[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 375 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 375

   To provide for asylum reform, prohibition of Federal benefits to 
                certain aliens, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 4, 1995

Mr. Stump (for himself and Mr. Callahan) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary and, in addition, 
to the Committees on Ways and Means, Agriculture, Banking and Financial 
 Services, and Commerce 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 provide for asylum reform, prohibition of Federal benefits to 
                certain aliens, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Immigration Accountability Act of 
1995''.

                            TITLE I--ASYLUM

SEC. 101. EXAMINATION AND EXCLUSION.

    (a) Examinations.--Section 235(b) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(b) Examination and Exclusion by Immigration Officers.--
            ``(1) An immigration officer shall examine every person 
        seeking to come into the United States from a foreign port or 
        place, and every such person shall present himself for 
        examination by an immigration officer upon arrival at a port of 
        entry or land border of the United States.
            ``(2)(A) If an examining immigration officer determines 
        that an alien seeking entry--
                    ``(i) does not present any document required by 
                this Act or by regulations prescribed thereunder to 
                obtain entry to the United States; and
                    ``(ii) does not express either an intention to 
                apply for asylum or a fear of persecution if excluded,
        the officer shall order the alien excluded from the United 
        States without further hearing or review.
            ``(B) An examining immigration officer shall refer for 
        immediate examination by an asylum officer any alien who has 
        expressed an intention to apply for asylum or a fear of 
        persecution if excluded.
            ``(C) The asylum officer to whom an alien is referred under 
        subparagraph (B) shall determine whether the alien has a 
        credible fear of persecution if excluded. If the officer 
        determines that the alien has a credible fear of persecution if 
        excluded, the alien shall be permitted to apply for asylum 
        under section 208. If the officer determines that the alien 
        does not have a credible fear of persecution if excluded, the 
        officer shall order the alien excluded from the United States 
        without further hearing or review.
            ``(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) and 
        subsection (c), if an examining immigration officer determines 
        that an alien seeking entry is not clearly and beyond a doubt 
        entitled to enter, the alien shall be detained for further 
        inquiry by a special inquiry officer.
            ``(B) The provisions of subparagraph (A) shall not apply--
                    ``(i) to an alien crewman, or
                    ``(ii) to an alien described in paragraph (2)(A) or 
                paragraph (2)(B).
            ``(4) The decision of an examining immigration officer to 
        admit any alien shall be subject to challenge by any other 
        immigration officer, and such challenge shall operate to take 
        the alien before a special inquiry officer for further inquiry.
            ``(5)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), an alien has not 
        entered the United States for purposes of this Act unless and 
        until such alien has been examined and admitted by an 
        immigration officer pursuant to this subsection.
            ``(B) An alien who has not been examined and admitted by an 
        immigration officer shall, upon the completion of 365 days of 
        continuous physical presence in the United States, be deemed to 
        have entered the United States without inspection on the first 
        day of such presence.
            ``(6) Interior repatriation.--The Secretary of State shall 
        undertake to enter into, on behalf of the United States, 
        arrangements with the governments of countries contiguous to 
        the United States that any excludable or deportable alien who 
        is to depart the United States to such country under an order 
        of deportation, under a grant of voluntary departure with 
        safeguards, or at a time when the alien is in Federal custody 
        shall be transported to a point in the contiguous country that, 
        to the extent practicable, is not less than 500 kilometers from 
        the border of the United States.
            ``(7) Persecution defined.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, the term `persecution' shall have the same meaning 
        as under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.''.
    (b) Grounds for Exclusion.--Section 212(a)(6) of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(6)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
            ``(G) Any alien who, in seeking entry to the United States 
        or boarding a common carrier for the purpose of coming to the 
        United States, presents any document that is forged, 
        counterfeit, altered, falsely made, stolen, or inapplicable to 
        the alien presenting the document, or otherwise contains a 
        misrepresentation of material fact, is excludable.
            ``(H) Any alien who, in boarding a common carrier for the 
        purpose of coming to the United States, presents a document 
        that relates or purports to relate to the alien's eligibility 
        to enter the United States, and fails to present such document 
        to an immigration officer upon arrival at a port of entry or 
        land border of the United States, is excludable.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendments.--Section 235(a) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225a) is amended by striking the second 
sentence.

SEC. 102. ASYLUM.

    (a) Asylum Officer Defined.--Section 101(a) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) is amended by adding the following 
new paragraph:
            ``(47) The term `asylum officer' means an officer of the 
        Service who has been designated by the Commissioner as having 
        special training in the application of the provisions of this 
        Act pertaining to asylum and special knowledge of pertinent 
        conditions outside the United States.''.
    (b) Granting and Termination of Asylum.--Section 208 of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158) is amended to read as 
follows:

                                ``asylum

    ``Sec. 208. (a) Granting and Terminating Asylum.--
            ``(1) Application.--An alien physically present in the 
        United States or at a land border or port of entry may apply 
        for asylum in accordance with this section.
            ``(2) Condition for granting.--
                    ``(A) Grants by attorney general.--The Attorney 
                General may in the sole discretion of the Attorney 
                General grant asylum to an alien if the alien applies 
                for asylum in accordance with this section and the 
                alien establishes, as a condition of being granted 
                asylum, that it is more probable than not that the 
                government of the country in which the alien last 
                resided before his arrival in the United States would 
                persecute the alien on account of the alien's race, 
                religion, nationality, or political opinion if the 
                alien came into that government's custody.
                    ``(B) Exceptions.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply 
                to an alien if the Attorney General determines that--
                            ``(i) the alien ordered, incited, assisted, 
                        or otherwise participated in the persecution of 
                        any person on account of race, religion, 
                        nationality, or political opinion;
                            ``(ii) the alien was convicted of a felony 
                        in the United States or of an equivalent 
                        nonpolitical crime outside the United States;
                            ``(iii) the alien poses a danger to the 
                        security of the United States; or
                            ``(iv) there is a country to which the 
                        alien can be deported or returned and the alien 
                        does not establish that it is more probable 
                        than not that the government of that country 
                        would persecute the alien on account of the 
                        alien's race, religion, nationality, or 
                        political opinion if the alien came into that 
                        government's custody.
            ``(3) Asylum status.--If an alien has been granted asylum 
        under paragraph (2) and such asylum has not been terminated 
        under paragraph (4), the Attorney General--
                    ``(A) shall not deport or return the alien;
                    ``(B) may authorize the alien to engage in 
                employment in the United States; and
                    ``(C) may permit the alien to depart the United 
                States for a purpose not inconsistent with the grant of 
                asylum and to enter the United States when the purpose 
                for the departure has been served.
            ``(4) Termination.--The Attorney General shall monitor the 
        conditions outside the United States that are the basis of 
        outstanding grants of asylum. Asylum granted to an alien under 
        this section shall be terminated if the Attorney General 
        determines in the sole discretion of the Attorney General 
        that--
                    ``(A) the condition described in paragraph (2)(A) 
                no longer exists with respect to the alien; or
                    ``(B) one of the exceptions described in paragraph 
                (2)(B) applies to the alien.
            ``(5) Annual affirmation.--Each alien granted asylum shall 
        submit, not less than annually, and in accordance with 
        regulations prescribed by the Attorney General, an affirmation 
        under penalty of perjury whether the conditions upon which 
        asylum was granted still exist. The Attorney General shall 
        establish a procedure for review of such affirmations and shall 
        terminate asylum for any alien that has failed to submit such 
        affirmation. An affirmation that the condition on which asylum 
        was granted no longer exists, but that a present condition 
        warrants a continuation of asylum, shall be regarded as a new 
        application for asylum, and asylum shall not be terminated on 
        the basis of such an affirmation until a determination is 
        reached on such new application.
            ``(6) Persecution defined.--For purposes of this section, 
        the term `persecution' refers exclusively to physical torture, 
        maiming, the taking of life, incarceration for a period or 
        periods of more than one year, or the return or deportation of 
        an alien to a country the government of which would more 
        probably than not persecute the alien on account of race, 
        religion, nationality, or political opinion if the alien came 
        into that government's custody.
    ``(b) Asylum Procedures.--
            ``(1) Applications.--
                    ``(A) Time of application.--
                            ``(i) If the condition on which an asylum 
                        application is based exists when an alien 
                        arrives in the United States, the alien must 
                        present himself or herself for examination to 
                        an immigration officer and give notice of his 
                        or her intention to apply for asylum and must 
                        apply for asylum before entry into the United 
                        States.
                            ``(ii) If the condition on which an asylum 
                        application is based did not exist until after 
                        the alien's arrival in the United States, the 
                        alien must apply on or before the 60th day 
                        after such condition first arises, or the 60th 
                        day preceding the end of the alien's authorized 
                        stay in the United States, whichever day occurs 
                        later.
                    ``(B) Identification requirements.--An application 
                for asylum shall not be considered unless the alien 
                submits to the taking of fingerprints, a photograph, 
                and such other identification procedures as the 
                Attorney General may prescribe.
                    ``(C) Fees.--The Attorney General may provide for a 
                reasonable fee for the consideration of an application 
                for asylum or for any employment authorization under 
                subsection (a)(3)(B).
                    ``(D) Notice of privilege of counsel.--Upon the 
                earlier of an alien's application for asylum or giving 
                notice of intention to apply for asylum, the alien 
                shall be advised of the privilege of being represented 
                (at no expense to the government) by such counsel, 
                authorized to practice in such proceedings, as the 
                alien shall choose.
            ``(2) Consideration of applications; hearings.--
                    ``(A) Asylum officers.--Each application for asylum 
                shall be considered by an asylum officer.
                    ``(B) Scheduling of hearings.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Upon the receipt of an 
                        application for asylum, an asylum officer, at 
                        the earliest practicable time and after 
                        consultation with the attorney for the 
                        Government and the attorney (if any) for the 
                        applicant, shall set the application for 
                        hearing on a day certain or list it on a weekly 
                        or other short-term calendar, so as to assure a 
                        speedy hearing.
                            ``(ii) Deadline.--Unless the applicant (or 
                        an attorney for the applicant) consents in 
                        writing to the contrary, the hearing on the 
                        asylum application shall commence not later 
                        than 45 days after the date the application was 
                        made.
                            ``(iii) Notice.--Written notice of the time 
                        and place of the hearing and of any change in 
                        the time or place of the hearing shall be given 
                        to the applicant and to the applicant's 
                        attorney (if any).
                            ``(iv) Waiver.--An applicant for asylum or 
                        his attorney may waive the opportunity of a 
                        hearing, in which case the asylum officer shall 
                        not set the application for hearing and shall 
                        proceed directly to a determination.
                    ``(C) Public hearings.--A hearing on an asylum 
                application shall be open to the public unless the 
                applicant requests that it be closed to the public or 
                the Attorney General determines in the sole discretion 
                of the Attorney General that an open hearing would 
                endanger the security of the United States.
                    ``(D) Hearing procedures.--The asylum officer 
                shall, to the extent practicable, conduct the hearing 
                in a nonadversarial manner. During such hearing, the 
                applicant shall have the privilege of the assistance 
                and participation of counsel and both the government 
                and the applicant shall be entitled to present evidence 
                and witnesses, to examine and object to evidence, and 
                to cross-examine all witnesses.
                    ``(E) Country conditions.--An asylum officer may 
                request opinions regarding country conditions from the 
                Secretary of State, but shall not request or consider 
                recommendations from the Secretary of State as to 
                whether a particular individual should or should not be 
                granted asylum.
                    ``(F) Record of hearings.--A complete verbatim 
                record of the hearing and of evidence produced at the 
                hearing shall be kept. Upon the request of the 
                applicant or his attorney, the Service shall provide a 
                copy of such record to the applicant or the applicant's 
                attorney.
                    ``(G) Deadline for determinations.--The asylum 
                officer shall render a determination on the application 
                not later than 30 days after the date of completion of 
                the hearing. The determination of the officer shall be 
                based only on the officer's knowledge of conditions 
                outside the United States and evidence produced at the 
                hearing.
                    ``(H) No rights created.--Nothing in this paragraph 
                relating to scheduling or deadlines shall be construed 
                as creating any right or benefit, substantive or 
                procedural, that is legally enforceable by any party 
                against the United States, its agencies, its officers, 
                or any other person.
                    ``(I) Sanctions for failure to appear--
                            ``(i) The application for asylum of an 
                        alien who does not appear for a hearing on such 
                        application shall be summarily dismissed unless 
                        the asylum officer, in the sole discretion of 
                        the asylum officer, determines that the alien's 
                        failure to appear was due to exceptional 
                        circumstances (as defined in section 
                        242B(f)(2)).
                            ``(ii) An application summarily dismissed 
                        in accordance with clause (i) shall not be 
                        reopened or reconsidered, nor shall a new 
                        application for asylum from the applicant be 
                        entertained by the Attorney General at any 
                        time.
                    ``(J) Finality of determinations.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Except as provided in 
                        clause (ii), the decision of the asylum officer 
                        shall be the final administrative determination 
                        of a claim for asylum.
                            ``(ii) Review by attorney general.--The 
                        Attorney General may reverse an asylum 
                        officer's determination to grant asylum if, in 
                        the sole discretion of the Attorney General, 
                        the Attorney General determines that the grant 
                        of asylum was not warranted or was not in the 
                        public interest.
    ``(c) Denial of Immigration Benefits for Frivolous Applications.--
If the asylum officer determines that an alien has made a frivolous or 
fraudulent application for asylum under this section, the alien shall 
be permanently ineligible for any benefits under this Act, effective as 
of the date of a final determination on such application.''.

SEC. 103. FAILURE TO APPEAR FOR ASYLUM HEARING.

    Section 242B(e)(4) (8 U.S.C. 1252b(e)(4)) is amended in 
subparagraph (A), by striking all after clause (iii) and inserting 
``shall not be eligible for any benefits under this Act.''.

SEC. 104. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

    Section 235 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225) 
is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no court shall 
have jurisdiction to review, except by petition for habeas corpus, any 
determination made with respect to an alien found excludable pursuant 
to titles I or II of this Act. In any such case, review by habeas 
corpus shall be limited to examination of whether the petitioner (I) is 
an alien, and (II) was ordered excluded from the United States pursuant 
to the provisions of this Act. Regardless of the nature of the suit or 
claim, no court shall have jurisdiction except as provided in this 
subsection to consider the validity of any adjudication or 
determination of exclusion, to certify a class in an action challenging 
the exclusion provisions of this Act or any portion or implementation 
thereof, or to provide declaratory or injunctive relief with respect to 
the exclusion of any alien.
    ``(e) In any action brought for the assessment of penalties for 
improper entry or reentry of an alien under sections 275, 276, 277, or 
278 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, no court shall have 
jurisdiction to hear claims collaterally attacking the validity of 
orders of exclusion, or deportation entered under sections 235, 236, or 
242 of that Act.''.

SEC. 105. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Limitation on Deportation.--Section 243 (8 U.S.C. 1253) is 
amended by striking subsection (h).
    (b) Adjustment of Status.--Section 209(b) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1159(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2) by striking ``one year'' and inserting 
        ``5 years''; and
            (2) by amending paragraph (3) to read as follows:
            ``(3) continues to be eligible for asylum under section 
        208,''.
    (c) Aliens Ineligible for Temporary Protected Status.--Section 
244A(c)(2)(B)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1254a(c)(2)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking ``section 243(h)(2)'' and 
inserting ``clauses (i), (ii), or (iii) of section 208(a)(2)(B)''.
    (d) Eligibility for Naturalization.--Section 316(f)(1) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1427(f)(1)) is amended by 
striking ``subparagraphs (A) through (D) of paragraph 243(h)(2)'' and 
inserting ``clauses (i), (ii) or (iii) of section 208(a)(2)(B)''.
    (e) Family Unity.--Section 301(e) of the Immigration Act of 1990 
(Public Law 101-649) is amended by striking ``section 243(h)(2)'' and 
inserting ``clauses (i), (ii) or (iii) of section 208(a)(2)(B)''.

SEC. 106. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by this title shall take effect 30 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act.

      TITLE II--PROHIBITION OF FEDERAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN ALIENS

SEC. 201. PROHIBITION OF DIRECT FEDERAL FINANCIAL BENEFITS TO CERTAIN 
              ALIENS.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this section, 
notwithstanding any other provision of law, no direct Federal financial 
or inkind benefit or social insurance benefit, including (but not 
limited to)--
            (1) old age, survivors, and disability benefits under title 
        II of the Social Security Act;
            (2) payments under the aid to families with dependent 
        children program under part A of title IV of the Social 
        Security Act;
            (3) benefits under the supplemental security income program 
        under title XVI of the Social Security Act;
            (4) medical insurance for the elderly and disabled under 
        title XVIII of the Social Security Act;
            (5) medical assistance for families, the elderly, and 
        disabled under title XIX of the Social Security Act;
            (6) food stamps under the Food Stamp Act of 1977;
            (7) financial assistance as defined in section 214(b) of 
        the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980;
            (8) legal services under the Legal Services Corporation Act 
        of 1974; and
            (9) unemployment benefits under an unemployment 
        compensation law of the United States or any State;
may be paid or otherwise made available to any person unless the 
requirements of subsection (e) are satisfied.
    (b) Unemployment Benefits.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, no period of an alien's employment that is not authorized under 
the Immigration and Nationality Act and no compensation paid with 
respect to such employment shall be counted in determining either 
eligibility for unemployment benefits or the amount of unemployment 
benefits payable to any person under any unemployment compensation law 
of the United States or any State.
    (c) Social Security Benefits.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
of law, wages paid with respect to employment of an alien that is not 
authorized under the Immigration and Nationality Act shall not be taken 
into account in crediting quarters of coverage for any person under 
title II of the Social Security Act.
    (d) Exception.--Subsection (a) shall not apply to medical treatment 
for conditions that, if not treated promptly, would endanger life, 
prolong severe pain, result in permanent and severe physical 
disability, or pose a grave public health risk.
    (e) In the case of any application by or on behalf of any person 
for any direct Federal financial or in-kind benefit or social insurance 
benefit, the requirements of this subsection are satisfied only if--
            (1) application for the benefit is made in writing to the 
        agency or department authorized to pay or make available the 
        benefit;
            (2) the application includes the name, sex, birth date, 
        birth place, social security number, and alien identification 
        number (if any) of such person (and of any parent or guardian 
        making application on behalf of a minor or incompetent person);
            (3) the application includes an affirmation under penalty 
        of perjury by such person, or by a parent or guardian making 
        application on behalf of a minor or incompetent person, that--
                    (A) such person is a citizen of the United States 
                or an alien who is a grantee of asylum, a lawfully 
                admitted refugee, or other alien lawfully admitted for 
                permanent residence, and
                    (B) to the best of the affiant's knowledge, all 
                information in the application is true and correct;
            (4) the application is accompanied by a photocopy of such 
        person's certificate of birth in the United States, certificate 
        of naturalization, or unexpired alien identification document 
        issued by the Immigration and Naturalization Service;
            (5) the application, if made on behalf of such person by a 
        parent or guardian of such person, includes an affirmation 
        under penalty of perjury by such parent or guardian that such 
        parent or guardian is a citizen of the United States, an alien 
        not present in the United States, an alien lawfully present in 
        the United States, or an alien unlawfully present in the United 
        States;
            (6) the application, if made on behalf of such person by a 
        parent or guardian of such person, is accompanied by--
                    (A) a photocopy of such parent's or guardian's 
                certificate of birth in the United States, certificate 
                of naturalization, or alien identification document, or
                    (B) a statement by such parent or guardian under 
                penalty of perjury that such agent or guardian is an 
                alien outside the United States who has not been issued 
                an unexpired alien identification document by the 
                Immigration and Naturalization Service; and
            (7) the Social Security Administration has confirmed to 
        such agency or department that the social security number of 
        such person and the social security number of such parent or 
        guardian, if any, is valid and existing and was issued to the 
        person having the name, sex, birth date, and birth place given 
        in the application;
            (8) the registrar of births or equivalent official of each 
        State that issued any birth certificate or certificates 
        accompanying the application has confirmed the authenticity of 
        each such certificate to such department or agency; and
            (9) the Immigration and Naturalization Service has 
        confirmed to such department or agency that--
                    (A) the alien identification number, if any, of 
                such person and the alien identification number, if 
                any, of such parent or guardian is valid and existing 
                and was issued to the person having the name, sex, 
                birth date, and birth place given in the application, 
                and
                    (B) any certificate of naturalization or alien 
                identification document accompanying the application is 
                authentic and was issued to the person having the name, 
                birth date, and birth place given in the application.

                         TITLE III--CITIZENSHIP

SEC. 301. BASIS OF CITIZENSHIP CLARIFIED.

    In the exercise of its powers under section 5 of the Fourteenth 
Article of Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, the 
Congress has determined and hereby declares that any person born after 
the date of enactment of this title to a mother who is neither a 
citizen or national of the United States nor admitted to the United 
States as a lawful permanent resident, and which person is a citizen or 
national of another country of which either of his or her natural 
parents is a citizen or national, or is entitled upon application to 
become a citizen or national of such country, shall be considered as 
born subject to the jurisdiction of that foreign country and not 
subject to the jurisdiction of the United States within the meaning of 
section 1 of such Article and shall therefore not be a citizen of the 
United States or of any State solely by reason of birth in the United 
States.

                        TITLE IV--BORDER PATROL

SEC. 401. BORDER PATROL PERSONNEL.

    The number of full-time officer positions in the Border Patrol of 
the United States shall be increased from the number authorized in 
fiscal year 1995 by 1,000 in each of the succeeding 5 fiscal years.
                                 <all>
HR 375 IH----2