[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 6, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S93]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN:
  S. 120. A bill for the relief of Denes Fulop and Gyorgyi Fulop; to 
the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I offer today a private immigration 
relief bill to provide lawful permanent residence status to Denes and 
Gyorgyi Fulop, Hungarian nationals who have lived in California for 
more than 20 years. The Fulops are the parents of six U.S. citizen 
children.
  I first introduced this bill in June, 2000. Today, the Fulops 
continue to face deportation having exhausted all administrative 
remedies under our immigration system.
  The Fulops' story is a compelling one and one which I believe merits 
Congress' consideration for humanitarian relief.
  The most poignant tragedy to affect this family occurred in May of 
2000, when the Fulops' eldest child, Robert ``Bobby'' Fulop, an 
accomplished 15-year-old teenager, died suddenly of a heart aneurism. 
Bobby was considered the shining star of his family.
  That same year their 6-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, was diagnosed 
with moderate pulmonary stenosis, a potentially life-threatening heart 
condition and a frightening situation similar to Bobby's. Not long ago, 
she successfully underwent heart surgery, but requires medical 
supervision to ensure her good health.
  The Fulops' youngest child, Matthew, was born seven weeks premature. 
He subsequently underwent several kidney surgeries and is still being 
closely monitored by physicians.
  Compounding these tragedies is the fact that today the Fulops face 
deportation. They face deportation, in part, because in 1995 the family 
traveled to Hungary and remained there for more than 90 days.
  Under the pre-1996 immigration law, prior to the Illegal Immigration 
Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, their stay in Hungary 
would not have been a factor in their immigration case and they would 
have been eligible for adjustment of status to lawful permanent 
residents.
  Indeed, in 1996, Mr. and Mrs. Fulop applied to the Immigration and 
Naturalization Service, INS, for permanent resident status. Due to 
large backlogs, the INS did not interview them until 1998. By the time 
their applications were considered, the new 1996 immigration law had 
taken effect.
  Given their one-time 90 day trip outside the United States, they were 
statutorily ineligible for relief pursuant to the cancellation of 
removal provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
  One cannot help but conclude that had the INS acted on the Fulops' 
application for relief from deportation in a timelier manner, they 
would have qualified for suspension of deportation under the pre-1996 
law, given that they were long-term residents of the United States with 
U.S. citizen children and many positive factors in their favor.
  The irony of this situation is that the Fulops were gone from the 
United States for nearly five months in 1995 because they traveled to 
Hungary to help Mr. Fulop's brother build his home. Mr. Fulop's brother 
is handicapped and they went to help remodel his home.
  The Fulops are good and decent people. Mr. Fulop is a masonry 
contractor and the Owner and President of his own construction 
company--Sumeg International. He has owned this business for almost 14 
years.
  The couple is active in their church and community. As Pastor Peter 
Petrovic of the Apostolic Christian Church of San Diego says in his 
letter of support, ``[t]he family is an exceptional asset to their 
community.'' Mrs. Fulop has served as a Sunday school teacher and 
volunteers regularly at Heritage K-8 Charter School in Escondido. Mrs. 
Morris, a Heritage K-8 Charter School faculty member says in her letter 
of support that Mrs. Fulop is ``. . . a valuable asset to our school 
and community.''
  Mr. President, this is a tragic situation. Essentially, as happened 
to many families under the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
Responsibility Act of 1996, the rules of the game were changed in the 
middle. When the Fulops applied for relief from deportation they were 
eligible for suspension of deportation. By the time the INS got around 
to their application, nearly three years later, they were no longer 
eligible and in fact suspension of deportation as a form of relief 
ceased to exist.
  The Fulops today have been in the United States since the early 
1980s. Most harmful is the effect that their deportation will have on 
the children, all of whom were born here and who range from five years 
old to 21 years of age. Their two eldest children are attending 
college, one studying structural engineering and the other studying to 
become a dental hygienist.
  It is my hope that Congress sees fit to provide an opportunity for 
this family to remain together in the United States given their many 
years here, the profound sadness they have already experienced and the 
harm that would come from their deportation to their six U.S. citizen 
children.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 120

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.

       (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law 
     or any order, for the purposes of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.), Denes Fulop and 
     Gyorgyi Fulop shall be deemed to have been lawfully admitted 
     to, and remained in, the United States, and shall be eligible 
     for issuance of an immigrant visa or for adjustment of status 
     under section 245 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1255).
       (b) Application and Payment of Fees.--Subsection (a) shall 
     apply only if the applications for issuance of immigrant 
     visas or the applications for adjustment of status are filed 
     with appropriate fees not later than 2 years after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act.
       (c) Reduction of Immigrant Visa Numbers.--Upon the granting 
     of immigrant visas to Denes Fulop and Gyorgyi Fulop, the 
     Secretary of State shall instruct the proper officer to 
     reduce by 2, during the current or subsequent fiscal year, 
     the total number of immigrant visas that are made available 
     to natives of the country of birth of Denes Fulop and Gyorgyi 
     Fulop under section or 203(a) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(a)) or, if applicable, the 
     total number of immigrant visas that are of birth of Denes 
     Fulop and Gyorgyi Fulop under section 202(e) of that Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1152(e)).
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