Findings

Congress finds the following:(1)On August 4, 2020, one of the most powerful explosions ever to impact an urban population ripped through the Lebanese capital of Beirut. The blast—linked to 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse—killed at least 220 people, wounded approximately 7,000, left an estimated 300,000 people homeless, and caused approximately $15,000,000,000 in property damage.(2)The COVID–19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on Lebanon, which has recorded over 1,235,000 cases and 10,800 deaths since the pandemic began. Lebanon’s public health system, already weakened by the Beirut disaster and political upheaval, has struggled to cope in the face of the pandemic.(3)Lebanon lacked a fully formed government for much of the COVID–19 pandemic and the political establishment remains highly polarized and divided. The political crisis has become so severe that on April 18, 2023 Lebanon’s parliament voted to extend the terms of municipal councils and other local officials to avoid further paralysis. The current government is acting in a caretaker capacity and the presidency has been empty since President Aoun’s term expired in October 2022.(4)Lebanon has been experiencing one of the worst economic crises in its history at the same time as the COVID–19 pandemic, Beirut Port explosion, and political crisis.(5)According to the United Nations, over 3,500,000 Lebanese people are estimated to live in poverty and around three-quarters are now income vulnerable. Before the value of the Lebanese pound started spiraling in late 2019, the country’s monthly minimum wage was 675,000 pounds—about $450—but today it is worth less than $7.(6)Per the United Nations, 36 percent of the Lebanese population (1,380,000 people) is experiencing extreme poverty.(7)Since October 2019, the Lebanese pound has lost more than 95 percent of its value, placing Lebanon amongst the top 5 economic crises globally according to the World Bank.(8)Food prices have skyrocketed throughout the crisis, increasing 400 percent in 2020 alone.(9)In July 2021, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that Lebanon’s water system is on the verge of collapse, with more than 70 percent of the country facing critical water shortages. In January 2019, 1,000 Lebanese pounds bought 4 liters of water. By August 2021, it only bought half a liter.(10)In October 2022, Lebanon reported its first cholera cases in 30 years, with 5,819 suspected and confirmed cases and 23 deaths reported by December 31, 2022.(11)Dire fuel shortages plague Lebanon, leading the American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut’s top hospital and one of the leading medical centers in the region, to issue a warning in August 2021 that hundreds of patients would die if they failed to secure enough fuel to keep their generators running.(12)The United Nations has reported that, as of December 2022, the mass exodus of public health workers from Lebanon has continued with devastating effect, with approximately 40 percent of doctors, 15 percent of specialized neonatal intensive care unit nurses, and 30 percent of midwives leaving the country over the course of the crisis. This has resulted in critical gaps in the quality, availability, and accessibility of health care for the population.(13)The combined crises have strained many of Lebanon’s public institutions to the breaking point, including the Lebanese Army, whose budget and soldiers’ salaries have been devastated by the devaluation of the Lebanese pound.(14)On October 14, 2021, gunmen fired on a crowd of protestors gathered near the Beirut Justice Palace sparking heavy armed clashes in nearby neighborhoods. The ensuing fighting killed at least 7 individuals and wounded more than 30 others.(15)Numerous residents of Beirut living in the vicinity of the clashes have been quoted by domestic and international media comparing the October 14th clashes and ongoing tensions to the devastating 1975–1990 Lebanese civil war, reflecting well-founded fears of the potential for a return to significant sectarian violence.(16)The United States has long stood with the Lebanese people in times of need and standing with them now is both morally right and in line with our national interests.(17)In the aftermath of the Beirut Port explosion, President Biden’s pledge of an additional $98,000,000 in aid to Lebanon on the first anniversary of the disaster was a good first step in supporting the Lebanese people. Designating Lebanon for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is the logical next step given the circumstances.(18)Lebanon needs significant continued international support to prevent the worsening of its economic, social, political, and public health crises and to rebuild from this period of extraordinary difficulty for the Lebanese people.(19)A report from FWD.us published in February 2023 estimated that 12,000 individuals in the United States would be eligible for TPS if Lebanon was designated, of which 64 percent are members of the workforce with an annual economic contribution of approximately $420,000,000.(20)A country is designated for TPS when it is determined by the United States Government that it is unsafe for its citizens to return to due to ongoing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or extraordinary and temporary conditions in the foreign state that prevent aliens who are nationals of the state from returning to the state in safety.(21)As of April 2023, the Department of State’s Lebanon Travel Advisory specifically directs individuals to Reconsider travel to Lebanon due to crime, terrorism, armed conflict, civil unrest, kidnapping, and goes on to specifically advise that individuals do not travel to the border with Syria due to terrorism and armed conflict, the border with Israel due to the potential for armed conflict, and refugee settlements due to the potential for armed clashes.(22)The beginning of April 2023 witnessed the heaviest and most significant cross border confrontation on the Israeli/Lebanese border since the 2006 war, raising fears of a broader armed confrontation.(23)The combined crises facing Lebanon amount to extraordinary and temporary conditions that prevent Lebanese nationals from safely returning to Lebanon. Any returned individual would have to contend without access to clean water, adequate health care, and affordable basic necessities—all in the face of the very real threat of significant political violence and armed conflict. After years of uncertainty, these individuals deserve stability and temporary relief in the United States.

Designation for purposes of granting temporary protected status

(a)

Designation

(1)

In general

For purposes of section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a), Lebanon shall be treated as if it had been designated under subsection (b)(1)(A) of that section, subject to the provisions of this section.(2)

Period of designation

The initial period of the designation referred to in paragraph (1) shall be for the 18-month period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.(b)

Aliens eligible

As a result of the designation made under subsection (a), an alien who is a national of Lebanon is deemed to satisfy the requirements under paragraph (1) of section 244(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a(c)), subject to paragraph (3) of such section, if the alien—(1)has been continuously physically present in the United States since the date of the enactment of this Act;(2)is admissible as an immigrant, except as otherwise provided in paragraph (2)(A) of such section, and is not ineligible for temporary protected status under paragraph (2)(B) of such section; and(3)registers for temporary protected status in a manner established by the Secretary of Homeland Security.(c)

Consent To travel abroad

(1)

In general

The Secretary of Homeland Security shall give prior consent to travel abroad, in accordance with section 244(f)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a(f)(3)), to an alien who is granted temporary protected status pursuant to the designation made under subsection (a) if the alien establishes to the satisfaction of the Secretary of Homeland Security that emergency and extenuating circumstances beyond the control of the alien require the alien to depart for a brief, temporary trip abroad.(2)

Treatment upon return

An alien returning to the United States in accordance with an authorization described in paragraph (1) shall be treated as any other returning alien provided temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a).