[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 159 (Monday, December 6, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8556-S8557]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RELIEF OF SHIGERU YAMADA
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to the consideration of S. 4010.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will state the bill by title.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 4010) for the relief of Shigeru Yamada.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I offer today private relief
legislation to provide lawful permanent residence status to Shigeru
Yamada, a 28-year-old Japanese national who lives in Chula Vista, CA.
The Senate passed S. 124, a private relief bill on behalf of Mr.
Yamada on Friday; however, that version of the private relief bill did
not include an explanation of the zero budgetary impact of the bill.
For this reason, I am introducing and seek passage of a new version of
this private bill for Mr. Yamada, so that the Congressional Budget
Office's assessment of the zero budgetary impact of this bill can be
taken into consideration when this bill reaches the House of
Representatives.
Mr. Yamada legally entered the United States with his mother and two
sisters in 1992 at the young age of 10. The family was fleeing from Mr.
Yamada's alcoholic father, who had been physically abusive to his
mother, the children and even his own parents. Since then, he has had
no contact with his father and is unsure if he is even alive.
Tragically, Mr. Yamada experienced further hardship when his mother
was killed in a car crash in 1995. Orphaned at the age of 13, Mr.
Yamada spent time living with his aunt before moving to Chula Vista to
live with a close friend of his late mother.
At the time of her death, Mr. Yamada's family was living legally in
the United States. His mother had acquired a student visa for herself,
and her children qualified as her dependents. Her death revoked his
legal status in the United States. In addition, Mr. Yamada's mother was
engaged to an American citizen at the time of her death. Had she
survived, her son would likely have become an American citizen through
this marriage.
Mr. Yamada has exhausted all administrative options under our current
immigration system. Throughout high school, he contacted attorneys in
the hopes of legalizing his status, but his attempts were unsuccessful.
Unfortunately, time has run out and, for Mr. Yamada, the only option
available to him today is private relief legislation.
I ask my colleagues to once again support this private relief bill on
behalf of Mr. Yamada.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be
read the third time and that a budgetary pay-go statement be read.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The bill (S. 4010) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading
and was read the third time.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
Mr. Conrad: This is the Statement of Budgetary Effects of
PAYGO Legislation for S. 4010.
Total Budgetary Effects of S. 4010 for the 5-year Statutory
PAYGO Scorecard: $0.
Total Budgetary Effects of S. 4010 for the 10-year
Statutory PAYGO Scorecard: $0.
Also submitted for the Record as part of this statement is
a table prepared by the Congressional Budget Office, which
provides additional information on the budgetary effects of
this Act, as follows:
CBO ESTIMATE OF THE STATUTORY PAY-AS-YOU-GO EFFECTS FOR A BILL FOR THE RELIEF OF SHIGERU YAMADA, WITH AN AMENDMENT (MDM10842) PROVIDED TO CBO ON
DECEMBER 6, 2010
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2011-2015 2011-2020
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net Increase or Decrease (-) in the Deficit
Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Impact.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The bill would make Shigeru Yamada eligible for permanent U.S. residence. CBO estimates that it would have no significant effect on direct spending by
the Department of Homeland Security or on federal assistance programs.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be
passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no
intervening action or debate, and that any statements related to the
bill be printed in the Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The bill (S. 4010) was passed, as follows:
S. 4010
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS FOR SHIGERU YAMADA.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of
section 201 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1151), Shigeru Yamada shall be eligible for issuance of an
immigrant visa or for adjustment of status to that of an
alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence upon filing
an application for issuance of an immigrant visa under
section 204 of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) or for adjustment of
status to lawful permanent resident.
(b) Adjustment of Status.--If Shigeru Yamada enters the
United States before the filing deadline specified in
subsection (c), Shigeru Yamada shall be considered to have
entered and remained lawfully and shall be eligible for
adjustment of status under section 245 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1255) as of the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(c) Application and Payment of Fees.--Subsections (a) and
(b) shall apply only if the application for issuance of an
immigrant visa or the application for adjustment of status is
filed with appropriate fees not later than 2 years after the
date of the enactment of this Act.
(d) Reduction of Immigrant Visa Numbers.--Upon the granting
of an immigrant visa or permanent residence to Shigeru
Yamada, the Secretary of State shall instruct the proper
officer to reduce by 1, 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 Shigeru
Yamada under section 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 made available to
natives of the country of birth of Shigeru Yamada under
section 202(e) of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(e)).
(e) PAYGO.--The budgetary effects of this Act, for the
purpose of complying with the
[[Page S8557]]
Statutory Pay-As-You-Go-Act of 2010, shall be determined by
reference to the latest statement titled ``Budgetary Effects
of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing
in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the Senate
Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been
submitted prior to the vote on passage.
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