[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1443 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1443

 To permit athletes to receive nonimmigrant alien status under certain 
                  conditions, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 21, 2005

 Ms. Collins (for herself and Mr. Lieberman) introduced the following 
    bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the 
                               Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To permit athletes to receive nonimmigrant alien status under certain 
                  conditions, 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. NONIMMIGRANT ALIEN STATUS FOR CERTAIN ATHLETES.

    Section 214(c)(4)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1184(c)(4)(A)) is amended by striking clauses (i) and (ii) and 
inserting the following:
            ``(i)(I) performs as an athlete, individually or as part of 
        a group or team, at an internationally recognized level of 
        performance,
            ``(II) is a professional athlete, as defined in section 
        204(i)(2),
            ``(III) performs as an athlete, or as a coach, as part of a 
        team or franchise that is located in the United States and a 
        member of a foreign league or association of 15 or more amateur 
        sports teams, if--
                    ``(aa) the foreign league or association is the 
                highest level of amateur performance of that sport in 
                the relevant foreign country,
                    ``(bb) participation in such league or association 
                renders players ineligible, whether on a temporary or 
                permanent basis, to earn a scholarship in, or 
                participate in, that sport at a college or university 
                in the United States under the rules of the National 
                Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and
                    ``(cc) a significant number of the individuals who 
                play in such league or association are drafted by a 
                major sports league or a minor league affiliate of such 
                a sports league, or
            ``(IV) is a professional athlete or amateur athlete who 
        performs individually or as part of a group in a theatrical ice 
        skating production, and
            ``(ii) seeks to enter the United States temporarily and 
        solely for the purpose of performing--
                    ``(I) as such an athlete with respect to a specific 
                athletic competition, or
                    ``(II) in the case of an individual described in 
                clause (i)(IV), in a specific theatrical ice skating 
                production or tour.''.

SEC. 2. ADVISORY OPINIONS.

    Section 214(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1184(c)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (4)(D), by inserting ``(other than with 
        respect to aliens seeking entry under subclause (II), (III), or 
        (IV) of subparagraph (A)(i) of this paragraph),'' after 
        ``101(a)(15)(P)''; and
            (2) in paragraph (6)(A)(iii), by inserting ``(other than 
        with respect to aliens seeking entry under subclause (II), 
        (III), or (IV) of paragraph (4)(A)(i))'' after 
        ``101(a)(15)(P)(i)''.

SEC. 3. PETITIONS FOR MULTIPLE ALIENS.

    Section 214(c)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1184(c)(4)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
    ``(F) The Secretary of Homeland Security shall permit a petition 
under this subsection to seek classification of more than one alien as 
a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(P)(i)(a). The fee charged for 
such a petition may not be more than the fee charged for a petition 
seeking classification of one such alien.''.

SEC. 4. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER PROVISIONS OF THE IMMIGRATION AND 
              NATIONALITY ACT.

    Section 214(c)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1184(c)(4)), as amended by section 3, is further amended by adding at 
the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(G) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security shall permit an athlete, or the employer 
of an athlete, to seek admission to the United States for such athlete 
under a provision of this Act other than section 101(a)(15)(P)(i).''.

SEC. 5. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

    Section 214(c)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1184(c)(4)) is amended by striking ``Attorney General'' each place it 
appears and inserting ``Secretary of Homeland Security''.
                                 <all>