[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 48 (Tuesday, April 16, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3403-S3404]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. BOXER:
  S. 1677. A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to 
establish the United States Citizenship Promotion Agency within the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.


                 THE CITIZENSHIP PROMOTION ACT OF 1996

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, what do Saul Bellow, Itzhak 
Perlman, Elie Wiesel, Elizabeth Taylor, Mikhail Baryishnikov, Alistair 
Cooke, I. M. Pei, Hakeem Olajuwan, Patrick Ewing, and General John 
Shalikashvili have in common? They're all naturalized Americans, people 
who came to our country as immigrants and made major contributions to 
American life after receiving the precious gift of American 
citizenship.
  Naturalization--the process by which a legal immigrant is granted the 
full rights and responsibilities of citizenship--represents the final 
step in a journey toward the American dream, a journey played by the 
rules.
  As a firm believer in the American dream, and as a U.S. Senator whose 
mother became a naturalized citizen, I am pleased to introduce the 
Citizenship Promotion Act of 1996 which will put the ``N'' back in INS. 
This much-needed legislation will reform our current system of 
naturalization so that it can better serve those who want to follow the 
rules and become full participants in American society.
  California has much at stake in improving the current delivery of 
naturalization services due to the high number of immigrants in the 
State who wish to naturalize. The latest surge in naturalization 
applications submitted is nowhere more evident than here. In fiscal 
year 1995, an estimated 1 million people applied for naturalization in 
the United States; over 380,000 of them live in the State of 
California. This is a 500-percent increase over the totals for fiscal 
year 1991.
  Although Doris Meissner, the Commissioner of INS, is actively 
addressing the naturalization backlog, the wait for a naturalization 
application to be processed is still a year or longer in cities such as 
San Francisco and San Jose. Efforts by INS to cut waiting periods in 
heavily impacted cities continue to be delayed by lack of funding and 
outdated agency structures. We owe it to those who patiently follow the 
rules to do better. That is why my legislation is needed.
  The first component of the legislation will create a citizenship 
promotion agency within INS. Headed by a new associate commissioner for 
citizenship, the citizenship promotion agency [CPA] will be responsible 
for carrying out all of the naturalization activities of the INS.
  Currently, the INS lumps responsibility for naturalization with their 
other responsibilities. A separate agency for naturalization within INS 
will not only elevate the importance of the function but it will clear 
up the backlog of applications. The naturalization fees will be used to 
fund the naturalization process only, as they should be.
  My legislation further provides for funds in the naturalization 
examinations fee account to be used for English language instruction. 
Today, there is an overwhelming need for more English language classes 
catering to immigrants trying to naturalize. The current availability 
of such classes is inadequate to meet the growing need for this type of 
instruction. In Los Angeles, for example, more than 20,000 people are 
now on waiting lists for English classes.
  My legislation recognizes that learning English is not only an 
important component of naturalization, but also the key to opening all 
of America's opportunities to our new citizens.
  The CPA will be encouraged to enter into cooperative agreements with 
other Government entities as well as private and nonprofit 
organizations to help carry out its naturalization outreach 
responsibilities. This will help maximize the capabilities of 
organizations that perform valuable naturalization outreach services at 
the local level.
  My legislation also creates a citizenship advisory board to work with 
the Citizenship Promotion Agency. This board will give INS the benefit 
of advice and assistance from people with diverse experiences and 
perspectives on the naturalization process through the issuance of two 
reports a year.
  Many of our most acclaimed Americans have been naturalized citizens. 
This is particularly true in San Francisco and the bay area. For 
instance, Lofti Mansouri, director of the San Francisco Opera is a 
naturalized citizen. Helgi Tommason, the director and choreographer for 
the San Francisco Ballet, is in the process of becoming one. Leo 
McCarthy is a naturalized citizen.
  The last four Nobel Prize winners at UC Berkeley as well as UC 
Berkeley Chancellor Chang Lin-Tien and UC Santa Barbara Chancellor 
Henry T. Yang are all great thinkers and naturalized Americans. Our 
Nation has bestowed the gift of citizenship on them; they have repaid 
our culture and society with the priceless gifts of their knowledge and 
creativity.
  These individuals are not only the leading lights in the bay area; 
they have received accolades the world over for their talents and 
contributions.
  From the people we have invited today, you will hear the stories of 
what they have been through and what naturalization means to them. And 
while all of our naturalized citizens are not famous, many of them 
embody the best of America's traditions and values.

  Take the example of Joyce Cheng, a naturalized citizen who came from 
Hong Kong in 1965 to settle in California's central valley. Ms. Cheng 
worked at her family's restaurant and two other jobs in order to pay 
for her education at the University of California at Berkeley. After 
receiving her degree in sociology, she worked in community service 
agencies and counseled other newcomers in employment and adjustment to 
American life.
  Later Ms. Cheng joined the financial industry and was credited with 
building her bank's net worth tenfold in less than 2 years. In 1988 she 
founded her own successful mortgage loan and financial planning company 
in Oakland which generates millions of dollars in revenues each year
  Ever since she naturalized in 1970, Ms. Cheng has participated in 
every election and helped encourage her community to be active 
participants in the democratic process. She serves on over 20 civic and 
professional boards and organizations.
  Or take Eliana Osorio, who immigrated to the United States from Chile 
in 1963. She overcome the cultural barriers most newcomers face, such 
as unfamiliarity with English, and raised four very successful American 
children. Patricia is a graduate of UC Berkeley and will be attending 
the University of Chicago in the fall to pursue a masters degree in 
public policy. Mrs. Osorio's son is a photographer for the Chicago 
Tribune and a graduate of San Francisco State University.
  Much like Mrs. Osorio, Felisa Lam came to the United States many 
years ago to begin a new life. She came to study accounting and 
remained in America as a legal resident. She founded a printing shop in 
1979, after attending a start-up business conference. After 17 years, 
her San Francisco business, Trans Bay Printing, has grown dramatically. 
Her clients range from major corporations to local community groups. 
Her efforts have not only allowed her to claim a piece of the American 
dream, they have enabled her two children to claim a piece of their own 
by attending Yale University.
  These are only a few short examples of the kind of new citizens who 
enrich our communities throughout the country. They not only 
demonstrate the strong work ethic and family values inherent in most of 
our foreign-born citizens, but also a firm commitment to their civic 
responsibilities as American citizens.
  I am a strong supporter of efforts to regain control of illegal 
immigration. It must be done at the border and in the workplace. But 
that effort should not overshadow other responsibilities of the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service.
  My bill will make needed improvements to the often-neglected function

[[Page S3404]]

of naturalization, acting as an important balance to proposed 
immigration reform and remaining true to the promise of the American 
dream.
  Many of us have directly witnessed the contributions of naturalized 
citizens in our communities and our families. I was fortunate to see in 
my own home, with my own mother, how much a naturalized American 
treasured her U.S. citizenship.
  After my mother passed away in 1991, I found a very special pouch 
that she had left for me. In it were this wedding band and a one-page 
document wrapped in cellophane. It was her naturalization certificate. 
America was her land, her home. Her papers were all in order--but that 
one paper in that separate pouch with her wedding band was the one she 
wanted me to have, and I have saved it to share with her great-
grandchildren.
                                 ______