Fairness for Immigrant Families Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 5055 To protect immigrant families, combat fraud, promote citizenship, and build community trust, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES DECEMBER 17, 2020 Ms. CORTEZ MASTO introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To protect immigrant families, combat fraud, promote citi- zenship, and build community trust, and for other pur- poses. 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Fairness for Immigrant Families Act’’. 5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 6 this Act is as follows: 7 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Findings. Sec. 3. Definitions. TITLE I—PROTECTING IMMIGRANT FAMILIES VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 5055 IS Subtitle A—Expansion of Admissibility Sec. 101. Promoting family unity. Sec. 102. Extension of the application period for certain aliens present in the United States for adjustment of status. Subtitle B—Relief From Removal Sec. 111. Individuals previously removed. Sec. 112. Expansion of cancellation of removal. Sec. 113. Prohibition on removal of aliens with pending applications. Sec. 114. Motions to reopen in cases involving fraud, negligence, misrepresenta- tion, extortion, and unauthorized practice of law. Subtitle C—Provisions Relating to Removal of Parents of United States Citizens Sec. 121. Review of and reporting on removal of parents of United States citi- zens. Sec. 122. Report on enforcement actions against parents of United States citi- zens and DACA recipients. Sec. 123. Protections for United States citizen children abroad. TITLE II—COMBATING FRAUD AND PROMOTING CITIZENSHIP Sec. 201. Combating immigration services fraud. Sec. 202. Requirements for immigration consultants. Sec. 203. Fee and backlog transparency. Sec. 204. National Office for New Americans. TITLE III—BUILDING COMMUNITY TRUST Sec. 301. Protecting aliens who are victims of or witnesses to crimes or are de- fending civil rights. Sec. 302. Semiannual report on certain enforcement actions. Sec. 303. Rule of construction. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 1 Congress makes the following findings: 2 (1) Immigration is intrinsic to the American ex- 3 perience. Families throughout the United States 4 have roots in the immigration experience of earlier 5 generations of immigrants who came to the United 6 States seeking better opportunities, safety from per- 7 secution, and ultimately, a chance at the American 8 dream. 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 5055 IS (2) While the ancestors of some families arrived 1 centuries ago, other families are continuing that tra- 2 dition today. Approximately 20,000,000 second-gen- 3 eration Americans are living in the United States. 4 As of 2017, 18,200,000 children in the United 5 States, or 26 percent, lived with 1 or more immi- 6 grant parents. 7 (3) In the United States— 8 (A) 16,700,000 individuals live in a house- 9 hold with 1 or more family members who are 10 not authorized to be in the United States; 11 (B) 5,900,000 United States citizen chil- 12 dren live in a household with 1 or more family 13 members who are not authorized to be in the 14 United States; and 15 (C) 8,000,000 United States citizens live 16 in a household with 1 or more family members 17 who are not authorized to be in the United 18 States. 19 (4) Children of immigrants are the future work- 20 ers, leaders, voters, parents, and taxpayers of the 21 United States and are critical to the health and well- 22 being of the United States. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 5055 IS (5) Second-generation Americans closely reflect 1 or exceed the national average household income, 2 homeownership rate, and college graduation rate. 3 (6) In their pursuit of the American dream, 4 generations of immigrant families have contributed 5 to their communities in the United States and will 6 continue to do so, including as essential workers who 7 keep the United States running at great risk to 8 themselves and their families. 9 (7) Immigrants play a critical role in the 10 United States economy, and providing a path to citi- 11 zenship for undocumented immigrants is a necessary 12 part of maintaining the economic strength of the 13 United States. 14 (8) Immigrant entrepreneurs account for al- 15 most 30 percent of all new entrepreneurs in the 16 United States, and immigrants are almost twice as 17 likely as the United States-born population to be- 18 come entrepreneurs. 19 (9) Undocumented immigrants contribute over 20 $11,000,000,000 in State and local taxes each year. 21 (10) Removing undocumented residents from 22 mixed-status households cuts the median income of 23 such households by 47 percent. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 5055 IS (11) Approximately 1,200,000 mortgages are 1 held by households with 1 or more undocumented in- 2 dividuals. 3 (12) Indiscriminate immigration enforcement 4 and the threat of immigration enforcement nega- 5 tively impact the health, development, and well-being 6 of children subject to detention or separation from 7 their families. Neurobiological research demonstrates 8 that children with any prolonged separation are 9 more likely to experience emotional and behavioral 10 issues, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress dis- 11 order, and suicidal ideation. 12 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 13 In this Act: 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise specifi- 15 cally provided, any term used in this Act that is 16 used in the immigration laws shall have the meaning 17 given the term in the immigration laws. 18 (2) DACA RECIPIENT.—The term ‘‘DACA re- 19 cipient’’ means an alien who has been granted de- 20 ferred action pursuant to the memorandum of the 21 Department of Homeland Security entitled ‘‘Exer- 22 cising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Indi- 23 viduals Who Came to the United States as Chil- 24 dren’’ issued on June 15, 2012. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 5055 IS (3) IMMIGRATION LAWS.—The term ‘‘immigra- 1 tion laws’’ has the meaning given the term in section 2 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 3 U.S.C. 1101(a)). 4 TITLE I—PROTECTING 5 IMMIGRANT FAMILIES 6 Subtitle A—Expansion of 7 Admissibility 8 SEC. 101. PROMOTING FAMILY UNITY. 9 (a) ELIMINATION OF 3-YEAR AND 10-YEAR BARS 10 AND MODIFICATION OF PERMANENT BAR.—Section 11 212(a)(9) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 12 U.S.C. 1182(a)(9)) is amended— 13 (1) by striking subparagraph (B); 14 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as sub- 15 paragraph (B); 16 (3) in subparagraph (B), as so redesignated— 17 (A) by amending clause (i) to read as fol- 18 lows: 19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Any alien who 20 knows he or she has received a final order 21 of removal under section 240, and who en- 22 ters or attempts to reenter the United 23 States without being admitted, is inadmis- 24 sible.’’; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 5055 IS (B) by amending clause (ii) to read as fol- 1 lows: 2 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTIONS.— 3 ‘‘(I) CONSENT TO REAPPLICA- 4 TION FOR ADMISSION.—Clause (i) 5 shall not apply to an alien seeking ad- 6 mission on a date that is more than 3 7 years after the date on which the alien 8 last departed the United States if, be- 9 fore the reembarkation of the alien at 10 a place outside the United States or 11 the attempt by the alien to be re- 12 admitted from a foreign contiguous 13 territory, the Secretary of Homeland 14 Security has consented to a reapplica- 15 tion for admission by the alien. 16 ‘‘(II) MINORS.—Clause (i) shall 17 not apply to an alien who is under 18 18 years of age. 19 ‘‘(III) ASYLEES.—Clause (i) shall 20 not apply to an alien who has a bona 21 fide application for asylum pending 22 under section 208. 23 ‘‘(IV) FAMILY UNITY.—Clause (i) 24 shall not apply to an alien who is a 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 5055 IS beneficiary of family unity protection 1 pursuant to section 301 of the Immi- 2 gration Act of 1990 (8 U.S.C. 1255a 3 note). 4 ‘‘(V) VICTIMS OF A SEVERE 5 FORM OF TRAFFICKING IN PER- 6 SONS.—Clause (i) shall not apply to 7 an alien who demonstrates that 1 or 8 more severe forms of trafficking in 9 persons (as defined in section 103 of 10 the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 11 of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102)) was a cen- 12 tral reason for the unlawful presence 13 of the alien in the United States. 14 ‘‘(VI) ALIENS WHO ENTERED AS 15 CHILDREN.—Clause (i) shall not apply 16 to an alien who— 17 ‘‘(aa) is the beneficiary of 18 an approved petition under sec- 19 tion 101(a)(15)(H); 20 ‘‘(bb)(AA) is in school, has 21 graduated from high school, has 22 obtained a general education de- 23 velopment certificate recognized 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 5055 IS under State law or a high school 1 equivalency diploma; or 2 ‘‘(BB) is serving in the 3 armed forces (as defined in 4 section 101(a) of title 10, 5 United States Code) or is an 6 honorably discharged vet- 7 eran of the armed forces; 8 and 9 ‘‘(cc) had not yet reached 10 the age of 16 years on the date 11 on which the alien initially en- 12 tered the United States.’’; and 13 (C) in clause (iii)— 14 (i) by striking the clause designation 15 and heading and all that follows through 16 ‘‘Security’’ and insert the following: 17 ‘‘(iii) WAIVERS.— 18 ‘‘(I) VAWA SELF-PETI- 19 TIONERS.—The Attorney General or 20 the Secretary of Homeland Security, 21 as applicable,’’; and 22 (ii) by adding at the end the fol- 23 lowing: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 5055 IS ‘‘(II) EXTREME HARDSHIP.—The 1 Attorney General or the Secretary of 2 Homeland Security may, in the discre- 3 tion of the Attorney General or the 4 Secretary, waive clause (i) in the case 5 of an alien who is the parent, spouse, 6 or son or daughter of a United States 7 citizen or of an alien lawfully admit- 8 ted for permanent residence if it is es- 9 tablished to the satisfaction of the At- 10 torney General or the Secretary that a 11 denial of admission to the alien would 12 result in extreme hardship to the 13 United States citizen or lawfully ad- 14 mitted permanent resident son or 15 daughter, spouse, or parent of the 16 alien.’’. 17 (b) MISREPRESENTATION OF CITIZENSHIP.—The 18 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) 19 is amended— 20 (1) in section 212 (8 U.S.C. 1182)— 21 (A) in subsection (a)(6)(C)— 22 (i) by amending clause (ii) to read as 23 follows: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 5055 IS ‘‘(ii) MISREPRESENTATION OF CITI- 1 ZENSHIP.— 2 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Any alien 3 who knowingly and willfully misrepre- 4 sents, or has knowingly and willfully 5 misrepresented, himself or herself to 6 be a citizen of the United States for 7 any purpose or benefit under this Act 8 (including section 274A) or any Fed- 9 eral or State law is inadmissible. 10 ‘‘(II) EXCEPTION.—In the case 11 of an alien who was under the age of 12 21 years at the time of making a mis- 13 representation described in subclause 14 (I), the alien shall not be considered 15 to be inadmissible under any provision 16 of this subsection based on such mis- 17 representation.’’; and 18 (ii) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘of 19 clause (i)’’; and 20 (B) by amending subsection (i)(1) to read 21 as follows: 22 ‘‘(i)(1) The Attorney General or the Secretary of 23 Homeland Security may, in the discretion of the Attorney 24 General or the Secretary, waive the application of sub- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 5055 IS section (a)(6)(C) in the case of an alien who is the parent, 1 spouse, son or daughter of a United States citizen or of 2 an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence and 3 in the case of an alien who is an alien granted classifica- 4 tion under clause (iii) or (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A), if 5 it is established to the satisfaction of the Attorney General 6 or the Secretary that the admission to the United States 7 of such alien would not be contrary to the national welfare, 8 safety, or security of the United States.’’; and 9 (2) by amending section 237(a)(3)(D) (8 10 U.S.C. 1227(a)(3)(D)) to read as follows: 11 ‘‘(D) MISREPRESENTATION OF CITIZEN- 12 SHIP.— 13 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Any alien who 14 knowingly and willfully misrepresents, or 15 has knowingly and willfully misrepresented, 16 himself or herself to be a citizen of the 17 United States for any purpose or benefit 18 under this Act (including section 274A) or 19 any Federal or State law is deportable. 20 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—In the case of an 21 alien who was under the age of 21 years 22 at the time of making a misrepresentation 23 described in clause (i), the alien shall not 24 be considered to be deportable under any 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:36 Jan 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5055.IS S5055 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 5055 IS provision of this subsection based on such 1 misrepresentation.’’. 2 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 3 (1) Section 214(q) of the Immigration and Na- 4 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(q)) is amended— 5 (A) by striking paragraph (2); 6 (B) in paragraph (3)(C), by striking 7 ‘‘paragraphs (6)(A), (7), and (9)(B)’’ and in- 8 serting ‘‘paragraphs (6)(A) and (7)’’; and 9 (C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 10 paragraph (2). 11 (2) Section 245(h)(2)(A) of the Immigration 12 and Nationality Act ( [Text truncated for display. 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