[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 531 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 531

   To designate El Salvador under section 244 of the Immigration and 
  Nationality Act in order to render nationals of such foreign state 
      eligible for temporary protected status under such section.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 8, 2001

 Mr. Berman (for himself, Mr. Thomas M. Davis of Virginia, Ms. Solis, 
Mr. Diaz-Balart, Mr. Frank, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, 
    Mr. Smith of New Jersey, and Ms. Roybal-Allard) introduced the 
  following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To designate El Salvador under section 244 of the Immigration and 
  Nationality Act in order to render nationals of such foreign state 
      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) On January 13, 2001, an earthquake with a magnitude of 
        7.6 on the Richter scale and a depth of 60 kilometers occurred 
        in El Salvador. The epicenter was located 65 miles southwest of 
        San Miguel.-
            (2) The earthquake affected more than 1.1 million 
        Salvadorans, causing more than 700 deaths and 4,500 injuries.
            (3) As a result of the earthquake, more than 70,000 homes 
        were destroyed and many thousands of people are homeless and 
        living in temporary shelters.-
            (4) The earthquake and subsequent aftershocks and 
        landslides have blocked many roads, destroyed numerous 
        hospitals, health clinics, and schools, and caused more than 
        $1,000,000,000 in damage.
            (5) The earthquake occurred at a time when the Salvadorans 
        were still struggling to recover from the devastating effects 
        of Hurricane Mitch, which hit in 1998.
            (6) Salvadoran nationals living in the United States send 
        more than $1,700,000,000 annually in remittances to the people 
        of El Salvador, helping them to recover from this and previous 
        natural disasters, civil unrest, and economic disruptions.
            (7) These remittances have had a stabilizing effect on El 
        Salvador's economic and social well-being.
            (8) These remittances have augmented the assistance that 
        the Government of the United States sends to El Salvador, 
        reducing the need to expend taxpayers' dollars to help 
        stabilize an important neighbor to the south.

SEC. 2. DESIGNATION FOR PURPOSES OF GRANTING TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS 
              TO SALVADORANS.

    (a) Designation.--
            (1) In general.--For purposes of section 244 of the 
        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a), El Salvador 
        shall 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.--The initial period of such 
        designation shall begin on the date of the enactment of this 
        Act and shall remain in effect for 1 year. During such initial 
        period, subparagraph (A) of section 244(b)(3) of the 
        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a(b)(3)(A)) shall 
        apply to the Attorney General with respect to such designation, 
        but subparagraph (B) of such section shall not. After the 
        termination of such initial period, subparagraphs (A), (B), and 
        (C) of such section shall govern periodic review, termination, 
        and extensions of such designation.
    (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 El 
Salvador 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 January 13, 2001;
            (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>