[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2091 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2091

 To designate the Republic of Montenegro, the Former Yugoslav Republic 
  of Macedonia, and the Republic of Albania under section 244 of the 
 Immigration and Nationality Act in order to render nationals of these 
   foreign states eligible for temporary protected status under such 
                                section.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              June 9, 1999

  Mrs. Biggert (for herself, Mr. Engel, Mrs. Kelly, Mrs. Wilson, Mr. 
Manzullo, Mr. Lipinski, Mr. Crowley, and Ms. Schakowsky) introduced the 
  following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To designate the Republic of Montenegro, the Former Yugoslav Republic 
  of Macedonia, and the Republic of Albania under section 244 of the 
 Immigration and Nationality Act in order to render nationals of these 
   foreign states eligible for temporary protected status under such 
                                section.

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

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) An estimated 780,000 Kosovar refugees have been driven 
        out of their homes to the Republic of Montenegro, the Former 
        Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and the Republic of Albania as 
        a result of ethnic cleansing.
            (2) The influx of refugees into these areas has placed a 
        significant burden on these countries and their ability to 
        process and house additional inhabitants.
            (3) The United States Immigration and Naturalization 
        Service continues to process and detain immigrants for 
        deportation to these countries, despite the instability created 
        by the ethnic cleansing in Kosovo.
            (4) The stability of the countries surrounding Kosovo and 
        their ability to process refugees is of vital national interest 
        to the United States and is integrally related to the success 
        of the ongoing North Atlantic Treaty Organization campaign.
            (5) It is in the national interest of the United States to 
        lessen the burden of burgeoning populace by granting temporary 
        protected status to aliens from these countries.

SEC. 2. DESIGNATION FOR PURPOSES OF GRANTING TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS 
              TO MONTENEGRINS, MACEDONIANS, AND ALBANIANS.

    (a) Designation.--
            (1) In general.--For purposes of section 244 of the 
        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a), the Republic 
        of Montenegro, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and 
        the Republic of Albania shall each be treated as if it had been 
        designated under subsection (b) of such section, subject to the 
        provisions of this section.
            (2) Period of designation.--Such designation shall take 
        effect on the date of the enactment of this Act and shall 
        remain in effect until such time as the President certifies to 
        the Congress that conditions are sufficiently improved to allow 
        aliens to return to these countries, or such time as the 
        designation with respect to Kosovar expires and is not 
        extended, whichever occurs later.
    (b) Aliens Eligible.--In applying section 244 of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act pursuant to the designation under this Act, subject 
to section 244(c)(3) of such Act, an alien who is a national of the 
Republic of Montenegro, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, or 
the Republic of Albania meets the requirement of section 244(c)(1) of 
such Act only if--
            (1) the alien has been continuously physically present in 
        the United States since March 24, 1999;
            (2) the alien is admissible as an immigrant, except as 
        otherwise provided under section 244(c)(2)(A) of such Act, and 
        is not ineligible for temporary protected status under section 
        244(c)(2)(B) of such Act; and
            (3) the alien registers for temporary protected status in a 
        manner which the Attorney General shall establish.
    (c) Consent to Travel Abroad.--The Attorney General shall give the 
prior consent to travel abroad described in section 244(f)(3) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act to an alien who is granted temporary 
protected status pursuant to the designation under this Act, if the 
alien establishes to the satisfaction of the Attorney General that 
emergency and extenuating circumstances beyond the control of the alien 
require the alien to depart for a brief, temporary trip abroad. An 
alien returning to the United States in accordance with such an 
authorization shall be treated the same as any other returning alien 
provided temporary protected status under section 244 of such Act.
                                 <all>