[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 132 (Tuesday, September 15, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6653-S6654]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Mrs. FEINSTEIN:
S. 2029. A bill for the relief of Shirley Constantino Tan; to the
Committee on the Judiciary.
Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, today I am reintroducing a bill for
the private relief of Shirley Constantino Tan. Ms. Tan is a Filipina
national living in Pacifica, CA. She is the proud mother of 19 year old
U.S. citizen twin boys, Jashley and Joriene, and the spouse of Jay
Mercado, a naturalized U.S. citizen.
I believe Ms. Tan merits Congress' special consideration for this
extraordinary form of relief because I believe her removal from the
United States would cause undue hardship for her and her family. She
faces deportation to the Philippines, which would separate her from her
family and jeopardize her safety.
Ms. Tan experienced horrific violence in the Philippines before she
left to come to the United States. When she was only 14 years old, her
cousin murdered her mother and her sister and shot Shirley in the head.
While the cousin who committed the murders was eventually prosecuted,
he received a short jail sentence. Fearing for her safety, Ms. Tan fled
the Philippines just before her cousin was due to be released from
jail. She entered the U.S. legally on a visitor's visa in 1989.
Ms. Tan's current deportation order is the result of negligent
counsel. Shirley applied for asylum in 1995. While her case appeal was
pending at the Board of Immigration Appeals, her attorney failed to
submit a brief to support her case. As a result, the case was
dismissed, and the Board of Immigration Appeals granted Shirley
voluntary departure from the United States.
Shirley never received notice that the Board of Immigration Appeals
granted her voluntary departure. Shirley's attorney moved offices, did
not receive the order, and ultimately never informed her of the order.
As a result, Shirley did not depart the United States and the grant of
voluntary departure automatically became a deportation order. She
learned about the deportation order for the first time on January 28,
2009, when Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents took her into
immigration custody.
Because of her attorney's negligent actions, Ms. Tan was denied the
opportunity to present her case in U.S. immigration proceedings.
Shirley later filed a complaint with the State Bar of California
against her former attorney. She is not the first person to file such a
complaint against this attorney.
On February 4, 2015, Shirley's spouse, Jay, a U.S. Citizen, filed an
approved spousal petition on her behalf. On August 20, 2015, U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services denied Shirley's application due
to the fact that Shirley still had a final order or removal. Shirley
must go back to the immigration court and ask for the court to
terminate her case and then reapply with United States Immigration and
Citizenship Services. Shirley is now again faced with deportation while
she seeks to close her case before the Immigration Judge.
In addition to the hardship that would come to Ms. Tan if she is
deported, Shirley's deportation would be a serious hardship to her two
U.S. citizen children, Jashley and Joriene, who are minors.
Joriene is a sophomore at Stanford University and is pre-Med in Human
Biology. Jashley is a sophomore at Chapman University and plans to
declare his Business major in spring. In addition to his studies,
Jashley is involved in Stanford's Pilipino-American Student Union. Ms.
Tan no longer runs her in-home daycare and is a stay-at-home mom.
If Ms. Tan were forced to leave the United States, her family has
expressed that they would go with Shirley to the Philippines or try to
find a third country where the entire family could relocate. This would
mean that Jashley and Joriene would have to leave behind their
education and the only home they know in the United States.
I do not believe it is in our Nation's best interest to force this
family, with two U.S. citizen children, to make the
[[Page S6654]]
choice between being separated and relocating to a country where they
may face safety concerns or other serious hardships.
Ms. Tan and her family are involved in their community in Pacifica
and own their own home. The family attends Good Shepherd Catholic
Church, volunteering at the church and the Mother Theresa of Calcutta's
Daughters of Charity. Shirley has the support of dozens of members of
her community who shared with me the family's spirit of commitment to
their community.
Enactment of the legislation I am introducing on behalf of Ms. Tan
today will enable this entire family to continue their lives in
California and make positive contributions to their community.
I ask my colleagues to support this private bill.
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. 2029
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 SHIRLEY CONSTANTINO
TAN.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of
section 201 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1151), Shirley Constantino Tan 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 such Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) or for adjustment of
status to lawful permanent resident.
(b) Adjustment of Status.--If Shirley Constantino Tan
enters the United States before the filing deadline specified
in subsection (c), she shall be considered to have entered
and remained lawfully and shall, if otherwise eligible, 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) Deadline for 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 within 2
years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(d) Reduction of Immigrant Visa Number.--Upon the granting
of an immigrant visa or permanent residence to Shirley
Constantino Tan, the Secretary of State shall instruct the
proper officer to reduce by one, during the current or next
following fiscal year, the total number of immigrant visas
that are made available to natives of the country of the
alien's birth 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 the alien's birth under section
202(e) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(e)).
(e) PAYGO.--The budgetary effects of this Act, for the
purpose of complying with the 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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