I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7569 To temporarily suspend certain immigration enforcement activities during disease-related emergencies. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JULY 9, 2020 Ms. WILSON of Florida (for herself and Ms. ESCOBAR) introduced the fol- lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subse- quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To temporarily suspend certain immigration enforcement activities during disease-related emergencies. 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 ‘‘Immigration Enforce- 4 ment Moratorium Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 6 It is the sense of Congress that— 7 (1) during the COVID–19 pandemic, many im- 8 migration enforcement activities have needlessly en- 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 7569 IH dangered public health, including the health of en- 1 forcement officers and members of the community; 2 (2) continued arrests and apprehensions— 3 (A) prevent immigrant communities from 4 accessing necessary services for their health and 5 well being; and 6 (B) risk increasing the immigration deten- 7 tion population at a time when the number of 8 people in immigration detention must urgently 9 be reduced; 10 (3) Department of Homeland Security medical 11 experts estimate that between 75 and 100 percent of 12 the people detained in many immigration detention 13 centers across the country may contract COVID–19 14 unless such centers are drastically depopulated; 15 (4) other in-person activities, including check- 16 ins and removal hearings, create significant public 17 health risks; 18 (5) the National Association of Immigration 19 Judges, a union of U.S. Immigration and Customs 20 Enforcement trial attorneys, and the American Im- 21 migration Lawyers Association have all urged the 22 Department of Justice to cease all in-person removal 23 proceedings, citing expert guidance that continuing 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 7569 IH in-person removal proceedings during the pandemic 1 is ‘‘irresponsible’’; 2 (6) deportations risk spreading COVID–19 to 3 neighboring countries, where the virus will devastate 4 already limited health systems and create untold 5 harm; 6 (7) the United States has already sent individ- 7 uals who tested positive for COVID–19 to at least 8 8 countries; 9 (8) a consortium of United Nations migration 10 and human rights organizations has called on all 11 countries in the global community to halt all forced 12 removals during the pandemic, noting that ‘‘[f]orced 13 returns can intensify serious public health risks for 14 everyone—migrants, public health officials, health 15 workers, social workers, and both host and origin 16 communities’’; 17 (9) expulsions at the border— 18 (A) violate longstanding, congressionally 19 mandated protections for asylum seekers; and 20 (B) fail to protect public health; 21 (10) the Office of the United Nations High 22 Commissioner for Refugees has declared that— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 7569 IH (A) countries cannot enact ‘‘blanket 1 measure[s] to preclude the admission of refu- 2 gees or asylum-seekers’’; and 3 (B) any such ‘‘measures must be non-dis- 4 criminatory as well as necessary, proportionate 5 and reasonable to the aim of protecting public 6 health’’; 7 (11) leading public health experts have urged 8 United States officials to withdraw the order ena- 9 bling mass expulsion of asylum seekers, noting bor- 10 der expulsions fail to further public health and im- 11 plicate serious human rights concerns; 12 (12) border crossing prosecutions have been 13 suspended in several border districts because they 14 are incompatible with public health; 15 (13) the Department of Homeland Security 16 continues to refer people for prosecutions in some 17 districts for violations of section 276 of the Immi- 18 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1326); and 19 (14) people continue to be unnecessarily held in 20 pre-trial detention facilities where COVID–19 has 21 spread. 22 SEC. 3. TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF IMMIGRATION EN- 23 FORCEMENT. 24 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 7569 IH (1) NONCITIZEN.—The term ‘‘noncitizen’’ 1 means any individual who is not a citizen or national 2 of the United States. 3 (2) PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.—The term 4 ‘‘public health emergency’’ means— 5 (A) a national emergency involving Federal 6 primary responsibility determined to exist by 7 the President under section 501(b) of the Rob- 8 ert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 9 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5191(b)) with re- 10 spect to a communicable disease; 11 (B) a national emergency declared by the 12 President under sections 201 and 301 of the 13 National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1621 and 14 1631) with respect to a communicable disease; 15 (C) a national public health emergency de- 16 clared by the Secretary of Health and Human 17 Services under section 319 of the Public Health 18 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d); or 19 (D) a global pandemic declared by the 20 World Health Organization. 21 (b) SUSPENDED IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT AC- 22 TIVITIES.— 23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub- 24 section (d), during a public health emergency, the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 7569 IH Secretary of Homeland Security shall suspend all 1 immigration enforcement-related activities in the 2 United States, including— 3 (A) removals of noncitizens from the 4 United States; 5 (B) arrests and apprehensions by U.S. Im- 6 migration and Customs Enforcement or U.S. 7 Customs and Border Protection of noncitizens 8 who are physically present in the United States; 9 (C) required meetings with Enforcement 10 and Removal Operations (commonly known as 11 ‘‘ICE check-ins’’); 12 (D) service of Notices to Appear; and 13 (E) referrals for prosecution under section 14 275 or 276 of the Immigration and Nationality 15 Act (8 U.S.C. 1325 and 1326). 16 (2) INDIVIDUALS IN DETENTION WHO HAVE RE- 17 CEIVED REMOVAL ORDERS.—Notwithstanding sec- 18 tion 241(a)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality 19 Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(a)(2)), individuals in detention 20 who have received removal orders shall be released 21 on orders of supervision. 22 (c) BORDER PROCESSING.— 23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 217 24 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 7569 IH 1187) or any other provision of law, any noncitizen 1 applying for admission at a port of entry on or after 2 the date on which the public health emergency went 3 into effect who is deemed inadmissible or who is ap- 4 prehended by U.S. Customs and Border Protection 5 within 14 days after crossing the international bor- 6 der into the United States without authorization on 7 or after the date on which the public health emer- 8 gency went into effect, shall, if he or she presents 9 a claim to relief under the immigration laws and is 10 not otherwise subject to the exception described in 11 subsection (d), be paroled into the United States 12 pursuant to section 212(d)(5)(A) of the Immigration 13 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5)(A)). 14 (2) REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS.—If the Depart- 15 ment of Homeland Security initiates removal pro- 16 ceedings against a noncitizen described in paragraph 17 (1), such proceedings shall take place in accordance 18 with section 240 (8 U.S.C. 1229a). 19 (d) EXCEPTION.— 20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (b) and the pa- 21 role provision under subsection (c) shall not apply if 22 the Federal official authorized to carry out an immi- 23 gration enforcement activity described in either such 24 subsection has clear and convincing evidence, based 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 7569 IH on credible and individualized information, that the 1 noncitizen is a threat to another person or the com- 2 munity. 3 (2) PRIOR CONVICTION.—A prior conviction or 4 pending criminal charge against the noncitizen de- 5 scribed in paragraph (1) may not be the sole factor 6 to justify carrying out an otherwise prohibited immi- 7 gration enforcement activity described in subsection 8 (b) or granting parole pursuant to subsection (c). 9 (3) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—A noncitizen described 10 in paragraph (1) is entitled to immediate de novo re- 11 view of the Federal official’s determination in— 12 (A) the United States District Court for 13 the District of Columbia; or 14 (B) any Federal district court satisfying 15 the venue requirements described in section 16 1391 of title 28, United States Code. 17 (e) UNLAWFUL PRESENCE.—During the public 18 health emergency, the accrual of unlawful presence under 19 subparagraphs (B)(i)(I) and (C)(i)(I) of section 212(a)(9) 20 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 21 1182(a)(9)) shall be suspended for any noncitizen who re- 22 sided in the United States on or before the date on which 23 the public health emergency went into effect. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 7569 IH (f) IMMIGRATION COURT PROCEEDINGS.—During 1 the period beginning on the date on which a public health 2 emergency is in effect in any State or territory of the 3 United States and ending on the date that is 30 days after 4 the date on which the public health emergency is termi- 5 nated, the Attorney General shall— 6 (1) suspend all in-person immigration court 7 proceedings; 8 (2) establish a procedure for conducting custody 9 determination hearings for detained individuals to 10 appear telephonically or by video teleconference, 11 which shall permit— 12 (A) attorneys and representatives to ap- 13 pear telephonically or by video teleconference; 14 and 15 (B) supporting documents to be faxed, 16 emailed, or otherwise electronically transmitted 17 to the appropriate court clerk; 18 (3) suspend all immigration court proceedings 19 not described in paragraph (2), except that cases in- 20 volving individuals who are detained may proceed if 21 the respondent and his or her counsel or representa- 22 tive requests in writing that the immigration court 23 proceedings move forward telephonically or by video 24 teleconference; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 7569 IH (4) issue a blanket extraordinary circumstances 1 exception for 1 year asylum filing deadlines; and 2 (5) toll any deadline imposed by statute, regula- 3 tion, local rule, standing order, or policy guidance 4 requiring the appearance or other action by the re- 5 spondent unless the respondent or the respondent’s 6 counsel or legal representative submits a written re- 7 quest to the contrary. 8 (g) LIMITATION ON USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS FOR 9 RELIANCE ON ULTRA-VIRES AUTHORITY.—Federal funds 10 may not be used by the Department of Homeland Security 11 to expel, pursuant to section 362 or 365 of the Public 12 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 265 and 268), any noncit- 13 izen who— 14 (1) is present in the United States; 15 (2) entered or is entering the United States at 16 a port of entry; or 17 (3) crossed or is crossing the United States bor- 18 der between ports of entry. 19 (h) DURATION.— 20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsections (b), (c), (e), and 21 (f) shall remain in effect throughout the duration of 22 a public health emergency and for at least 30 days 23 after the public health emergency is no longer in ef- 24 fect. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 7569 IH (2) REMOVALS.—If an emergency referred to in 1 subsection (a)(2)(D) is declared, removals shall fur- 2 ther remain suspended to a receiving country until 3 the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Sec- 4 retary of State each certify in writing to Congress 5 that the country— 6 (A) has demonstrated evidence of dimin- 7 ishing cases and risk of community trans- 8 mission; and 9 (B) has public health infrastructure that is 10 able to adequately handle the return of its na- 11 tionals. 12 (i) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this section 13 may be construed to alter the William Wilberforce Traf- 14 ficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 15 (Public Law 110–457). 16 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H7569.IH H7569 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS