[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 158 (Tuesday, September 25, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H8847-H8849]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           KERRIE OROZCO FIRST RESPONDERS FAMILY SUPPORT ACT

  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 6580) to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to 
provide for expedited naturalization processes for the alien spouses of 
first responders who die as a result of their employment, and for other 
purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 6580

       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 ``Kerrie Orozco First 
     Responders Family Support Act''.

     SEC. 2. NATURALIZATION FOR IMMEDIATE RELATIVES OF FIRST 
                   RESPONDERS.

       Section 319 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1430) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(f) Immediate Relatives of First Responders.--
       ``(1) In general.--Any person who is the surviving spouse, 
     child, or parent of a United States citizen, whose citizen 
     spouse, parent, or child dies as a result of injury or 
     disease incurred in or aggravated by employment as a first 
     responder, and who, in the case of a surviving spouse, was 
     living in marital union with the citizen spouse at the time 
     of his death, may be naturalized upon compliance with all the 
     requirements of this title, except that no prior residence or 
     specified physical presence within the United States shall be 
     required.
       ``(2) Definition.--For purposes of this subsection, the 
     term `first responder' means Federal, State, and local 
     government fire, law enforcement, and emergency response 
     personnel.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Rutherford) and the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. 
Jayapal) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous materials on H.R. 6580, currently under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume 
to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bacon), my home State.
  Mr. BACON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. 
Rutherford), our distinguished representative from Florida, my good 
friend, for yielding some time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support H.R. 6580, 
the Kerrie Orozco First Responders Act.
  This legislation, named after a fallen Omaha police officer, Kerrie 
Orozco, is a first responders bill that will give our heroes peace of 
mind every day when they leave their home for work to keep us safe. 
This legislation is simple, common sense, and compassionate.
  Under current law, the surviving family members of first responders 
who have pending immigration applications face delays in the 
naturalization process. This could weigh heavily on our

[[Page H8848]]

first responders because of the undue burden upon them as they protect 
our communities.
  Should they be killed, would their family members who are not U.S. 
citizens lose their ability to remain in the country?
  This legislation would allow the immediate relatives of first 
responders who die in the line of duty to continue to process their 
immigration application in a timely manner despite the death of their 
loved one.
  We owe it to our first responders to ensure their family is taken 
care of should they pay the ultimate sacrifice of keeping our citizens 
safe. Supporting this bill will protect those who protect us and it 
will give them peace of mind.
  This legislation will extend the same privileges to our first 
responders that are currently afforded to our military servicemembers. 
This bill honors our first responders, it values family.
  This bill is for Hector Orozco and all of the widows and widowers of 
our fallen first responders. This bill tells our law enforcement 
officers, our firefighters that we have your back.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of H.R. 6580.
  Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may 
consume.
  I rise today in support of H.R. 6580, the Kerrie Orozco First 
Responders Family Support Act.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the sponsor for introducing this bill.
  The bill, as is made clear by its title, is a tribute to Ms. Orozco, 
a police officer in Omaha, Nebraska.
  On May 20, 2015, after 7 years of service in the Omaha Police 
Department, Kerrie was fatally shot in the line of duty while serving a 
felony arrest warrant.
  She was survived by her husband, Hector Orozco, and her two 
stepchildren, Natalie and Santiago.
  H.R. 6580 gives tribute to the sacrifice made by Kerrie and her 
family by recognizing the sacrifices made by all first responders who 
are killed in the line of duty as well as their surviving family 
members.
  The bill honors their sacrifice by speeding up the citizenship 
process for the surviving immigrant's spouses, children, and parents of 
slain first responders.

                              {time}  2015

  Specifically, the bill would waive certain physical resident 
requirements for surviving immediate family members who are already on 
the road to becoming citizens.
  Current law requires such individuals to reside in the United States 
as lawful permanent residents for 5 years before becoming eligible to 
apply for naturalization. This bill would waive that 5-year requirement 
and, thus, allow surviving family members to naturalize more quickly. 
It is modeled on the Military Personnel Citizenship Processing Act, 
which became law in 2008 after receiving unanimous support in both 
Houses of Congress. That bill provides similar benefits to the 
surviving immigrant family members of U.S. armed services members who 
were killed in action.
  H.R. 6580 simply recognizes that domestic first responders also serve 
this country at great sacrifice both to themselves and their families. 
This bill is the least we can do to recognize their service and their 
sacrifice.
  I congratulate Representative Bacon for introducing this bill and 
ensuring its vote on the floor. Mr. Speaker, I also want to thank 
Judiciary Committee Chairman  Bob Goodlatte and Ranking Member Jerry 
Nadler for their support of this important piece of legislation.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6580, the Kerrie Orozco First 
Responders Family Support Act. This legislation is short, but it will 
have an immense impact on the lives of close family members of certain 
first responders who die as a result of injury and illness occurring in 
the line of duty.
  The Immigration and Nationality Act currently requires that, in order 
to naturalize and become a United States citizen, a lawful permanent 
resident must reside continuously in the United States for 5 years 
prior to naturalization. For spouses, that residency requirement is 3 
years. H.R. 6580 waives that residency requirement altogether for the 
surviving spouse, child, or parent of a Federal, State, or local first 
responder who dies as a result of injury or illness incurred during 
line of duty activities as a first responder.
  There is precedent in immigration law for such a waiver. In fact, the 
language of H.R. 6580 is patterned on the current law, which waives the 
same residency requirements for the surviving spouse, child, or parent 
of a military servicemember killed while in Active-Duty service in the 
Armed Forces.
  First responders routinely place their lives in peril to help those 
of us who are in need, and when they are killed or injured carrying out 
their duties, we owe their families a deep debt of gratitude. H.R. 6580 
is a small price to pay in return for the sacrifice that first 
responders make every day.
  The legislation was named after Kerrie Orozco, an Omaha, Nebraska, 
police officer, killed while serving an arrest warrant on May 20, 2015. 
At the time of Officer Orozco's death, her husband was in the process 
of becoming a U.S. citizen. H.R. 6580 will speed up that process and 
make sure other surviving immediate relatives in the same situation are 
afforded the same opportunity.
  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the work of the gentleman from Nebraska 
(Mr. Bacon) on this important piece of legislation.
  I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6580, the 
``Kerrie Orozco First Responders Family Support Act,'' which amends the 
Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 to provide for expedited 
naturalization processes for the alien spouses of first responders who 
die because of their employment.
  This act is named for Kerrie Orozco who died in the line of duty in 
May 2015, just a few weeks after giving birth to a premature infant.
  Officer Kerrie Orozco was a seven-year veteran of the Omaha Police 
Department and a new mother.
  As a member of the Metro Area Fugitive Task Force, she was conducting 
surveillance just before 1 p.m. that Wednesday, May 20, 2015, when the 
suspect being pursued fired at officers after being spotted.
  She is remembered not only for her police work but also for her 
extensive involvement in community service.
  She was active in coaching baseball and had been coaching since 2009 
at the North Omaha Boys and Girls Club.
  She volunteered with Special Olympics and was president of the Police 
Officer Ball to benefit Special Olympics in Nebraska.
  Kerrie was a Girl Scout Leader, participated with Shop with a Cop, 
and assisted with the Latino Police Officers Easter Egg Hunt.
  Shop With A Cop is an annual event where 50 children from the Open 
Door Mission shop for their families and for themselves with an officer 
at a few local Walmart stores in Omaha.
  When she went to work on May 20, 2015, she did not know that she 
would not be returning home that night.
  Her husband is still waiting for his U.S. Citizenship while he deals 
with the heartbreak of his wife's death.
  For most immigrants, becoming a United States' citizen is the 
culmination of many years of hard work.
  Being a citizen offers new opportunity to have a greater say and a 
stronger voice in determining our country's future.
  There is room in our country for law-abiding individuals from all 
over the world to come and be a part of the goodness and greatness that 
the United States of America has to offer.
  Our first responders put their lives on the line every time they 
enter the line of duty.
  As the senior member of the House Committees on Judiciary and 
Homeland Security and Ranking Member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on 
Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations, I am humbled to 
call first responders my friends and also my protectors.
  I am committed to working tirelessly to assure that they have full 
support of Congress in getting the resources and training they need to 
protect our communities but also to ensure the welfare of their 
families.
  This legislation provides the same courtesy that is given to the 
families of men and women in uniform who are killed.
  The burden on families that have lost a family member is cumbersome 
enough on its own.
  By enacting this legislation, we can provide an uplifting moment in 
their period of grief and sorrow for this generation of spouses and 
hopefully ameliorating the situation of future spouses in similar 
circumstances.

[[Page H8849]]

  For these reasons, I urge my colleagues to stand with me in the 
support of H.R. 6580.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Rutherford) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 6580, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to amend 
the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for naturalization 
processes for the immediate relatives of first responders who die as a 
result of their employment, and for other purposes.''.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________