[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 20 (Tuesday, February 29, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E199]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                 INTRODUCTION OF CIPRIS CORRECTION BILL

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                           HON. PATSY T. MINK

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 29, 2000

  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a bill 
that will repeal a burden being placed on our colleges and 
universities.
  In 1996, Congress enacted the Illegal Immigration Reform and 
Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) directing the INS to establish an 
electronic tracking program to monitor foreign students and scholars in 
the United States.
  The Coordinated Interagency Partnership Regulating International 
Students, CIPRIS as it is called, was established to enable colleges, 
universities and exchange programs to report information electronically 
to the INS, the Department of State, and the Department of Education.
  CIPRIS is funded through a $95 fee imposed on each student and 
visitor enrolled in higher education institutions or exchange programs.
  Section 641(e) of IIRIRA requires that colleges and universities and 
exchange programs collect and remit this $95 fee for each of these 
foreign students or exchange visitors.
  This mandate places an inappropriate, costly, and unenforceable 
burden on our colleges and universities. Moreover, it establishes a 
dangerous precedent by requiring higher education institutions to act 
as collection agents for the federal government.
  Significant financial costs will have to be undertaken by our 
colleges and universities to carry out this mandate. Thus, the 
collecting, processing, and remitting of CIPRIS fees will force 
universities to redirect resources away from educational endeavors to 
defray the additional costs of this mandate or it will result in higher 
educational costs for all students.
  My bill corrects this problem by repealing Section 641(e) of IIRIRA. 
By repealing this section, foreign students will be responsible for 
remitting this fee to the government.
  The colleges and universities will not serve as a collection agency 
for the government.
  This bill will relieve our higher education institutions of a costly 
and timely burden and will allow them to spend time on what is most 
important--educating our youth.
  I strongly urge my colleagues to join me in support of this measure.

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