Legislative Bulletin

 

 

Hello all,

The National Immigration Forum's Legislative Bulletin for Friday, June
24, 2022, is now posted.

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

[link removed]

All the best,

Arturo 

**LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN - Friday, June 24, 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. 3157

**Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act**

The bill would require the Department of Labor to conduct a study of the
factors affecting employment opportunities for immigrants and refugees
with professional credentials obtained in foreign countries.

Sponsored by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) (5

cosponsors- 3 Republicans, 2 Democrats)

11/03/2021 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Klobuchar

11/03/2021 Referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions.

06/23/2022 Passed the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions via unanimous consent.

06/23/2022 Passed the Senate without amendment via unanimous consent

S. 4436

**Advanced Border Coordination Act**

The bill would require DHS to establish at least two additional joint
operations centers along the southern border. Joint operations centers
are DHS locations that allow federal, state, local, and tribal law
enforcement agencies to work together to address border security and
transnational criminal activity. The bill would also require DHS to
present an annual report to Congress on the centers' operational
activities and general recommendations for improving coordination across
local, state, and federal law enforcement efforts at the border.

Sponsored by Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nevada) (0

cosponsors)

06/21/2022 Introduced in the Senate by Senator Cortez Masto

06/21/2022 Referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs

H.R. 7959

**Noncitizens: Outlawed from Voting in Our Trusted Elections Act (NO
VOTE for Noncitizens Act) of 2022**

The bill would require states that allow noncitizens to vote in local
elections to create a noncitizen voter list separate from the list of
U.S. citizen voters. The bill would also expressly prohibit noncitizens
from participating in federal elections.

Sponsored by Representative Davis Rodney (R-Illinois) (0

cosponsors)

06/07/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Rodney

06/07/2022 Referred to the House Committees on House Administration and
the Judiciary

H.R. 8094

**Independent and Objective Oversight of Ukrainian Assistance Act**

The bill would create an Office of the Special Inspector General for
Ukrainian Military, Economic, and Humanitarian Aid. The office would
conduct and supervise audits and investigations related to the programs
and operations funded by recent Ukraine appropriations legislation. The
office would also monitor and review the coordination between the United
States and the Government of Ukraine to support Ukrainian refugees and
partners in the region. This is a companion bill of S. 4190
.

Sponsored by Representative Robert Wittman (R-Virginia) (2

cosponsors- 2 Republicans, 0 Democrats)

06/15/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Wittman

06/15/2022 Referred to the House Committees on Foreign Affairs, Armed
Services, and Oversight and Reform

H.R. 8106

**Fighting Foreign Influence Act**

The bill, among various other provisions, would forbid political
committees from accepting credit card contributions by internet from
noncitizens who are not legal permanent residents.

Sponsored by Representative Jared Golden (D-Maine) (3

cosponsors- 2 Republicans, 1 Democrat)

06/16/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Golden

06/16/2022 Referred to the House Committees on House Administration,
Ways and Means, and the Judiciary

H.R. 8119

**To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to limit the ability to
take into account the mental health of an applicant for asylum**

Sponsored by Representative Troy Nehls (R-Texas) (10

cosponsors- 10 Republicans, 0 Democrats)

06/16/2022 Introduced in the House by Representative Nehls

06/16/2022 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary

**LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR**

The U.S. Senate will not be in session from Tuesday, June 27, through
Friday, July 1, 2022.

The U.S. House of Representatives will be in session for committee work
from Tuesday, June 28, through Thursday, June 30, 2022.

**UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS**There are no hearings scheduled for the
week of Monday, June 27, 2022.

**THEMES IN WASHINGTON THIS WEEK**

****Federal****

****Biden Administration Announces Multilateral "Sting Operation" to
Disrupt Human Smuggling Networks Across the Americas****On June 9, the
Biden Administration announced

an operation that began in April to disrupt and dismantle migrant
smuggling networks across the hemisphere. The effort, labeled "Sting
Operation
"
by the administration, is an interagency project led by the Department
of Homeland Security (DHS), which has committed over $50 million

and deployed over 1,300 personnel across Latin America and along the
Southwest Border to combat smuggling networks.

Recent data indicate

that through the end of May, the Sting Operation produced approximately
20,000 "disruption actions," including over 2,000 arrests and seizures
of property used to hide and smuggle migrants. DHS further estimates the
operation has led to 900 fewer migrants arriving at the Southwest border
each day. In a June 10 statement, the Biden administration stated that
the U.S. aims to continue to expand efforts with other governments in
the Americas to improve information sharing, build capacity, and advance
criminal investigations against human smugglers and drug traffickers.

****71,000 Ukrainians Have Arrived in the United States Since the Start
of the Russian Invasion****According to a June 24 report
,
at least 71,000 Ukrainians have entered the United States since the
Russian invasion began in March. The Ukrainians have arrived via three
main pathways. First, over 22,000 Ukrainians were granted humanitarian
parole upon arriving at the border. An additional 15,000 have arrived
- also under parole - after being approved under the
recently-created Uniting for Ukraine

private sponsorship program. The remainder have entered the U.S. via
legal immigration channels such as tourist visas or employment- or
family-based visas.

Overall, the data shows the Uniting for Ukraine program has received
over 60,000

sponsorship applications in about two months of activity. Approximately
38,000 applications have been approved and 23,000 Ukrainians are
expected to arrive under the program in the coming months to join the
15,000 recipients already in the U.S.

****Administration, Congress Commemorate World Refugee Day**

** ****On June 20, the Biden administration, Congress, and people
around the world celebrated World Refugee Day. President Biden issued a
statement

"recognizing the strength, resilience, and humanity of millions of
refugees forced to flee violence, persecution, and war" and commending
the "generosity of host communities across the United States who work
tirelessly to welcome refugees."

On June 21, Senator Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) and Representative
Ted Lieu (D-California) introduced

resolutions

in their respective chambers in commemoration of World Refugee Day. The
resolutions reaffirmed the "bipartisan commitment of the United States
to promote the safety, health, and well-being of millions of refugees
and asylum seekers."

In its statement

commemorating World Refugee Day, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees
noted that a record 100 million people are currently forcibly displaced
worldwide.

****Legal****

****Texas Supreme Court Rules that Detained Asylum-Seeking Mothers Have
Standing to Challenge State Rule****On June 17, the Texas Supreme Court
ruled

that asylum-seeking mothers have standing in an ongoing a detention
facility lawsuit. In 2015, the Texas Department of Family Protective
Services issued a rule that afforded immigration detention facilities an
exemption to state childcare licensing standards that prohibit
facilities from housing unrelated adults and children in the same
bedroom. A group of asylum-seeking mothers and the non-profit Grassroots
Leadership sued two detention facilities, challenging the room-sharing
rule and alleging it results in safety risks and privacy violations of
detainees and their children.

A lower court previously determined that the mothers and Grassroots
Leadership lacked standing to sue because they could not prove that they
were harmed by the rule. However, the Texas Supreme Court found that the
standing requirement was satisfied by the concrete injuries, including
the risk of harm and privacy violations.

****State & Local****

****Texas Government Has Paid $1.6 Million to Bus Migrants to
Washington, D.C.****A June 15 NBC 5 report

revealed that the state of Texas has paid $1.6 million as part of
Governor Greg Abbott's (R-Texas) initiative to bus irregular migrants
from the border to Washington, D.C. Documents obtained through an open
records request to the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM)
show that 1,154 immigrants were transported to D.C. between April and
May at a cost of $1,442 per person. Abbott pledged to raise

private funds to pay for the program, but the Governor's website shows
only approximately $112,000 raised
.

The busing program was announced

on April 6 by Governor Abbott in response to the CDC's April 1
announcement that it planned to end Title 42, a pandemic-era immigration
policy that allows authorities to turn migrants away at the
border. Abbott explained

that the purpose of the busing program was to send "[undocumented
immigrants] to the United States Capitol where the Biden administration
will be able to more immediately address the immediate needs of people
they are allowing to come across our border."

The migrants have been welcomed
 by
D.C.-based NGOs and put onto other buses and trains towards their actual
destinations.

**GOVERNMENT REPORTS**

**U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO); "****Enforcement Agencies
Should Better Leverage Information to Target Efforts Involving U.S.
Universities**

**"; June 14, 2022.**This GAO report states that some international
students pose a risk of illegally accessing and sharing sensitive
information, such as data or technology, with their home countries. The
report suggests that enforcement agencies involved in addressing this
threat must raise awareness of security threats among university
officials.

**U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO); "****Alternatives to
Detention: ICE Needs to Better Assess Program Performance and Improve
Contract Oversight**

**"; June 22, 2022.**This GAO report finds that U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) uses a $2.2 billion contract to administer the
Alternatives to Detention program. The report notes that ICE has failed
to fully and properly assess how the program is working and ensure that
the contractors it uses are meeting appropriate standards.

**SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES****Summary:
Immigration and Refugee Assistance in the Ukraine Funding Bill**
This
summary examines the immigration and refugee assistance provisions in
the Ukraine funding bill that was signed into law on May 21.

**Bill Summary: Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act**
This
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.

**The Current State of DACA: Challenges Await in Litigation and
Rulemaking**
This
explainer describes the current state of the Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, discussing the ongoing attempts to
scale back or end the program in the courts and the current
administration's attempts to preserve the program.

* * *

*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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