[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5610 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5610

To prevent sex offenders from using immigration laws to bring innocent, 
              unsuspecting victims into the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 14, 2006

   Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas (for herself, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Davis of 
Illinois, Ms. Corrine Brown of Florida, Ms. Kilpatrick of Michigan, Ms. 
Watson, Ms. Millender-McDonald, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Mr. 
 Engel, Mr. Cummings, Mr. Cuellar, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, and Mr. Scott 
 of Georgia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To prevent sex offenders from using immigration laws to bring innocent, 
              unsuspecting victims into the United States.

    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 ``Foreign Anti-Sex Offender Protection 
Act of 2006''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Immigration law allows citizens and aliens lawfully 
        admitted for permanent residence to bring foreign family 
        members to the United States on the basis of immediate relative 
        status or a preference classification.
            (2) Immediate relative status and preference 
        classifications are obtained by filing petitions with the 
        Secretary of Homeland Security.
            (3) For national security purposes, the Secretary of 
        Homeland Security conducts background checks on the 
        beneficiaries of such petitions and, since September 11, 2001, 
        on the petitioners as well.
            (4) The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has 
        determined that, in fiscal year 2005, at least 398 of the 
        petitioners who filed family-based visa petitions were on the 
        National Sex Offender Registry maintained by the Federal Bureau 
        of Investigations.
            (5) GAO was only able to ascertain the nature of the sex 
        offense for 194 of the 398 petitioners.
            (6) GAO was able to ascertain, however, that 119 of the 
        convictions were for sex assault, 35 for child fondling, 9 for 
        strong arm rape, 9 for carnal abuse combined with a sexual 
        assault, 7 were for statutory rape, 4 for crimes against 
        persons, 3 for indecent exposure, 2 for kidnapping, 2 for 
        obscene material possession, 1 for exploitation of a minor with 
        photographs, 1 for incest with a minor, 1 for sodomizing a boy, 
        and 1 for restricting movement.
            (7) At least 14 of the 398 petitioners were classified as 
        ``sexual predators'', which means a determination had been made 
        that they are likely to commit additional sex offenses.
            (8) At least 45 of the petitioners were convicted of sex 
        offenses against children.
            (9) The Immigration and Nationality Act does not provide 
        the Secretary of Homeland Security with authorization to deny 
        family-based petitions on the basis of a petitioner's 
        conviction for a sex offense, even when the conviction record 
        indicates that a spouse or a child beneficiary may be in grave 
        danger.

SEC. 3. DISCRETIONARY AUTHORITY TO DENY FAMILY-SPONSORED CLASSIFICATION 
              PETITION BY PETITIONER LISTED ON NATIONAL SEX OFFENDER 
              REGISTRY.

    Section 204 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) 
is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(l) Authority to Deny Family-Based Petition by Petitioner Listed 
on National Sex Offender Registry.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary Homeland Security may, in 
        the discretion of the Secretary, deny a petition under 
        subsection (a) for classification of a spouse or child if--
                    ``(A) the Secretary has confirmed that the 
                petitioner is on the national sex offender registry 
                maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a 
                conviction that individually (disregarding any 
                aggregation due to any other conviction) resulted in 
                incarceration for more than 1 year;
                    ``(B) the petitioner has been given at least 90 
                days to establish that the petitioner is not the person 
                named on the registry or that the conviction did not 
                result in incarceration for more than 1 year and has 
                failed to establish such fact; and
                    ``(C) the Secretary finds that granting the 
                petition would put a primary or derivative spouse or 
                child beneficiary in grave danger of being sexually 
                abused.
            ``(2) Determining danger.--In making the determination 
        under paragraph (1)(C), the Secretary shall use the following 
        principles:
                    ``(A) Nature of the relationship.--In evaluating a 
                petitioner who has filed a petition for a spouse, 
                consideration should be given to indications of how 
                well the petitioner and the spouse know each other. 
                Petitions filed on the basis of marriages between men 
                and women who have had little direct, personal contact 
                with each other should be viewed with suspicion. In 
                cases where the petitioner and the spouse have had 
                little direct, personal contact with each other, 
                evidence should be submitted to establish that they 
                have gotten to know each other in some other way.
                    ``(B) Nature of the sex offense.--Consideration 
                should be given to when each offense occurred for which 
                the petitioner was incarcerated for more than a year, 
                how serious it was, the sentence that was imposed, how 
                long the petitioner was incarcerated, the age of the 
                petitioner when it was committed, and the 
                characteristics of the victim.
                    ``(C) Rehabilitation.--Evidence of rehabilitation 
                should be evaluated with respect to whether it 
                diminishes the risk of sexual abuse to the primary or 
                derivative spouse or child beneficiaries.
                    ``(D) Previous visa petitions.--The records for any 
                previous petitions shall be examined to determine 
                whether they provide or might lead to evidence that is 
                pertinent to determining whether granting the petition 
                would put a primary or derivative spouse or child 
                beneficiary in grave danger of being sexually abused.
            ``(3) Rebuttal.--If the Secretary intends to deny a 
        petition under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide the 
        petitioner with a notice that states the reasons for the 
        intended denial and provides the petitioner with at least 90 
        days to submit rebuttal evidence. Rebuttal should focus 
        primarily on the factors that led the Secretary to believe that 
        granting the petition would put a primary or derivative spouse 
        or child beneficiary in grave danger of being sexually abused.
            ``(4) Post-denial remedies.--
                    ``(A) Appeal.--All final denials under paragraph 
                (1) may be appealed to the Board of Immigration 
                Appeals.
                    ``(B) New petition.--The petitioner may file a new 
                petition whenever the petitioner has additional 
                evidence that the petitioner believes might be 
                sufficient to warrant granting the new petition.
            ``(5) Disclosure by the secretary of homeland security to 
        beneficiaries.--In all cases in which it has been confirmed 
        that the name of a petitioner under subsection (a) is listed on 
        the national sex offender registry maintained by the Federal 
        Bureau of Investigation, and regardless of whether the 
        Secretary may exercise discretion under paragraph (1), the 
        Secretary shall give the petitioner at least 90 days to 
        establish that the petitioner is not the person named on the 
        registry. If the petitioner fails to establish that the 
        petitioner is not the person named on the registry within the 
        time allotted, the Secretary shall provide the beneficiaries 
        with a written copy of the information on the registry that is 
        available to the public before making a decision on the 
        petition. The beneficiary shall be informed that the registry 
        information is based on available records and may not be 
        complete.
            ``(6) Disclosure to department of state.--In all cases in 
        which it has been confirmed that the name of a petitioner under 
        subsection (a) is listed on the national sex offender registry 
        maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and 
        regardless of whether the Secretary may exercise discretion 
        under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide the Secretary 
        of State with--
                    ``(A) a separate document with information about 
                the record on the national sex offender registry that 
                is available to the public;
                    ``(B) any additional information it has that raises 
                concern that a primary or derivative spouse or child 
                beneficiary may be subject to sexual abuse, including 
                information from the registry that is not available to 
                the public; and
                    ``(C) information about any previous petitions 
                under subsection (a) filed by the petitioner.
            ``(7) Disclosure by consular officer to beneficiaries.--
        When a petition under subsection (a) is granted, if the 
        petition is filed by a petitioner who has failed to make the 
        demonstration of mis-identification described in paragraph (5), 
        the consular officer shall conduct an interview with the 
        primary or derivative spouse or child beneficiary of the 
        petition before issuing a visa to the beneficiary. At least 
        part of the interview must be held without the presence of the 
        petitioner. During the private part of the interview, the 
        beneficiary will be given a written copy of the information 
        about the petitioner from the registry that is available to the 
        public. This document must be written in the beneficiary's 
        primary language. The consular officer is required to advise 
        the beneficiary that approval of the visa petition does not 
        mean that there are no reasons to be concerned about his or her 
        safety.
            ``(8) Additional responsibilities of consular officer.--The 
        consular officer may return files to the Secretary of Homeland 
        Security for further consideration in cases where the consular 
        officer is concerned that granting the visa might put a primary 
        or derivative spouse or child beneficiary in grave danger of 
        being sexually abused. When returning a file under the previous 
        sentence, the consular officer may add any additional 
        information or observations the officer has that might have a 
        bearing on whether the visa should be granted, including the 
        results of any field examination that has been conducted.''.

SEC. 4. REMOVAL OF CONDITIONAL PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS.

    (a) Identify and Provide Assistance for Spouses and Children Who 
Are Subject to Sexual Abuse or Related Types of Harm.--Section 
216(d)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1186a(d)(3)) 
is amended--
            (1) by inserting before ``The interview'' the following:
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the 
                interview''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Petitioner listed on national sex offender 
                registry.--In all cases where the Secretary of Homeland 
                Security has confirmed that a petitioning spouse is 
                listed on the national sex offender registry maintained 
                by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, an interview 
                with the alien spouse, and any alien sons or daughters, 
                shall be required prior to removal of the conditional 
                status, and at least part of the interview shall be 
                held without the presence of the petitioning spouse. 
                During the private portion of the interview, questions 
                will be asked to determine whether an investigation 
                should be conducted regarding the welfare of the alien 
                spouse, or any alien son or daughter. If it is 
                determined that any alien spouse, son, or daughter is 
                being abused or harmed by the petitioning spouse, the 
                victim shall be offered whatever assistance is 
                appropriate, including information on ways to remain in 
                the United State that do not depend on continuing the 
                qualifying marriage.''.
    (b) Hardship Waiver in Cases Where the Alien Spouse or Child Is 
Subject to Sexual Abuse.--Section 216(c)(4) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1186a(c)(4)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``or'' at the end
            (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``, or''; and
            (3) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
                    ``(D) the qualifying marriage was entered into in 
                good faith by the alien spouse and during the marriage 
                the alien spouse, or a son or daughter of the spouse, 
                was sexually abused and the alien was not at fault in 
                failing to meet the requirements of paragraph (1).''.

SEC. 5. SPECIAL TASK FORCE TO IDENTIFY PEOPLE NAMED ON THE NATIONAL SEX 
              OFFENDER REGISTRY WHO HAVE FILED FAMILY-BASED 
              CLASSIFICATION PETITIONS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish 
a task force, to be known as the ``Task Force to Rescue Immigrant 
Victims of American Sex Offenders''. The task force shall consist of 
officials from Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies with 
experience in domestic violence, sex crimes, immigration law, 
trafficking in humans, organized crime, or any other area of experience 
which may be useful in completing the duties described in subsection 
(b).
    (b) Duties.--The duties of the task force shall be the following:
            (1) Working back in time from the date of the establishment 
        of the task force, identifying individuals on the Federal 
        Bureau of Investigation's sex offender registry who have filed 
        family-based petitions under section 204(a) of the Immigration 
        and Nationality Act. When a confirmed match has been made with 
        the sex offender registry, the task force should ascertain 
        whether the petitioner filed previous petitions.
            (2) Maintaining the information about the petitioners in a 
        comprehensive database.
            (3) Prioritizing the information according to the 
        likelihood that primary or derivative spouse or child 
        beneficiaries are in danger of sexual abuse.
            (4) Developing a system for investigating the cases in 
        which beneficiaries may be at risk and providing them with 
        information on how to seek assistance if they are abused.
            (5) Except for information on the registry that is 
        available to the public, protecting the information produced by 
        its investigations in accordance with the privacy rights of 
        everyone involved in the investigation.
            (6) Taking whatever other actions as are reasonable and 
        appropriate when investigations lead to information about 
        sexual abuse or other criminal activities, including notifying 
        State and local police departments, government offices, public 
        organizations that provide assistance to victims of sexual 
        abuse, and religious organizations.
    (c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 270 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a 
report on the findings and recommendations of the task force. The 
report shall include the following:
            (1) An analysis of the information obtained in searching 
        visa petition and national sex offender registry records.
            (2) The results of any investigations conducted by the task 
        force.
            (3) Recommendations on administrative and legislative 
        actions that would assist in identifying and protecting 
        immigrant victims of sexual abuse or related harm.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act. Amounts appropriated 
under this section shall remain available until expended.

SEC. 7. REGULATIONS.

    Regulations implementing this Act shall be promulgated in final 
form not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act.
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