[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 134 (Tuesday, October 9, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10392-S10395]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. SPECTER:
  S. 1517. A bill to amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to 
enhance the Montgomery GI bill, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
  Mr. SPECTER. Madam President, I have sought recognition to comment on 
legislation I am introducing today to put into effect several 
recommendations made by the United States Commission on National 
Security/21st century relative to Montgomery GI bill, MGIB, educational 
assistance benefits administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, 
VA. The Commission, co-chaired by former Senators Gary Hart and Warren 
Rudman, was tasked with reexamining U.S. national security policies and 
processes, and making recommendations on how the United States could 
best ensure the safety of its citizenry against emerging national 
security threats. Sadly, one of the emerging threats anticipated by the 
Commission, the threat of state or group-sponsored terrorism, was 
realized on September 11, 2001.
  Our Armed Forces, the best in the world, have now engaged the enemy, 
and we rely on these dedicated men and women in service to sacrifice 
their lives, if necessary, to defend liberty and secure justice. The 
Nation must reciprocate by assuring that the benefits provided to 
service members during, and after, their service measure up to the 
grave responsibilities entrusted to them. The Hart-Rudman Commission 
understood that, and, consistent with that understanding, the 
Commission recommended specific improvements in veterans' educational 
assistance benefits to assure that the armed forces are able to 
attract, and retain, highly qualified, dedicated service members.
  The Commission made, in total, seven recommendations on how MGIB

[[Page S10393]]

benefits could be enhanced. It recommended that the MGIB monthly 
benefit be increased and indexed to the average education costs at 
four-year public colleges. It recommended, further, that the payment of 
benefits be accelerated to the beginning of a student's school term. 
The Commission recommended, in addition, that MGIB benefits be made 
available to students taking technical training courses. Further, it 
recommended the repeal of the requirement that service members make 
contributions totaling $1200 in order to ``buy'' eligibility for MGIB 
benefits. It recommended, in addition, that potential beneficiaries be 
given 20 years after discharge from the service, not just 10 years, as 
is currently specified by law, to make use of their MGIB benefits. It 
also recommended that service members with 15 years of service or more 
be entitled to transfer their entitlement to MGIB benefits to their 
spouse or dependent children. Finally, the Commission recommended that 
MGIB benefits made available to Reserves called to serve in overseas 
contingency operations be increased on a sliding scale basis.
  The Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, a Committee on which I 
serve as ranking minority member, has considered, and moved favorably 
on, the first three Commission recommendations listed above; 
legislation which would, in whole or in part, accomplish these 
recommendations will soon be before the Senate. The committee has not, 
however, acted on the final four recommendations of the Commission, 
mainly because those proposals were not before the committee. It is my 
hope that by introducing this legislation, I will assure that the 
committee continues its consideration of MGIB improvements in the 
months ahead.
  To summarize the bill briefly, section 2 of my bill would eliminate 
the $1,200 pay reduction currently required of service members during 
their first 12 months of active duty as a precondition to eligibility 
for MGIB benefits. The Hart-Rudman Commission is not alone in 
recommending the repeal of this requirement. In 1999, the Commission on 
Service Members and Veterans Transition Assistance, a commission headed 
by the current Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Honorable Anthony J. 
Principi, made the same recommendation. It surely can be argued with 
considerable force that service members, who are asked to risk life and 
limb in service to the Nation, should not be asked, in addition, to 
contribute a portion of their pay, while in service, to ``earn'' 
eligibility for veterans' educational assistance benefits.
  Section 3 of this legislation would allow service members with at 
least 15 years of active duty to transfer their entitlement to MGIB 
benefits to their spouses or dependent children. This past January, I 
met with some of our troops stationed in Bosnia who expressed 
considerable interest in this idea. Many of them mentioned that they 
have families back home and that, rather than paying for their own 
education, they needed funds to pay for their children's education. At 
the very least, the idea needs to be further considered. I am aware 
that Senator Cleland has been working on a concept which is similar, 
but not identical to, this provision. I would like to work with Senator 
Cleland on this important issue.
  Section 4 of my bill would allow former service members 20 years 
after discharge, rather than 10 years, as is specified in current law, 
to utilize their MGIB benefits. I understand that, historically, MGIB 
benefits are intended to assist in the transition to civilian status, 
so that economic opportunities lost due to temporary military service 
can be ameliorated upon transition back to civilian life. This concept 
may have been useful when most departing service members were single 
persons with no family or financial obligations preventing the use of 
education benefits very quickly after discharge. Many former service 
members, however, are married and have children and, with these 
obligations, often find it difficult to return to school immediately 
after separation from service. In addition, today's rapidly-changing 
economy demonstrates that the skills which employers demand today may 
change tomorrow. Extending the MGIB ``delimiting date'' would encourage 
``lifetime learning'' and enable veterans to keep their skills current.
  Finally, section 5 of my bill would enable members of the Selected 
Reserve who are called to active duty as part of a ``contingency 
operation,'' such as the operations to which Reserves are now being 
called, to be eligible for increased MGIB benefits if they serve in 
such an operation for more than one year. Currently, those who enlist 
for a six year reserve commitment are eligible for $251 per month in 
education benefits, whether or not they are called to active duty. It 
would seem to me that Reserves who are activated, especially during 
times of conflict or war, bear close resemblance to individuals who are 
serving an active duty enlistment, and so too should the educational 
benefits made available to such persons. Therefore, my legislation 
would provide that, in cases where a member of the Selected Reserves 
serves one year in a contingency operation, his or her education 
benefit would be adjusted to the half-way point between the benefit 
afforded to a Reserve Member under current law, now, $251 per month, 
and that provided to service members who have served two years active 
duty, currently, $528 per month. In cases involving members of the 
Selected Reserves who serve two years of active service in a 
contingency operation, the amount of educational assistance afforded to 
them would be the same as that which is provided to veterans who had 
served two years of active duty, currently, $528 per month. And for 
those who have served three years active duty in a contingency 
operation, their benefit amount would be the same, currently, $650 per 
month, as that afforded to service members who have served a three year 
enlistment. In this national emergency, it is time to recognize the 
sacrifices made by reservists called to active duty by increasing their 
benefits commensurate with time served on active duty.
  One of the Hart-Rudman Commission's recommendations, that an Office 
of Homeland Security be created to coordinate the Federal government's 
counterterrorism efforts, has already been embraced the President. 
Governor Tom Ridge of Pennsylvania, who was just sworn in yesterday, 
will, I am sure, serve with great distinction as head of that office. 
We need to address more of the Commission's recommendations, including 
those that would enhance national security by making the military a 
more competitive employer so it can attract and retain quality people. 
Beyond that, we need to let our fighting men and women know that we 
value their service by providing them with the tools to succeed upon 
completion of their military careers. This legislation would accomplish 
those purposes. I urge my colleagues to support this effort.
      By Mr. BOND (for himself, Mr. Conrad, and Ms. Snowe):
  S. 1518. A bill to improve procedures with respect to the admission 
to, and departure from, the United States of aliens; to the Committee 
on the Judiciary.
  Mr. BOND. Madam President, among the many things that makes our 
country great is the freedom we possess to move about the country and 
exit and return to our country as we desire. Being a great Nation that 
believes strongly in that freedom and that has paid a tremendous price 
in defending that freedom, we like it to be on display to the rest of 
the world and we continually and generously open our doors to others. 
We as a Nation benefit from foreign visitors coming to the United 
States and other countries benefit when their citizens visit this 
country, whether it be to study at our schools and universities, learn 
at our institutions, use our medical facilities, do business with our 
dynamic private sector or visit our great cities and parks.
  However, on September 11, this great Nation endured a terrible 
tragedy, perpetrated by individuals who entered this country legally, 
as guests, on a visa. Nineteen people who were in this country on 
travel, work and student visas carried out the most deadly attack ever 
on our soil. Three of those people had stayed beyond the expiration of 
their visa. As the investigation of the Attorney General proceeds, many 
others have been detained. Initial reports indicated that a large 
number of these people were in this country on expired visas and I 
suspect we will find that a large number of those involved in the 
planning of the attack

[[Page S10394]]

were in the United States on expired visas.
  At this time, the only system in place to track the entry and exit of 
visa holders is antiquated and completely inadequate. The government 
has little ability to track those who have entered the United States 
and to be notified if they violate the terms of their visa. As there 
are approximately 300 million immigrants and visitors that enter this 
country every year, getting a handle on this problem will not be 
simple. However, we must know if those who enter the United States to 
study arrive and attend school, if those who come her to work are at 
their jobs, if those who come here to do business do their business and 
return home and if those who we admit into the United States to 
vacation return home at the end of their time in the United States. We 
should strive to keep our borders open, to keep commerce flowing freely 
and not let the terrorist attack disrupt our relations with our good 
neighbors and other friends. But at the same time, we must have a 
better idea of who is entering this country, catch and screen out those 
who may pose a threat and know who has violated the terms of their visa 
and remained in the United States beyond the expiration date.
  I would like to acknowledge and thank my colleagues Kent Conrad and 
Olympia Snowe for their assistance and valuable input on this 
legislation.
  Specifically, this bill calls for the improvement of the information 
received by the Department of State for checking the backgrounds of 
visa applicants. It calls on law enforcement and intelligence agencies 
to share regularly information that will be useful to the State 
Department in identifying those who pose any type of threat to the 
security or people of this country.
  This bill calls for the improvement and implementation of the system 
to track foreign students. Including a requirement that universities 
notify the INS when foreign students do not show up for school, as Hani 
Hanjour failed to do before participating in the attack on the World 
Trade Center.
  It is time to begin the roll of the Integrated Entry and Exit 
Tracking system called for in legislation passed five years ago to 
record the entry of visa holders, record their exit and notify the INS 
and law enforcement agencies of the identity of anyone overstaying 
their visa. This system should also utilize the latest technology, 
including biometrics, to ensure that visas cannot be tampered with or 
stolen. Finally, it is time for the members of the task force to be 
appointed, including the Director of Homeland Security, so that the 
issues surrounding this system can be settled.
  The bill also calls for the tightening of the Visa Waiver Pilot 
program to ensure that passports for participating countries are not 
stolen or defaced by those trying to sneak into the country. It also 
calls for those employing work visa holders to report to the INS if 
that person leaves or is terminated from their job.
  These are all reasonable proposals that will not impact commerce, 
travel and relationships with friendly countries. It will also begin 
the process of having an accurate picture of who has entered the 
country and who has departed. It is one of many steps that needs to be 
taken to avoid further terrorist attacks. I look forward to working 
with my colleagues to implement this legislation.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1518

       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 ``Visa Integrity and Security 
     Act of 2001''.

     SEC. 2. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING THE NEED TO EXPEDITE 
                   IMPLEMENTATION OF INTEGRATED ENTRY AND EXIT 
                   DATA SYSTEM.

       (a) Sense of Congress.--In light of the terrorist attacks 
     perpetrated against the United States on September 11, 2001, 
     it is the sense of the Congress that--
       (1) the Attorney General should fully implement the 
     integrated entry and exit data system for airports, seaports, 
     and land border ports of entry, as specified in section 110 
     of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996, as amended by the Immigration and 
     Naturalization Service Data Management Improvement Act of 
     2000 (Public Law 106-215), with all deliberate speed and as 
     expeditiously as practicable; and
       (2) the Attorney General, in consultation with the 
     Secretary of State, the Secretary of Commerce, and the 
     Secretary of the Treasury, should immediately begin 
     establishing the Integrated Entry and Exit Data System Task 
     Force, as described in section 3 of the Immigration and 
     Naturalization Service Data Management Improvement Act of 
     2000 (Public Law 106-215).

     SEC. 3. ENTRY-EXIT TRACKING SYSTEM.

       (a) Development of the System.--In the development of the 
     entry-exit tracking system, as described in the preceeding 
     section, the Attorney General shall particularly focus--
       (1) on the utilization of biometric technology, including, 
     but not limited to, electronic fingerprinting, face 
     recognition, and retinal scan technology; and
       (2) on developing a tamper-proof identification, readable 
     at ports of entry as a part of any nonimmigrant visa issued 
     by the Secretary of State.
       (b) Integration With Law Enforcement Databases.--The entry 
     and exit data system described in this section shall be able 
     to be integrated with law enforcement databases for use by 
     State and Federal law enforcement to identify and detain 
     individuals in the United States after the expiration of 
     their visa.

     SEC. 4. ACCESS BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE TO CERTAIN 
                   IDENTIFYING INFORMATION IN THE CRIMINAL HISTORY 
                   RECORDS OF VISA APPLICANTS AND APPLICANTS FOR 
                   ADMISSION TO THE UNITED STATES.

       (a) Amendment of the Immigration and Nationality Act.--
     Section 105 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1105) is amended--
       (1) in the section heading, by inserting ``; data 
     exchange'' after ``security officers'';
       (2) by inserting ``(a)'' after ``Sec. 105.'';
       (3) in subsection (a), by inserting ``and border'' after 
     ``internal'' the second place it appears; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(b) The Attorney General and the Director of the Federal 
     Bureau of Investigation shall provide the Department of State 
     access to the criminal history record information contained 
     in the National Crime Information Center's Interstate 
     Identification Index (NCIC-III), Wanted Persons File, and to 
     any other files maintained by the National Crime Information 
     Center that may be mutually agreed upon by the Attorney 
     General and the Department of State, for the purpose of 
     determining whether or not a visa applicant or applicant for 
     admission has a criminal history record indexed in any such 
     file. The Department of State shall merge the information 
     obtained under this subsection with the information in the 
     system currently accessed by consular officers to determine 
     the criminal history records of aliens applying for visas.''.
       (c) Regular Reporting.--The Director of Central 
     Intelligence, the Secretary of Defense, the Commissioner of 
     Immigration and Naturalization, and the Director of the 
     Federal Bureau of Investigation shall provide information to 
     the Secretary of State on a regular basis as agreed by the 
     Secretary and the head of each of these agencies that will 
     assist the Secretary in determining if an applicant for a 
     visa has a criminal background or poses a threat to the 
     national security of the United States or is affiliated with 
     a group that poses such a threat.
       (d) Report on Screening Information.--Not later than 6 
     months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
     of State shall submit a report to Congress on the information 
     that is needed from any United States agency to best screen 
     visa applicants to identify those affiliated with terrorist 
     organizations or those that pose any threat to the safety or 
     security of the United States, including the type of 
     information currently received by United States agencies and 
     the regularity with which such information is transmitted to 
     the Secretary.

     SEC. 5. STUDENT TRACKING SYSTEM.

       (a) Integration With Port of Entry Information.--For each 
     alien with respect to whom information is collected under 
     this section, the Attorney General shall include information 
     on the date of entry, port of entry, and nonimmigrant 
     classification.
       (b) Expansion of System to Include Other Approved 
     Educational Institutions.--Section 641 of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 
     (8 U.S.C.1372) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(1), subsection (c)(4)(A), and 
     subsection (d)(1) (in the text above subparagraph (A)), by 
     inserting ``, other approved educational institutions,'' 
     after ``higher education'' each place it appears;
       (2) in subsections (c)(1)(C), (c)(1)(D), and (d)(1)(A), by 
     inserting ``, or other approved educational institution,'' 
     after ``higher education'' each place it appears;
       (3) in subsections (d)(2), (e)(1), and (e)(2), by inserting 
     ``, other approved educational institution,'' after ``higher 
     education'' each place it appears; and
       (4) in subsection (h), by adding at the end the following 
     new paragraph:
       ``(3) Other approved educational institution.--The term 
     `other approved educational institution' includes any air 
     flight school, language training school, vocational school, 
     or other school, approved by the Attorney

[[Page S10395]]

     General, in consultation with the Secretary of Education, 
     under subparagraph (F), (J), or (M) of section 101(a)(15) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act.''.
       (c) Expansion of System to Include Additional 
     Information.--Section 641(b) of the Illegal Immigration 
     Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 
     U.S.C.1372(b)), as amended by subsection (a), is further 
     amended--
       (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D) of 
     paragraph (1) as subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E), 
     respectively;
       (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:
       ``(B) the name of any dependent spouse, child, or other 
     family member accompanying the alien student to the United 
     States;''; and
       (3) in paragraph (1)(D) (as so redesignated), by inserting 
     after ``maintaining status as a full-time student'' the 
     following: ``and, if the alien is not maintaining such 
     status, the date on which the alien has concluded the alien's 
     course of study and the reason therefor''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(5) Information on failure to commence studies.--Each 
     approved institution of higher education, other approved 
     educational institution, or designated exchange visitor 
     program shall inform the Attorney General within 30 days if 
     an alien described in subsection (a)(1) who is scheduled to 
     attend the institution or program fails to do so. The 
     Attorney General shall ensure that information received under 
     this paragraph is included in the National Crime Information 
     Center's Interstate Identification Index.''.

     SEC. 6. STRENGTHENING VISA WAIVER PILOT PROGRAM.

       Section 217(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1187(c)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:
       ``(D) Tamper proof passport.--The country employs a tamper-
     proof passport, has established a program to reduce the theft 
     of passports, and has experienced during the preceding two-
     year period a low rate of theft of passports, as determined 
     by the Secretary of State.''.

     SEC. 7. REPORTING REQUIREMENT REGARDING H-1B NONIMMIGRANT 
                   ALIENS.

       (a) Requirement.--Not later than 14 days after the 
     employment of a nonimmigrant alien described in section 
     101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act is 
     terminated by an employer, the employer shall so report to 
     the Attorney General, together with the reasons for the 
     termination.
       (b) Penalty.--Any employer who fails to make a report 
     required under subsection (a) shall be ineligible to employ 
     any nonimmigrant alien described in that subsection for a 
     period of one year.
                                 ______