[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 149 (Saturday, August 22, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H4299]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





               EMERGENCY STOPGAP USCIS STABILIZATION ACT

  Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee 
on the Judiciary and the Committee on the Budget be discharged from 
further consideration of the bill (H.R. 8089) to amend the Immigration 
and Nationality Act to expand premium processing for certain 
immigration benefits, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate 
consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Maryland?
  There was no objection.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 8089

       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 ``Emergency Stopgap USCIS 
     Stabilization Act''.

     SECTION 2. EXPANSION OF PREMIUM PROCESSING.

       (a) In General.--Section 286(u) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(u)) is amended to read as 
     follows:
       ``(u) Premium Fee for Certain Immigration Benefit Types.--
       ``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security is 
     authorized to establish and collect a premium fee for the 
     immigration benefit types described in paragraph (2). Such 
     fee shall be paid in addition to any other fees authorized by 
     law, deposited as offsetting receipts in the Immigration 
     Examinations Fee Account established under subsection (m), 
     and used for the purposes described in paragraph (4).
       ``(2) Immigration benefit types.--Subject to reasonable 
     conditions or limitations, the Secretary shall establish a 
     premium fee under paragraph (1) in connection with--
       ``(A) employment-based nonimmigrant petitions and 
     associated applications for dependents of the beneficiaries 
     of such petitions;
       ``(B) employment-based immigrant petitions filed by or on 
     behalf of aliens described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of 
     section 203(b);
       ``(C) applications to change or extend nonimmigrant status;
       ``(D) applications for employment authorization; and
       ``(E) any other immigration benefit type that the Secretary 
     deems appropriate for premium processing.
       ``(3) Amount of fee.--
       ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (C), with 
     respect to an immigration benefit type designated for premium 
     processing by the Secretary on or before August 1, 2020, the 
     premium fee shall be $2,500, except that the premium fee for 
     a petition for classification of a nonimmigrant described in 
     subparagraph (H)(ii)(b) or (R) of section 101(a)(15) shall be 
     $1,500.
       ``(B) Other immigration benefit types.--With respect to an 
     immigration benefit type designated for premium processing 
     but not described in subparagraph (A), the initial premium 
     fee shall be established by regulation, which shall include a 
     detailed methodology supporting the proposed premium fee 
     amount.
       ``(C) Biennial adjustment.--The Secretary may adjust a 
     premium fee under subparagraph (A) or (B) on a biennial basis 
     by the percentage (if any) by which the Consumer Price Index 
     for All Urban Consumers for the month of June preceding the 
     date on which such adjustment takes effect exceeds the 
     Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the same 
     month of the second preceding calendar year. The provisions 
     of section 553 of title 5, United States Code, shall not 
     apply to an adjustment authorized under this subparagraph.
       ``(4) Use of fee.--Fees collected under this subsection may 
     only be used by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 
     to--
       ``(A) provide the services described in paragraph (5) to 
     premium processing requestors;
       ``(B) make infrastructure improvements in adjudications 
     processes and the provision of information and services to 
     immigration and naturalization benefit requestors;
       ``(C) respond to adjudication demands, including by 
     reducing the number of pending immigration and naturalization 
     benefit requests; and
       ``(D) otherwise offset the cost of providing adjudication 
     and naturalization services.
       ``(5) Premium processing services.--The Secretary--
       ``(A) may suspend the availability of premium processing 
     for designated immigration benefit requests only if 
     circumstances prevent the completion of processing of a 
     significant number of such requests within the required 
     period; and
       ``(B) shall ensure that premium processing requestors have 
     direct and reliable access to current case status information 
     as well as the ability to communicate with the premium 
     processing units at each service center or office that 
     provides premium processing services.''.
       (b) Expansion to New Benefit Requests.--
       (1) In general.--Notwithstanding the requirement to set a 
     fee by regulation under section 286(u)(3)(B) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(u)(3)(B)), as 
     amended by subsection (a), the Secretary of Homeland Security 
     may set a fee under that section without regard to the 
     provisions of section 553 of title 5, United States Code, if 
     such fee is consistent with the following:
       (A) For a petition for classification under section 
     203(b)(1)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1153(b)(1)(C)), or a petition for classification under 
     section 203(b)(2) involving a waiver under section 
     203(b)(2)(B) of such Act, the fee is set at an amount not 
     greater than $2,500 and the required processing timeframe is 
     not greater than 45 days.
       (B) For an application under section 248 of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1258) to change status to a 
     classification described in subparagraph (F), (J), or (M) of 
     section 101(a)(15) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)), the 
     fee is set at an amount not greater than $1,750 and the 
     required processing timeframe is not greater than 30 days.
       (C) For an application under section 248 of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1258) to change status to be 
     classified as a dependent of a nonimmigrant described in 
     subparagraph (E), (H), (L), (O), (P), or (R) of section 
     101(a)(15) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)), or to extend 
     such classification, the fee is set at an amount not greater 
     than $1,750 and the required processing timeframe is not 
     greater than 30 days.
       (D) For an application for employment authorization, the 
     fee is set at an amount not greater than $1,500 and the 
     required processing timeframe is not greater than 30 days.
       (2) Clarification.--The required processing timeframe for 
     each of the applications and petitions described in paragraph 
     (1) shall not commence until the date that all prerequisites 
     for adjudication are received by the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security.
       (c) Other Benefit Requests.--In implementing the amendments 
     made by subsection (a), the Secretary of Homeland Security 
     shall develop and implement processes to ensure that the 
     availability of premium processing, or its expansion to 
     additional immigration benefit requests, does not result in 
     an increase in processing times for immigration benefit 
     requests not designated for premium processing or an increase 
     in regular processing of immigration benefit requests so 
     designated.

     SEC. 3. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security 
     shall provide to the appropriate Committees a 5-year plan, 
     including projected cost estimates, procurement strategies, 
     and a project schedule with milestones, to accomplish each of 
     the following:
       (1) Establish electronic filing procedures for all 
     applications and petitions for immigration benefits.
       (2) Accept electronic payment of fees at all filing 
     locations.
       (3) Issue correspondence, including decisions, requests for 
     evidence, and notices of intent to deny, to immigration 
     benefit requestors electronically.
       (4) Improve processing times for all immigration and 
     naturalization benefit requests.
       (b) Semi-annual Briefings.--Not later than 180 days after 
     submission of the plan described in paragraph (1), and on a 
     semi-annual basis thereafter, the Secretary shall advise the 
     appropriate Committees on the implementation status of such 
     plan.
       (c) Appropriate Committees Defined.--In this section, the 
     term ``appropriate Committees'' means--
       (1) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on the 
     Judiciary, and the Committee on Homeland Security of the 
     House of Representatives; and
       (2) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on the 
     Judiciary, and the Committee on Homeland Security and 
     Governmental Affairs of the Senate.

     SEC. 4. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

       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 House Budget Committee, provided that such 
     statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, was read 
the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the 
table.

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