State Sponsored Visa Pilot Program Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 5174 To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for a State- sponsored nonimmigrant pilot program, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOVEMBER 19, 2019 Mr. CURTIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Education and Labor, Ways and Means, Agriculture, Financial Services, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the juris- diction of the committee concerned A BILL To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for a State-sponsored nonimmigrant pilot program, 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 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘State Sponsored Visa 4 Pilot Program Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. STATE-SPONSORED NONIMMIGRANT PROGRAM. 6 Section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nation- 7 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)) is amended— 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 5174 IH (1) in subparagraph (U)(iii), by striking the 1 ‘‘or’’ at the end; 2 (2) in subparagraph (V), by striking the period 3 at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 4 (3) by adding at the end the following: 5 ‘‘(W)(i) an alien who is sponsored by a 6 State and who is coming temporarily to the 7 United States to reside in the State to perform 8 services, provide capital investment, direct the 9 operations of an enterprise, or otherwise con- 10 tribute to the economic development agenda of 11 the State in a manner determined by the State; 12 and 13 ‘‘(ii) the alien spouse and minor children of 14 any alien described in clause (i).’’. 15 SEC. 3. ADMISSION OF STATE-SPONSORED NON- 16 IMMIGRANTS. 17 (a) REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE-SPONSORED NON- 18 IMMIGRANTS.—Section 214 of the Immigration and Na- 19 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended— 20 (1) in subsection (h), by striking ‘‘(H)(i)(b) or 21 (c), (L), or (V)’’ and inserting ‘‘(H)(i)(b), (H)(i)(c), 22 (L), (V), or (W)’’; and 23 (2) by adding at the end the following: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 5174 IH ‘‘(s) REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO STATE-SPON- 1 SORED NONIMMIGRANT VISAS.— 2 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 3 ‘‘(A) RESIDE.—The term ‘reside’ means to 4 live and establish a residence in a State for a 5 consecutive period of more than 14 days (not 6 including any period after the approval of the 7 resident’s petition for immigrant status). 8 ‘‘(B) SECRETARY.—Except as otherwise 9 specifically provided in this subsection, the term 10 ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of Homeland 11 Security. 12 ‘‘(C) STATE.—Notwithstanding section 13 101(a)(36), the term ‘State’ means a State of 14 the United States and the District of Columbia. 15 ‘‘(D) STATE-SPONSORED NON- 16 IMMIGRANT.—The term ‘State-sponsored non- 17 immigrant’ means an alien who has been spon- 18 sored by a State for admission under section 19 101(a)(15)(W). 20 ‘‘(E) STATE-SPONSORED NONIMMIGRANT 21 PROGRAM.—The term ‘State-sponsored non- 22 immigrant program’ means a nonimmigrant 23 program to regulate the employment, invest- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 5174 IH ment, and residence of State-sponsored non- 1 immigrants. 2 ‘‘(F) STATE-SPONSORED NONIMMIGRANT 3 STATUS.—The term ‘State-sponsored non- 4 immigrant status’ means status granted to an 5 alien admitted as a nonimmigrant pursuant to 6 section 101(a)(15)(W). 7 ‘‘(2) STATE-SPONSORED NONIMMIGRANT PRO- 8 GRAM.—Any State may submit an application to the 9 Secretary to participate in the State-sponsored non- 10 immigrant program by sponsoring aliens for admis- 11 sion to the United States. 12 ‘‘(3) STATE-SPONSORED NONIMMIGRANT PRO- 13 GRAM APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall approve any 14 application submitted by a State (or compact of 15 States) under paragraph (2) for a State-sponsored 16 nonimmigrant program that— 17 ‘‘(A) was approved by the legislature of the 18 State; 19 ‘‘(B) regulates, in a manner determined by 20 the State, the employment and residence of 21 State-sponsored nonimmigrants; 22 ‘‘(C) implements procedures, in a manner 23 determined by the Secretary, to inform the Sec- 24 retary of the failure of a nonimmigrant to com- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 5174 IH ply with the terms of State-sponsored non- 1 immigrant status when the State is made aware 2 of such failure; 3 ‘‘(D) allows, in a manner determined by 4 the State, a State-sponsored nonimmigrant who 5 has been admitted to seek employment with an 6 employer other than the employer with which 7 the nonimmigrant was initially employed; and 8 ‘‘(E) implements procedures, in a manner 9 determined by the Secretary, to annually inform 10 the Secretary of the address and employment of 11 all State-sponsored nonimmigrants residing in 12 the State. 13 ‘‘(4) STATE PETITION.— 14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State that partici- 15 pates in the State-sponsored nonimmigrant pro- 16 gram shall submit a petition in such form and 17 containing such information as the Secretary 18 shall specify to sponsor an alien under this sub- 19 section. 20 ‘‘(B) APPROVAL.—A visa may not be 21 granted to an alien described in subparagraph 22 (A) until the Secretary approves a petition sub- 23 mitted pursuant to subparagraph (A). Such ap- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 5174 IH proval does not, of itself, establish that the 1 alien is a nonimmigrant. 2 ‘‘(C) FEE.—A State that submits a peti- 3 tion under subparagraph (A) shall pay a fee in 4 amount determined by the Secretary to cover 5 the cost of the adjudication of the application. 6 ‘‘(5) STATE-SPONSORED NONIMMIGRANTS.— 7 The Secretary of State shall approve a non- 8 immigrant visa for an alien and the Secretary of 9 Homeland Security shall admit the alien to the 10 United States as a State-sponsored nonimmigrant or 11 grant State-sponsored nonimmigrant status to the 12 alien if the alien— 13 ‘‘(A) is otherwise admissible under this 14 Act; 15 ‘‘(B) has not been convicted of a felony, 16 any crime of violence (as defined in section 16 17 of title 18, United States Code), or any crime 18 of reckless driving or of driving while intoxi- 19 cated or under the influence of alcohol or of 20 prohibited substances; 21 ‘‘(C) is petitioned for by a State that par- 22 ticipates in the State-sponsored nonimmigrant 23 program approved by the Secretary under para- 24 graph (3); 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 5174 IH ‘‘(D) has not previously violated any term 1 or condition of State-sponsored nonimmigrant 2 status; and 3 ‘‘(E) has paid any bond that the State may 4 require under paragraph (13). 5 ‘‘(6) PERIOD OF AUTHORIZED STATUS.— 6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The period of author- 7 ized status for a State-sponsored nonimmigrant 8 shall be a period determined by the State, but 9 may not exceed 3 years. 10 ‘‘(B) RENEWAL.— 11 ‘‘(i) LOCATION.—Subject to clause 12 (ii), the period of authorized status under 13 subparagraph (A) shall be renewable inside 14 or outside of the United States. 15 ‘‘(ii) CONDITION.—Renewals under 16 clause (i) may be granted only if— 17 ‘‘(I) the sponsoring State re- 18 quests such renewal; and 19 ‘‘(II) the State-sponsored non- 20 immigrant has resided continuously in 21 such sponsoring State, or States sub- 22 ject to an interstate compact (not in- 23 cluding any period of residence after 24 the approval of a petition for immi- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 5174 IH grant status of which the alien is a 1 beneficiary). 2 ‘‘(C) TERMINATION.—The Secretary shall 3 terminate the period of authorized status if— 4 ‘‘(i) the State-sponsored non- 5 immigrant resides or works outside of the 6 State, or States subject to an interstate 7 compact under paragraph (7), that spon- 8 sored the alien; 9 ‘‘(ii) the State-sponsored non- 10 immigrant fails to follow all rules and reg- 11 ulations required by the State, as deter- 12 mined by the State (following any appeals 13 process the State may create); or 14 ‘‘(iii) the State that sponsored the 15 nonimmigrant requests that the status of 16 the nonimmigrant be terminated (following 17 any appeals process the State may create) 18 unless another State sponsors the non- 19 immigrant. 20 ‘‘(D) EMPLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION.— 21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—All aliens admit- 22 ted as State-sponsored nonimmigrants 23 under section 101(a)(15)(W)— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 5174 IH ‘‘(I) shall be authorized for em- 1 ployment for purposes of section 2 274A; and 3 ‘‘(II) shall be issued appropriate 4 documentation evidencing such au- 5 thorization. 6 ‘‘(ii) STATE REGULATION.—Notwith- 7 standing clause (i), the employment of 8 State-sponsored nonimmigrants may be 9 regulated in a manner determined by each 10 State that participates in the State-spon- 11 sored nonimmigrant program. 12 ‘‘(7) STATE COMPACTS.— 13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—States may enter into 14 interstate compacts for the joint implementa- 15 tion or administration of the State-sponsored 16 nonimmigrant program in such States. 17 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—A State-sponsored 18 nonimmigrant shall be considered to be spon- 19 sored by a State if the State-sponsored non- 20 immigrant is sponsored by any State subject to 21 an interstate compact under subparagraph (A) 22 and resides in any such State. 23 ‘‘(8) APPEALS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 5174 IH ‘‘(A) FEDERAL APPEALS.—The denial of 1 an application by a State to be a State-spon- 2 sored nonimmigrant or the request to terminate 3 the period of authorized status by a State— 4 ‘‘(i) is not reviewable by any Federal 5 department, agency, or court; and 6 ‘‘(ii) may not be grounds for an ap- 7 peal of a termination of a visa or status 8 for a State-sponsored nonimmigrant. 9 ‘‘(B) STATE APPEALS.—At the sole discre- 10 tion of the State and in a manner determined 11 by the State, a State that participates in the 12 State-sponsored nonimmigrant program may 13 create a process for a State-sponsored non- 14 immigrant or an alien that has applied for par- 15 ticipation in the State-sponsored nonimmigrant 16 program in the State to appeal an adjudication 17 of an application by the State or determination 18 by the State that the State-sponsored non- 19 immigrant violated the terms or conditions that 20 were created by the State for the participation 21 of the alien in the State-sponsored non- 22 immigrant program in the State. 23 ‘‘(9) WAIVER OF RIGHTS PROHIBITED.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 5174 IH ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 1 subparagraph (C), a State-sponsored non- 2 immigrant may not be required to waive any 3 substantive rights or protections under this Act. 4 ‘‘(B) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing under this 5 paragraph may be construed to affect the inter- 6 pretation of any other law. 7 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding sub- 8 paragraph (A) or any other provision of law, an 9 alien may not be provided State-sponsored non- 10 immigrant status unless the alien has waived 11 any right— 12 ‘‘(i) to review or appeal under this Act 13 of an immigration officer’s determination 14 as to the admissibility of the alien at the 15 port of entry into the United States; or 16 ‘‘(ii) to contest or appeal, other than 17 on the basis of an application for asylum, 18 any action for removal of the alien. 19 ‘‘(10) TAX RESPONSIBILITIES.—An employer 20 shall comply with all applicable Federal, State, and 21 local tax laws with respect to each State-sponsored 22 nonimmigrant employed by the employer. 23 ‘‘(11) LABOR AND TAX LAWS.—State-sponsored 24 nonimmigrants shall be subject to all Federal, State, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 5174 IH and local laws regarding taxation, employment, or 1 hiring of persons in the State. 2 ‘‘(12) FEDERAL PUBLIC BENEFITS.— 3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—State-sponsored non- 4 immigrants— 5 ‘‘(i) are not entitled to the premium 6 assistance tax credit authorized under sec- 7 tion 36B of the Internal Revenue Code of 8 1986; 9 ‘‘(ii) shall be subject to the rules ap- 10 plicable to individuals who are not lawfully 11 present set forth in subsection (e) of such 12 section; and 13 ‘‘(iii)(I) shall not be allowed any cred- 14 it under section 24 or 32 of the Internal 15 Revenue Code of 1986; and 16 ‘‘(II) in the case of a joint return, no 17 credit shall be allowed under either such 18 section if both spouses are State-sponsored 19 nonimmigrants. 20 ‘‘(B) EMPLOYER FEE.—For purposes of 21 subsections (a)(2) and (b)(1)(B) of 4980H of 22 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, a State- 23 sponsored nonimmigrant shall be treated as a 24 full-time employee certified as having enrolled 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:13 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5174.IH H5174 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 13 •HR 5174 IH in a qualified health plan with respect to which 1 an applicable premium tax credit or cost-shar- 2 ing reduction is allowed or paid with respect to 3 the employee. 4 ‘‘(C) OTHER BENEFITS.—Notwithstanding 5 any other provision of law, a State-sponsored 6 nonimmigrant shall not be eligible for— 7 ‘‘(i) any assistance or benefits pro- 8 vided under a State program funded under 9 the temporary assistance for needy families 10 program under part A of title IV of the 11 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et 12 seq.); 13 ‘‘(ii) any medical assistance provided 14 under a Sta [Text truncated for display. 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