[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 23 (Tuesday, February 6, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E145-E146]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      INTRODUCTION OF THE KEEPING SALVADORAN FAMILIES TOGETHER ACT

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                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 6, 2018

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today, I introduce a bill to provide 
Salvadorans who have Temporary Protected Status (TPS) lawful permanent 
resident status and a pathway to citizenship after five years.
  Of the 200,000 Salvadorans living in the U.S. with TPS, nearly 30,000 
live in the Washington, D.C. metro region, the largest concentration in 
the nation. This bill would change the status of Salvadoran TPS holders 
to lawful permanent residents and allow them to apply for 
naturalization after five years. Deporting Salvadoran TPS holders 
raises unique issues because of the great number of years they have 
spent in the U.S. and the large number of their children who were born 
in this country and are American citizens. The Trump Administration's 
callous and unnecessary decision to end TPS for Salvadorans requires 
immediate pushback. I am also pleased to be a cosponsor of the American 
Promise Act (H.R. 4253), which would protect from deportation all 
individuals currently receiving TPS or Deferred Enforced Departure.
  My bill would begin the effort to protect from deportation 
Salvadorans who have lived here for nearly two decades and have made 
long-term contributions to our region and to the nation. I urge its 
adoption.

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