[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5767 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5767

   To defer the removal of certain Eritrean nationals for a 24-month 
                    period, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 5, 2020

Ms. Omar (for herself, Ms. Bass, Mr. Neguse, Mr. Payne, Ms. Norton, Mr. 
 McGovern, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms. Jayapal, 
 Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. McCollum, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Grijalva, 
 Mr. Khanna, Ms. Pressley, Mr. Horsford, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, 
    Mrs. Watson Coleman, Ms. Scanlon, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Smith of 
Washington, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Engel, Mr. Espaillat, Ms. Lee of California, 
Mr. Rush, Mr. Raskin, Ms. Craig, Mr. Phillips, and Mr. Clay) introduced 
    the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the 
                               Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To defer the removal of certain Eritrean nationals for a 24-month 
                    period, 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 ``Eritrean Nationals' Safety from 
Unjust Removal or Expulsion Act'' or the ``ENSURE Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) There are 700 Eritrean nationals living in the United 
        States who have final orders of removal.
            (2) In September 2017, the Secretary of Homeland Security 
        announced visa sanctions to encourage certain recalcitrant 
        countries, including Eritrea, to accept the respective 
        nationals from such countries who are subject to final orders 
        of removal from the United States.
            (3) Eritrea has generally declined to issue travel 
        documents to accept such nationals upon removal from the United 
        States but has begun to issue such documents due to the threat 
        of visa sanctions from the United States.
            (4) The human rights crisis and humanitarian situation in 
        Eritrea has resulted in extraordinary conditions that have 
        driven nationals to flee the country and prevented such 
        nationals from safely returning to Eritrea.
            (5) Conditions in Eritrea have been historically dangerous 
        and oppressive for certain groups that frequently suffer state 
        reprisal, including individuals who have fled Eritrea to evade 
        indefinite military service and arbitrary detention, 
        conscientious objectors, opponents of political leaders in 
        Eritrea, journalists, and religious minorities.
            (6) If returned to Eritrea after removal from the United 
        States, many Eritrean nationals that belong to such groups may 
        face persecution, torture, or death.
            (7) Eritrean nationals who are removed from the United 
        States are also at a particular risk of state reprisal for 
        leaving in the first place.
            (8) The most recent report of the United Nations Special 
        Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea assessed 
        current country conditions as grim, with arbitrary arrests, 
        detentions, tortures, disappearances, and extrajudicial 
        executions occurring regularly.
            (9) Human rights violations, including indefinite military 
        service, overcrowding in prolonged, unsanitary detention, and 
        an overall lack of freedom of movement and expression, persist 
        in Eritrea, contributing to the mass exodus from the country.
            (10) United Nations Special Rapporteurs in Eritrea have 
        determined that this situation is forcing many Eritrean 
        nationals to choose between enslavement if they stay in Eritrea 
        or death if they attempt to leave Eritrea.
            (11) The most recent State Department report on human 
        rights practices in Eritrea warns that many citizens who have 
        fled Eritrea ``remain in self-imposed exile due to their 
        religious and political views and fear that they would be 
        conscripted into national service if returned,'' which may 
        result in torture and death.
            (12) In order to begin to restore immigration relations 
        with the United States, Eritrea will need to adopt 
        accountability measures that ensure that Eritrean nationals 
        returned to Eritrea do not face state reprisal.
            (13) In 2018, the co-chairs of the Tom Lantos Human Rights 
        Commission reiterated these concerns in a bipartisan delegation 
        letter to the Secretary of State, urging the Department of 
        State to ensure human rights objectives were taken into 
        consideration when resetting any relations or policies toward 
        Eritrea.
            (14) In 2017, the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs 
        Enforcement sought to remove approximately 700 Eritrean 
        nationals from the United States.
            (15) Without enough time to seek immigration assistance 
        based on country conditions in Eritrea, and without careful 
        consideration for each case, Eritrean nationals could be 
        removed to face persecution, torture, or death before such 
        Eritreans receive fair adjudication of eligibility for relief 
        under current law and in light of present facts.
            (16) Deferring removal of Eritrean nationals for 24 months 
        would give--
                    (A) such Eritreans, who have not had the time or 
                resources to seek sufficient immigration assistance or 
                legal counsel based on the unique circumstances 
                described in this section, time to seek such assistance 
                or counsel;
                    (B) immigration judges and authorities the time to 
                fully understand the dire human rights crisis and 
                humanitarian situation in Eritrea; and
                    (C) the Government of Eritrea time to start to 
                reform the security of Eritrea and address human rights 
                abuses within Eritrea, including preventing indefinite 
                military service, arbitrary and prolonged detention, 
                and general persecution of the Eritrean people.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) Eritrean nationals should not be deported to Eritrea if 
        such nationals face persecution, torture, or death;
            (2) due to the horrific conditions in Eritrea, including 
        conditions listed under section 2, and the substantial increase 
        in removal orders for Eritrean aliens in the United States, it 
        would both be unfair and dangerous to deport Eritreans without 
        ensuring that each case is carefully considered or, if 
        applicable, reconsidered based on current country conditions in 
        Eritrea; and
            (3) the removal of Eritrean nationals described in section 
        4 should be deferred for a period of 24 months, at the end of 
        which Congress should have the opportunity to reevaluate 
        conditions in Eritrea.

SEC. 4. DEFERRAL OF REMOVAL FOR ERITREAN NATIONALS WITH REMOVAL ORDERS.

    (a) In General.--Subject to subsection (b), an alien may not be 
removed during the 24-month period beginning on the date of the 
enactment of this Act if the alien--
            (1) is a national of Eritrea;
            (2) has been ordered removed to Eritrea at any time before 
        the date of the enactment of this Act; and
            (3) has been continuously physically present in the United 
        States since the effective date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Employment Authorizations.--Upon application to the Secretary 
of Homeland Security, an alien whose removal is deferred pursuant to 
this Act shall be authorized to engage in employment during the 24-
month period described in subsection (a), provided that--
            (1) the alien is not subject to extradition by an 
        international tribunal or by a country with a treaty of 
        extradition with the United States (except the alien shall not 
        be extradited to Eritrea); or
            (2) if the alien is subject to extradition under paragraph 
        (1) due to an accusation of torture, crimes against humanity, 
        war crimes, or genocide, the Secretary of State and the 
        Attorney General certify that such accusation is not credible 
        with respect to the alien.

SEC. 5. NOTICE FOR CERTAIN ALIENS WITH REMOVAL ORDERS TO ERITREA.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide 
notice of the provisions of this Act to each alien described in section 
4(a).
    (b) Contents of Notice.--The notice required under subsection (a) 
shall include clear instructions explaining how an alien may file a 
motion to reopen a proceeding under section 240 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a) based on current country conditions.

SEC. 6. PROHIBITION ON DETENTION.

    The Secretary of Homeland Security may not detain an alien whose 
removal is deferred pursuant to this Act based upon--
            (1) the immigration status of such alien in the United 
        States; or
            (2) a motion filed by the alien to reopen a proceeding 
        under section 240 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
        U.S.C. 1229a).

SEC. 7. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

    (a) Review.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an 
individual or entity who has been harmed by a violation of this Act may 
file an action in an appropriate district court of the United States to 
seek declaratory or injunctive relief.
    (b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act may be construed to 
preclude an action filed pursuant to subsection (a) from proceeding as 
a class action (as such term is defined in section 1711 of title 28, 
United States Code).

SEC. 8. REPORTS.

    (a) Report Regarding Asylum and Refugee Seekers.--Not later than 
180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 
thereafter, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with 
the Attorney General, shall submit to Congress a report that includes--
            (1) the number of Eritrean nationals who--
                    (A) have been removed upon an order of the Attorney 
                General from the United States each fiscal year 
                beginning on September 1, 2019, through the present 
                fiscal year;
                    (B) are--
                            (i) currently in the United States;
                            (ii) in detention by the Attorney General;
                            (iii) under final orders of removal from 
                        the United States; or
                            (iv) the subject of a request from the head 
                        of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to 
                        the Government of Eritrea for travel documents;
                    (C) applied for status as a refugee under section 
                207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
                1157), including the number of Eritrean nationals who 
                were granted such status; or
                    (D) applied for asylum under section 208 of the 
                Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158), 
                including the number of Eritrean nationals who were 
                granted such status;
            (2) with respect to Eritrean nationals identified pursuant 
        to paragraph (1)(A), the names of each such country that such 
        nationals were removed to; and
            (3) with respect to Eritrean nationals identified pursuant 
        to paragraph (1), the number of Eritrean nationals that qualify 
        under 2 or more of the requirements under paragraph (1).
    (b) Report on the Safety of Eritrean Nationals Removed From the 
United States.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall submit to 
Congress a report describing how the Federal Government is ensuring the 
safety of Eritrean nationals removed from the United States to another 
country.
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