmigrants.

Sponsored by Representative Lois Frankel (D-Florida) (1

cosponsor- 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)

03/11/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Frankel

03/11/2022 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

H.R. 7059

**No Alternatives to Detention for Illegals Act of 2022**

The bill would prohibit the Department of Homeland Security from using
federal funds to implement alternatives to detention for immigrants who
are currently in custody at immigration detention facilities.

Sponsored by Representative Darrell Issa (R-California) (4

cosponsors- 4 Republicans, 0 Democrats)

03/11/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Issa

03/11/2022 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**

The U.S. Senate will be in session the week of Monday, March 21, 2022.

The U.S. House of Representatives will have a district work period the
week of Monday, March 21, 2022.

**UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS**

There are no immigration-related hearings scheduled for the week of
Monday, March 21, 2022.

**THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK**

****Federal****

****Biden Administration Designates Afghanistan for Temporary Protected
Status (TPS)****On March 16, the Biden administration designated

Afghanistan for Temporary Protected Status. The 18-month designation
will allow nationals from Afghanistan with nonimmigrant status who have
been physically present in the U.S. since March 15, 2022, to stay and
work temporarily in the U.S. without fear of being returned into
conflict and violence.

DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said

that the renewal of TPS for Afghanistan was appropriate due to the
ongoing violence from the Taliban-run government and other armed groups.
Mayorkas added that in addition to the ongoing violence, Afghanistan is
undergoing extraordinary and temporary conditions that further prevent
nationals from safely returning, including a collapsing public sector, a
worsening economic crisis, food and water insecurity, lack of access to
healthcare, internal displacement, human rights abuses by the Taliban,
destruction of infrastructure, and increasing criminality.

Among those now eligible for TPS are the approximately

76,000 Afghan allies and refugees who were evacuated and resettled in
the U.S. after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021. However,
these Afghans were largely brought to the U.S. under a two-year grant of
parole, which offers similar temporary protections to Temporary
Protected Status. Neither parole nor TPS provide a path to a green card
or citizenship.

While many immigration and veteran advocacy groups recognized the TPS
designation as a positive step, they reiterated

the need for an Afghan Adjustment Act

to ensure that Afghan evacuees have access to stability and permanent
status.

****Biden Administration Exempts Unaccompanied Migrant Children from
Expulsion under Title 42****On March 12, the Centers for Disease and
Control Prevention (CDC) announced

the formal end of expulsions of unaccompanied migrant children at the
border under Title 42, a pandemic-era order that both the Trump and
Biden administrations have used to rapidly expel arriving migrants
without providing them the opportunity to seek asylum.

The Biden administration had already exempted

unaccompanied minors arriving at the border from Title 42 expulsions.
However, on March 4, the Northern District Court of Texas ordered

the Biden administration to resume the expulsions of unaccompanied
children, arguing that the state of Texas - which challenged the
exemption - was financially harmed by the need to shelter additional
children in the state.

The CDC justified

its decision to formally exempt children by citing decreasing numbers of
COVID-19 cases and increased vaccination rates in the U.S. and the home
countries of migrants who journey to the U.S.-Mexico border.

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. According
to numerous

reports
,
the Biden administration is considering rolling back or ending Title 42
when it next comes up for CDC reauthorization in early April.

****CBP Border Data Reveals Slight Increase in Migrant Arrivals in
February****On March 15, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
released

official data on the number of migrants the agency had apprehended or
encountered at the border in the month of February. The data showed a 7%
increase in overall monthly arrivals as the numbers increased to 164,973
in February from 153,941 in January. The overall numbers continue to be
inflated by a high number of repeat crossers, with recidivism rates
reported at 30%. Taking this repeat crosser rate into account, CBP
reported that the total number of "unique" crossers encountered was
116,278, an 2% increase from January. Following Mexican visa sanctions,
the number of arriving Venezuelan migrants fell sharply to just 3,225 in
February after topping 20,000 each of the previous three months.

Around 55% of all encounters - a total of 91,513 individuals - were
immediately expelled under a pandemic-era CDC rule called Title 42,
without any access to the asylum system. The administration has
continued to use Title 42 even as other pandemic restrictions have been
lifted at the border and across the country.

CBP data also showed that the Biden administration's reimplementation of
MPP, or "remain in Mexico," continues to expand to more individuals and
more areas along the border. Initial MPP enrollments significantly rose
to 897 in February from 399 in January.

On March 18, DHS announced

it would be rescinding a Trump-era rule that would significantly expand
a rapid adjudication process known as expedited removal. The Trump
administration had attempted to expand expedited removal processes
beyond recent border arrivals to those in the interior of the U.S. who
had arrived less recently. After the rescission, only those who are
encountered within 100 miles of the border and within two weeks of
crossing can be subject to expedited removal.

****DHS Secretary meets with Mexico's and Costa Rica's Presidents to
Discuss Labor and Migration Issues****On March 14 and March 15,
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas met

with Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador and Costa Rican
President Carlos Alvarado Quesada, respectively, to discuss a
coordinated regional response to the recent surge in migration from
Honduras, Venezuela, Haiti, and El Salvador. In Mexico, Mayorkas and
López Obrador stressed the need to create jobs in migrants' home
countries and expand legal work opportunities in the United States. A
press release

by the Mexican government emphasized the need to build regional and
bilateral agreements to achieve 'orderly, safe, and regular migration.'

In Costa Rica, Secretary Mayorkas and President Quesada announced

the bilateral Migration Arrangement, which aims to stem irregular
migration, create viable legal migration pathways, foster legitimate
trade and travel, and tackle transnational crime.

****USCIS Reaches Fiscal Year 2022 H-2B Cap****On March 1, U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reported

that the agency had received a sufficient number of petitions needed to
reach the congressionally mandated 33,000 H-2B visa regular cap for the
second half of fiscal year (FY) 2022. The H-2B visa is a nonimmigrant
work visa that allows U.S. employers to hire temporary nonagricultural
foreign workers.

USCIS noted that while it would no longer accept new H-2B petitions for
the coming period, it would continue processing other applications
associated with H-2B status, including those to extend the amount of
time a current H-2B worker may remain in the United States, petitions of
fish roe processors and technicians, and petitions from workers
performing labor in the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands and
Guam.

****Biden Administration Announces Restart of Refugee Program for
U.S.-Affiliated Iraqis (Iraq P-2 Program)****On March 1, the Biden
administration reinstated

the Direct Access Program (DAP) for U.S.-affiliated Iraqis (Iraqi P-2
Program). Created by Congress in 2008, DAP is intended to provide a safe
and expedited refugee pathway for Iraqis in danger due to their work in
support of U.S. military efforts from Iran-linked militias, ISIS, and
other groups. The program was officially suspended in January 2021 to
investigate

concerns of fraud, leaving more than 100,000

Iraqi allies in limbo.

In lifting the suspension of the program, existing Iraqi P-2 cases will
continue to be reviewed, and new application submissions are now
welcome. In the announcement, the State Department reiterated that all
refugees are subject to the highest level of security vetting before
determining whether they are eligible to receive admission into the
United States. The State Department further noted that "we have
identified and resolved the issues that led to our suspension of the
program in January of 2021."

****State & Local****

****Virginia's Legislature Approves Bill that Allows Immigrant Teachers
to Teach in the State****On March 11, Virginia's state legislature voted
unanimously

- in both legislative chambers - to create a provisional teaching
license for immigrant teachers to teach in the state. The bill, which
still needs to be signed into law by Governor Youngkin, seeks to tackle
the critical shortage of educators in schools throughout the state by
utilizing immigrant talent. The bill is one of a number of steps being
taken to address Virginia's growing teacher shortage. In January, the
Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) announced

a $12 million investment to find, recruit, and keep teachers in
classrooms.

**GOVERNMENT REPORTS**

**Congressional Research Service (CRS): ****The Department of Homeland
Security's Reported "Metering" Policy: Legal Issues**

**, March 8, 2022**This Legal Sidebar from the Congressional Research
Service focuses on metering, a Trump-era DHS policy that limits the
number of asylum seekers that are processed each day at designated ports
of entry. CRS reports that the policy sought to address an
"unprecedented rise in asylum requests," as well as safety and health
concerns resulting from overcrowding at ports of entry. However,
according to CRS, the policy has led to long wait times and overcrowded
conditions on the Mexican side of the border, and may be incentivizing
attempts to illegally cross the border between ports of entry along the
U.S. southern border.

**Government Accountability Office (GAO): ****TSA Efforts to Coordinate
with Stakeholders on COVID-19 Security Directives**

**; March 14, 2022**This GAO report highlights the actions taken by the
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to implement restrictions
and safety requirements on international air travel to the U.S. from
certain countries due to COVID-19.

**SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES****Fact Sheet:
Pathways to Protection for Afghans at Risk**
This
resource provides a comparison between three pathways to protection for
Afghans: SIV status, the P2 refugee program, and Humanitarian Parole. It
also summarizes the eligibility requirements for each pathway and notes
the different application timelines and vetting procedures. The fact
sheet also describes what we know about the numbers resettled so far
under each pathway and what benefits they receive.

**Explainer: Humanitarian Parole and the Afghan Evacuation**
This
resource explains what parole is, describes the eligibility requirements
and vetting procedures currently in place for Afghan parolees, and
discusses what benefits parolees receive when they arrive in the U.S.
The explainer also discusses the options available for those at risk who
have been left behind in Afghanistan, as humanitarian parole can also be
accessed by those who are able to escape on their own to third
countries.

**Why Businesses Should Support Immigration Reform**
This
paper argues that reforming the U.S. immigration system is an economic
imperative. Businesses benefit from needed immigration reforms to
provide permanent solutions for Dreamers, the agricultural workforce,
and other essential workers. These reforms can help address ongoing
labor shortages, fill job openings in key sectors dependent on immigrant
labor, strengthen the U.S. economy, and address long-term demographic
shortfalls.

* * *

*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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