National Office of New Americans Act

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 572 To establish the National Office of New Americans within the Executive Office of the President, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 28, 2021 Ms. MENG (for herself, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. TORRES of New York, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. NORTON, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. EVANS, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. NEGUSE, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. COOPER, Ms. TITUS, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. BOWMAN, Mr. CARSON, Ms. LEE of California, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mrs. DEMINGS, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. JONES, Ms. CHU, Ms. BUSH, Mrs. TORRES of California, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. OMAR, Mr. SIRES, Mr. HAS- TINGS, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. SWALWELL, Mr. GOMEZ, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. PINGREE, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. LIEU, Mrs. TRAHAN, Ms. NEWMAN, Ms. PORTER, Mr. NADLER, Mr. KAHELE, Mr. AUCHINCLOSS, Mr. HORSFORD, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. CASE, Mr. CROW, Ms. MAT- SUI, and Mr. CICILLINE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To establish the National Office of New Americans within the Executive Office of the President, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 572 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Office of New 2 Americans Act’’. 3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 4 In this Act: 5 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 6 the Director of the National Office of New Ameri- 7 cans. 8 (2) FEDERAL AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Federal 9 agency’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘agency’’ 10 in section 551 of title 5, United States Code. 11 (3) OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Office’’ means the 12 National Office of New Americans established by 13 section 3(a). 14 SEC. 3. NATIONAL OFFICE OF NEW AMERICANS. 15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 16 the Executive Office of the President an office to be known 17 as the ‘‘National Office of New Americans’’. 18 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Office are the 19 following: 20 (1) To welcome and support immigrants and 21 refugees in the United States. 22 (2) To promote and support immigrant and ref- 23 ugee integration into, and inclusion in, the social, 24 cultural, economic, and civic life of the United 25 States. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 572 IH (3) To ensure that the Federal Government and 1 Federal agencies promote the pursuit of United 2 States citizenship among immigrants and refugees. 3 (4) To ensure access to quality English lan- 4 guage learning programs that support the successful 5 integration of immigrant adults, including by en- 6 hancing— 7 (A) employment and career prospects and 8 economic integration; and 9 (B) social integration in local communities 10 and participation in civic life, including engage- 11 ment with State and local governments, schools, 12 and private and nonprofit community institu- 13 tions. 14 (5) To improve access to workforce development 15 programs, including by ensuring that such programs 16 meet the demand and the unique language, training, 17 and educational needs of immigrants and refugees. 18 (6) To coordinate the efforts of Federal, State, 19 and local entities to support the effective social, eco- 20 nomic, linguistic, and civic integration of immi- 21 grants, refugees, and the children of immigrants and 22 refugees. 23 (7) To provide advice and leadership to the 24 President, Members of Congress, and other Federal 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 572 IH Government officials on the challenges and opportu- 1 nities facing such entities with respect to immigrant 2 and refugee integration. 3 (8) To evaluate the scale, quality, and effective- 4 ness of Federal Government efforts with respect to 5 immigrant and refugee social and economic integra- 6 tion, including access to United States citizenship, 7 English language learning, education, and workforce 8 development programs. 9 (9) To identify the anticipated effects of new 10 Federal policies on existing integration efforts and 11 advise the President on how to address potential in- 12 tegration needs and the effects of such policies. 13 (10) With respect to immigrant and refugee in- 14 tegration efforts, to consult on a biannual basis with 15 State and local government officials on challenges 16 and opportunities presented by such efforts. 17 (11) With respect to the activities described in 18 paragraphs (8) through (10), to ensure the inclusion 19 of the perspectives of immigrants and refugees. 20 (12) To submit to the President and the appro- 21 priate committees of Congress a biannual report 22 that describes the activities of the Office and the re- 23 sults of the consultation processes described in para- 24 graphs (8) through (11). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 572 IH (c) DIRECTOR.— 1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall be headed 2 by a Director, who shall be appointed by the Presi- 3 dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen- 4 ate. 5 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Director shall— 6 (A) establish policies, objectives, and prior- 7 ities for the Office with respect to immigrant 8 and refugee integration; 9 (B) with the assistance of the Deputy Di- 10 rector for Citizenship and Inclusion, the Deputy 11 Director for Workforce and the Economy, the 12 Deputy Director for Children’s Integration Suc- 13 cess, and the Associate Director of State and 14 Local Affairs, carry out the purposes of the Of- 15 fice, as described in subsection (b); 16 (C) serve as the Chair of the Federal Ini- 17 tiative for New Americans established under 18 section 4; 19 (D) make recommendations to the Presi- 20 dent on changes in the organization, manage- 21 ment, programs, and budget of the Federal 22 agencies to promote the integration of immi- 23 grants and refugees; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 572 IH (E) with respect to efforts to promote 1 United States citizenship and the integration of 2 immigrants and refugees, consult, support, and 3 coordinate with State and local governments; 4 and 5 (F) serve as a member of the Domestic 6 Policy Council and the National Economic 7 Council. 8 (3) POWERS OF THE DIRECTOR.—In carrying 9 out the responsibilities under paragraph (2) and the 10 purposes under subsection (b), the Director may— 11 (A) select, appoint, employ, and fix com- 12 pensation of such officers and employees as 13 may be necessary to carry out such responsibil- 14 ities and purposes; 15 (B) with the concurrence of the head of 16 the applicable Federal agency, direct the tem- 17 porary reassignment within the Federal Govern- 18 ment of personnel employed by such Federal 19 agency; 20 (C) use for administrative purposes, on a 21 reimbursable basis, the available services, equip- 22 ment, personnel, and facilities of Federal, State, 23 and local agencies; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 572 IH (D) procure the services of experts and 1 consultants, in accordance with section 3109 of 2 title 5, United States Code (relating to appoint- 3 ments in the Federal service) at rates of com- 4 pensation for individuals not to exceed the daily 5 equivalent of the rate of pay payable for level 6 GS–18 of the General Schedule under section 7 5332 of title 5, United States Code; 8 (E) accept and use donations of property 9 from Federal, State, and local government 10 agencies; 11 (F) use the mail in the same manner as 12 other Federal agencies; and 13 (G) monitor the implementation of immi- 14 grant and refugee integration-related activities 15 of the Federal Government, including by— 16 (i) conducting program and perform- 17 ance audits and evaluations of each Fed- 18 eral agency; and 19 (ii) requesting assistance from the In- 20 spector General of the applicable Federal 21 agency in such audits and evaluations. 22 (d) DEPUTY DIRECTORS.— 23 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be in the Office 24 a Deputy Director for Citizenship and Inclusion, a 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 572 IH Deputy Director for Workforce and the Economy, 1 and a Deputy Director for Children’s Integration 2 and Success, each of whom shall be appointed by the 3 President, in consultation with the Director. 4 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES.— 5 (A) DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR CITIZENSHIP 6 AND INCLUSION.—The Deputy Director for 7 Citizenship and Inclusion shall, among other 8 duties as assigned by the Director, assist the 9 Director in promoting— 10 (i) inclusion of immigrants and refu- 11 gees in the social, economic, and civic life 12 of their communities and the United 13 States; and 14 (ii) access to United States citizen- 15 ship. 16 (B) DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR WORKFORCE 17 AND THE ECONOMY.—The Deputy Director for 18 Workforce and the Economy shall, among other 19 duties as assigned by the Director, assist the 20 Director in— 21 (i) promoting participation of immi- 22 grants and refugees in the United States 23 workforce; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 572 IH (ii) increasing the contributions of im- 1 migrants and refugees to the United States 2 economy. 3 (C) DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR CHILDREN’S 4 INTEGRATION SUCCESS.—The Deputy Director 5 for Children’s Integration Success shall, among 6 other duties as assigned by the Director, assist 7 the Director in ensuring that Federal policies 8 and programs intended to support the healthy 9 development and educational success of children 10 are effective in reaching and serving the chil- 11 dren of immigrant families. 12 (e) BUREAU OF STATE AND LOCAL AFFAIRS.— 13 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established within 14 the Office a Bureau of State and Local Affairs. 15 (2) ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR.— 16 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Bureau of State 17 and Local Affairs shall be headed by an Asso- 18 ciate Director of State and Local Affairs, who 19 shall be appointed by the President, in con- 20 sultation with the Director. 21 (B) DUTIES.—The Associate Director of 22 State and Local Affairs shall, among other du- 23 ties as assigned by the Director, assist the Di- 24 rector in coordinating the efforts of State and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 572 IH local entities to support the economic, linguistic, 1 and civic integration of immigrants, refugees, 2 and the children of immigrants and refugees. 3 (f) LIMITATION.—An individual may not serve as Di- 4 rector, Deputy Director for Citizenship and Inclusion, 5 Deputy Director for Workforce and the Economy, Deputy 6 Director for Children’s Integration Success, or Associate 7 Director of State and Local Affairs while serving in any 8 other position in the Federal Government. 9 (g) ACCESS BY CONGRESS.—The establishment of 10 the Office within the Executive Office of the President 11 shall not affect access to the Office by a Member of Con- 12 gress or any member of a committee of the Senate or the 13 House of Representatives, including access to— 14 (1) any information, document, or study in the 15 possession of, or conducted by or at the direction of, 16 the Director; or 17 (2) personnel of the Office. 18 SEC. 4. FEDERAL INITIATIVE ON NEW AMERICANS. 19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 20 the confirmation of the Director of the Office, the Director 21 shall establish within the Office a Federal Initiative on 22 New Americans (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Initia- 23 tive’’). 24 (b) PURPOSE.—The purposes of the Initiative are— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 572 IH (1) to welcome and support immigrants and 1 refugees in the United States; 2 (2) to establish a coordinated Federal program 3 to respond effectively to immigrant and refugee inte- 4 gration issues; and 5 (3) to advise and assist the Director in identi- 6 fying and implementing the necessary policies to 7 carry out such program. 8 (c) MEMBERSHIP.—The Initiative shall be composed 9 of— 10 (1) the Director, who shall serve as Chair; 11 (2) the Secretary of the Treasury; 12 (3) the Attorney General; 13 (4) the Secretary of Commerce; 14 (5) the Secretary of Labor; 15 (6) the Secretary of Health and Human Serv- 16 ices; 17 (7) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel- 18 opment; 19 (8) the Secretary of Education; 20 (9) the Secretary of Homeland Security; 21 (10) the Secretary of State; 22 (11) the Director of the Office of Refugee Re- 23 settlement; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Feb 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H572.IH H572 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 572 IH (12) the Director of the Small Business Admin- 1 istration; 2 (13) the Director of the Office of Management 3 and Budget; 4 (14) the Director of the Bureau of Consumer 5 Financial Protection; and 6 (15) any other individual— 7 (A) invited by the Director to participate; 8 and 9 (B) who occupies a position listed under 10 level I or II of the Executive Schedule, as pro- 11 vided in sections 5312 and 5313 of title 5, 12 United States Code. 13 (d) DUTIES.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Initiative shall meet at 15 the call of the Chair and perform such duties as the 16 Chair reasonably requires. 17 (2) COORDINATED RESPONSE TO IMMIGRANT 18 AND REFUGEE ISSUES.—The Initiative shall join 19 with Federal agencies i [Text truncated for display. 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