[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 51 (Thursday, March 18, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H1507-H1527]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
AMERICAN DREAM AND PROMISE ACT OF 2021
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 233, I call up
the bill (H.R. 6) to authorize the cancellation of removal and
adjustment of status of certain aliens, and for other purposes, and ask
for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 233, the
amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules
Committee Print 117-4 is adopted, and the bill, as amended, is
considered read.
The text of the bill, as amended, is as follows:
H.R. 6
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``American
Dream and Promise Act of 2021''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I--DREAM ACT OF 2021
Sec. 101. Short title.
Sec. 102. Permanent resident status on a conditional basis for certain
long-term residents who entered the united states as
children.
Sec. 103. Terms of permanent resident status on a conditional basis.
Sec. 104. Removal of conditional basis of permanent resident status.
Sec. 105. Restoration of State option to determine residency for
purposes of higher education benefits.
TITLE II--AMERICAN PROMISE ACT OF 2021
Sec. 201. Short title.
Sec. 202. Adjustment of status for certain nationals of certain
countries designated for temporary protected status or
deferred enforced departure.
Sec. 203. Clarification.
TITLE III--GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 301. Definitions.
Sec. 302. Submission of biometric and biographic data; background
checks.
Sec. 303. Limitation on removal; application and fee exemption; and
other conditions on eligible individuals.
Sec. 304. Determination of continuous presence and residence.
Sec. 305. Exemption from numerical limitations.
Sec. 306. Availability of administrative and judicial review.
Sec. 307. Documentation requirements.
Sec. 308. Rule making.
Sec. 309. Confidentiality of information.
Sec. 310. Grant program to assist eligible applicants.
Sec. 311. Provisions affecting eligibility for adjustment of status.
Sec. 312. Supplementary surcharge for appointed counsel.
Sec. 313. Annual report on provisional denial authority.
TITLE I--DREAM ACT OF 2021
SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ``Dream Act of 2021''.
SEC. 102. PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS ON A CONDITIONAL BASIS
FOR CERTAIN LONG-TERM RESIDENTS WHO ENTERED THE
UNITED STATES AS CHILDREN.
(a) Conditional Basis for Status.--Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, and except as provided in section
104(c)(2), an alien shall be considered, at the time of
obtaining the status of an alien lawfully admitted for
permanent residence under this section, to have obtained such
status on a conditional basis subject to the provisions of
this title.
(b) Requirements.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the Secretary or the Attorney General shall adjust to
the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent
residence on a conditional basis, or without the conditional
basis as provided in section 104(c)(2), an alien who is
inadmissible or deportable from the United States, is subject
to a grant of Deferred Enforced Departure, has temporary
protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a), or is the son or daughter
of an alien admitted as a nonimmigrant under subparagraphs
(E)(i), (E)(ii), (H)(i)(b), or (L) of section 101(a)(15) of
such Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)) if--
(A) the alien has been continuously physically present in
the United States since January 1, 2021;
(B) the alien was 18 years of age or younger on the date on
which the alien entered the United States and has
continuously resided in the United States since such entry;
(C) the alien--
(i) subject to paragraph (2), is not inadmissible under
paragraph (1), (6)(E), (6)(G), (8), or (10) of section 212(a)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a));
(ii) has not ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise
participated in the persecution of any person on account of
race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular
social group, or political opinion; and
(iii) is not barred from adjustment of status under this
title based on the criminal and national security grounds
described under subsection (c), subject to the provisions of
such subsection; and
(D) the alien--
(i) has been admitted to an institution of higher
education;
(ii) has been admitted to an area career and technical
education school at the postsecondary level;
(iii) in the United States, has obtained--
(I) a high school diploma or a commensurate alternative
award from a public or private high school;
(II) a General Education Development credential, a high
school equivalency diploma recognized under State law, or
another similar State-authorized credential;
(III) a credential or certificate from an area career and
technical education school at the secondary level; or
(IV) a recognized postsecondary credential; or
(iv) is enrolled in secondary school or in an education
program assisting students in--
(I) obtaining a high school diploma or its recognized
equivalent under State law;
(II) passing the General Education Development test, a high
school equivalence diploma examination, or other similar
State-authorized exam;
(III) obtaining a certificate or credential from an area
career and technical education school providing education at
the secondary level; or
(IV) obtaining a recognized postsecondary credential.
(2) Waiver of grounds of inadmissibility.--With respect to
any benefit under this title, and in addition to the waivers
under subsection (c)(2), the Secretary may waive the grounds
of inadmissibility under paragraph (1), (6)(E), (6)(G), or
(10)(D) of section 212(a) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)) for humanitarian purposes, for family
unity, or because the waiver is otherwise in the public
interest.
(3) Application fee.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary may, subject to an exemption
under section 303(c), require an alien applying under this
section to pay a reasonable fee that is commensurate with the
cost of processing the application but does not exceed
$495.00.
(B) Special procedures for applicants with daca.--The
Secretary shall establish a streamlined procedure for aliens
who have been granted DACA and who meet the requirements for
renewal (under the terms of the program in effect on January
1, 2017) to apply for adjustment of status to that of an
alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence on a
conditional basis under this section, or without the
conditional basis as provided in section 104(c)(2). Such
procedure shall not include a requirement that the applicant
pay a fee, except that the Secretary may require an applicant
who meets the requirements for lawful permanent residence
without the conditional basis under section 104(c)(2) to pay
a fee that is commensurate with the cost of processing the
application, subject to the exemption under section 303(c).
(4) Background checks.--The Secretary may not grant an
alien permanent resident status on a conditional basis under
this section until the requirements of section 302 are
satisfied.
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(5) Military selective service.--An alien applying for
permanent resident status on a conditional basis under this
section, or without the conditional basis as provided in
section 104(c)(2), shall establish that the alien has
registered under the Military Selective Service Act (50
U.S.C. 3801 et seq.), if the alien is subject to registration
under such Act.
(c) Criminal and National Security Bars.--
(1) Grounds of ineligibility.--Except as provided in
paragraph (2), an alien is ineligible for adjustment of
status under this title (whether on a conditional basis or
without the conditional basis as provided in section
104(c)(2)) if any of the following apply:
(A) The alien is inadmissible under paragraph (2) or (3) of
section 212(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1182(a)).
(B) Excluding any offense under State law for which an
essential element is the alien's immigration status, and any
minor traffic offense, the alien has been convicted of--
(i) any felony offense;
(ii) three or more misdemeanor offenses (excluding simple
possession of cannabis or cannabis-related paraphernalia, any
offense involving cannabis or cannabis-related paraphernalia
which is no longer prosecutable in the State in which the
conviction was entered, and any offense involving civil
disobedience without violence) not occurring on the same
date, and not arising out of the same act, omission, or
scheme of misconduct; or
(iii) a misdemeanor offense of domestic violence, unless
the alien demonstrates that such crime is related to the
alien having been--
(I) a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault,
stalking, child abuse or neglect, abuse or neglect in later
life, or human trafficking;
(II) battered or subjected to extreme cruelty; or
(III) a victim of criminal activity described in section
101(a)(15)(U)(iii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(U)(iii)).
(2) Waivers for certain misdemeanors.--For humanitarian
purposes, family unity, or if otherwise in the public
interest, the Secretary may--
(A) waive the grounds of inadmissibility under
subparagraphs (A), (C), and (D) of section 212(a)(2) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)), unless
the conviction forming the basis for inadmissibility would
otherwise render the alien ineligible under paragraph (1)(B)
(subject to subparagraph (B)); and
(B) for purposes of clauses (ii) and (iii) of paragraph
(1)(B), waive consideration of--
(i) one misdemeanor offense if the alien has not been
convicted of any offense in the 5-year period preceding the
date on which the alien applies for adjustment of status
under this title; or
(ii) up to two misdemeanor offenses if the alien has not
been convicted of any offense in the 10-year period preceding
the date on which the alien applies for adjustment of status
under this title.
(3) Authority to conduct secondary review.--
(A) In general.--Notwithstanding an alien's eligibility for
adjustment of status under this title, and subject to the
procedures described in this paragraph, the Secretary may, as
a matter of non-delegable discretion, provisionally deny an
application for adjustment of status (whether on a
conditional basis or without the conditional basis as
provided in section 104(c)(2)) if the Secretary, based on
clear and convincing evidence, which shall include credible
law enforcement information, determines that the alien is
described in subparagraph (B) or (D).
(B) Public safety.--An alien is described in this
subparagraph if--
(i) excluding simple possession of cannabis or cannabis-
related paraphernalia, any offense involving cannabis or
cannabis-related paraphernalia which is no longer
prosecutable in the State in which the conviction was
entered, any offense under State law for which an essential
element is the alien's immigration status, any offense
involving civil disobedience without violence, and any minor
traffic offense, the alien--
(I) has been convicted of a misdemeanor offense punishable
by a term of imprisonment of more than 30 days; or
(II) has been adjudicated delinquent in a State or local
juvenile court proceeding that resulted in a disposition
ordering placement in a secure facility; and
(ii) the alien poses a significant and continuing threat to
public safety related to such conviction or adjudication.
(C) Public safety determination.--For purposes of
subparagraph (B)(ii), the Secretary shall consider the
recency of the conviction or adjudication; the length of any
imposed sentence or placement; the nature and seriousness of
the conviction or adjudication, including whether the
elements of the offense include the unlawful possession or
use of a deadly weapon to commit an offense or other conduct
intended to cause serious bodily injury; and any mitigating
factors pertaining to the alien's role in the commission of
the offense.
(D) Gang participation.--An alien is described in this
subparagraph if the alien has, within the 5 years immediately
preceding the date of the application, knowingly, willfully,
and voluntarily participated in offenses committed by a
criminal street gang (as described in subsections (a) and (c)
of section 521 of title 18, United States Code) with the
intent to promote or further the commission of such offenses.
(E) Evidentiary limitation.--For purposes of subparagraph
(D), allegations of gang membership obtained from a State or
Federal in-house or local database, or a network of databases
used for the purpose of recording and sharing activities of
alleged gang members across law enforcement agencies, shall
not establish the participation described in such paragraph.
(F) Notice.--
(i) In general.--Prior to rendering a discretionary
decision under this paragraph, the Secretary shall provide
written notice of the intent to provisionally deny the
application to the alien (or the alien's counsel of record,
if any) by certified mail and, if an electronic mail address
is provided, by electronic mail (or other form of electronic
communication). Such notice shall--
(I) articulate with specificity all grounds for the
preliminary determination, including the evidence relied upon
to support the determination; and
(II) provide the alien with not less than 90 days to
respond.
(ii) Second notice.--Not more than 30 days after the
issuance of the notice under clause (i), the Secretary shall
provide a second written notice that meets the requirements
of such clause.
(iii) Notice not received.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, if an applicant provides good cause for not
contesting a provisional denial under this paragraph,
including a failure to receive notice as required under this
subparagraph, the Secretary shall, upon a motion filed by the
alien, reopen an application for adjustment of status under
this title and allow the applicant an opportunity to respond,
consistent with clause (i)(II).
(G) Judicial review of a provisional denial.--
(i) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, if, after notice and the opportunity to respond under
subparagraph (F), the Secretary provisionally denies an
application for adjustment of status under this Act, the
alien shall have 60 days from the date of the Secretary's
determination to seek review of such determination in an
appropriate United States district court.
(ii) Scope of review and decision.--Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, review under paragraph (1) shall be
de novo and based solely on the administrative record, except
that the applicant shall be given the opportunity to
supplement the administrative record and the Secretary shall
be given the opportunity to rebut the evidence and arguments
raised in such submission. Upon issuing its decision, the
court shall remand the matter, with appropriate instructions,
to the Department of Homeland Security to render a final
decision on the application.
(iii) Appointed counsel.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, an applicant seeking judicial review under
clause (i) shall be represented by counsel. Upon the request
of the applicant, counsel shall be appointed for the
applicant, in accordance with procedures to be established by
the Attorney General within 90 days of the date of the
enactment of this Act, and shall be funded in accordance with
fees collected and deposited in the Immigration Counsel
Account under section 312.
(4) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection--
(A) the term ``felony offense'' means an offense under
Federal or State law that is punishable by a maximum term of
imprisonment of more than 1 year;
(B) the term ``misdemeanor offense'' means an offense under
Federal or State law that is punishable by a term of
imprisonment of more than 5 days but not more than 1 year;
and
(C) the term ``crime of domestic violence'' means any
offense that has as an element the use, attempted use, or
threatened use of physical force against a person committed
by a current or former spouse of the person, by an individual
with whom the person shares a child in common, by an
individual who is cohabiting with or has cohabited with the
person as a spouse, by an individual similarly situated to a
spouse of the person under the domestic or family violence
laws of the jurisdiction where the offense occurs, or by any
other individual against a person who is protected from that
individual's acts under the domestic or family violence laws
of the United States or any State, Indian Tribal government,
or unit of local government.
(d) Limitation on Removal of Certain Alien Minors.--An
alien who is 18 years of age or younger and meets the
requirements under subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of
subsection (b)(1) shall be provided a reasonable opportunity
to meet the educational requirements under subparagraph (D)
of such subsection. The Attorney General or the Secretary may
not commence or continue with removal proceedings against
such an alien.
(e) Withdrawal of Application.--The Secretary shall, upon
receipt of a request to withdraw an application for
adjustment of status under this section, cease processing of
the application, and close the case. Withdrawal of the
application under this subsection shall not prejudice any
future application filed by the applicant for any immigration
benefit under this title or under the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
SEC. 103. TERMS OF PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS ON A CONDITIONAL
BASIS.
(a) Period of Status.--Permanent resident status on a
conditional basis is--
(1) valid for a period of 10 years, unless such period is
extended by the Secretary; and
(2) subject to revocation under subsection (c).
(b) Notice of Requirements.--At the time an alien obtains
permanent resident status on a conditional basis, the
Secretary shall provide notice to the alien regarding the
provisions of this title and the requirements to have the
conditional basis of such status removed.
(c) Revocation of Status.--The Secretary may revoke the
permanent resident status on a conditional basis of an alien
only if the Secretary--
(1) determines that the alien ceases to meet the
requirements under section 102(b)(1)(C); and
(2) prior to the revocation, provides the alien--
(A) notice of the proposed revocation; and
[[Page H1509]]
(B) the opportunity for a hearing to provide evidence that
the alien meets such requirements or otherwise to contest the
proposed revocation.
(d) Return to Previous Immigration Status.--An alien whose
permanent resident status on a conditional basis expires
under subsection (a)(1) or is revoked under subsection (c),
shall return to the immigration status that the alien had
immediately before receiving permanent resident status on a
conditional basis.
SEC. 104. REMOVAL OF CONDITIONAL BASIS OF PERMANENT RESIDENT
STATUS.
(a) Eligibility for Removal of Conditional Basis.--
(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary
shall remove the conditional basis of an alien's permanent
resident status granted under this title and grant the alien
status as an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence
if the alien--
(A) is described in section 102(b)(1)(C);
(B) has not abandoned the alien's residence in the United
States during the period in which the alien has permanent
resident status on a conditional basis; and
(C)(i) has obtained a degree from an institution of higher
education, or has completed at least 2 years, in good
standing, of a program in the United States leading to a
bachelor's degree or higher degree or a recognized
postsecondary credential from an area career and technical
education school providing education at the postsecondary
level;
(ii) has served in the Uniformed Services for at least 2
years and, if discharged, received an honorable discharge; or
(iii) demonstrates earned income for periods totaling at
least 3 years and at least 75 percent of the time that the
alien has had a valid employment authorization, except that,
in the case of an alien who was enrolled in an institution of
higher education, an area career and technical education
school to obtain a recognized postsecondary credential, or an
education program described in section 102(b)(1)(D)(iii), the
Secretary shall reduce such total 3-year requirement by the
total of such periods of enrollment.
(2) Hardship exception.--The Secretary shall remove the
conditional basis of an alien's permanent resident status and
grant the alien status as an alien lawfully admitted for
permanent residence if the alien--
(A) satisfies the requirements under subparagraphs (A) and
(B) of paragraph (1);
(B) demonstrates compelling circumstances for the inability
to satisfy the requirements under subparagraph (C) of such
paragraph; and
(C) demonstrates that--
(i) the alien has a disability;
(ii) the alien is a full-time caregiver; or
(iii) the removal of the alien from the United States would
result in hardship to the alien or the alien's spouse,
parent, or child who is a national of the United States or is
lawfully admitted for permanent residence.
(3) Citizenship requirement.--
(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
the conditional basis of an alien's permanent resident status
granted under this title may not be removed unless the alien
demonstrates that the alien satisfies the requirements under
section 312(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1423(a)).
(B) Exception.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to an
alien who is unable to meet the requirements under such
section 312(a) due to disability.
(4) Application fee.--The Secretary may, subject to an
exemption under section 303(c), require aliens applying for
removal of the conditional basis of an alien's permanent
resident status under this section to pay a reasonable fee
that is commensurate with the cost of processing the
application.
(5) Background checks.--The Secretary may not remove the
conditional basis of an alien's permanent resident status
until the requirements of section 302 are satisfied.
(b) Treatment for Purposes of Naturalization.--
(1) In general.--For purposes of title III of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1401 et seq.), an
alien granted permanent resident status on a conditional
basis shall be considered to have been admitted to the United
States, and be present in the United States, as an alien
lawfully admitted for permanent residence.
(2) Limitation on application for naturalization.--An alien
may not apply for naturalization while the alien is in
permanent resident status on a conditional basis.
(c) Timing of Approval of Lawful Permanent Resident
Status.--
(1) In general.--An alien granted permanent resident status
on a conditional basis under this title may apply to have
such conditional basis removed at any time after such alien
has met the eligibility requirements set forth in subsection
(a).
(2) Approval with regard to initial applications.--
(A) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the Secretary or the Attorney General shall adjust to
the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent
resident status without conditional basis, any alien who--
(i) demonstrates eligibility for lawful permanent residence
status on a conditional basis under section 102(b); and
(ii) subject to the exceptions described in subsections
(a)(2) and (a)(3)(B) of this section, already has fulfilled
the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (3) of subsection (a)
of this section at the time such alien first submits an
application for benefits under this title.
(B) Background checks.--Subsection (a)(5) shall apply to an
alien seeking lawful permanent resident status without
conditional basis in an initial application in the same
manner as it applies to an alien seeking removal of the
conditional basis of an alien's permanent resident status.
Section 102(b)(4) shall not be construed to require the
Secretary to conduct more than one identical security or law
enforcement background check on such an alien.
(C) Application fees.--In the case of an alien seeking
lawful permanent resident status without conditional basis in
an initial application, the alien shall pay the fee required
under subsection (a)(4), subject to the exemption allowed
under section 303(c), but shall not be required to pay the
application fee under section 102(b)(3).
SEC. 105. RESTORATION OF STATE OPTION TO DETERMINE RESIDENCY
FOR PURPOSES OF HIGHER EDUCATION BENEFITS.
(a) In General.--Section 505 of the Illegal Immigration
Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C.
1623) is repealed.
(b) Effective Date.--The repeal under subsection (a) shall
take effect as if included in the original enactment of the
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act
of 1996 (division C of Public Law 104-208; 110 Stat. 3009-
546).
TITLE II--AMERICAN PROMISE ACT OF 2021
SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ``American Promise Act of
2021''.
SEC. 202. ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS FOR CERTAIN NATIONALS OF
CERTAIN COUNTRIES DESIGNATED FOR TEMPORARY
PROTECTED STATUS OR DEFERRED ENFORCED
DEPARTURE.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the Secretary or the Attorney General shall adjust to
the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent
residence, an alien described in subsection (b) if the
alien--
(1) applies for such adjustment, including submitting any
required documents under section 307, not later than 3 years
after the date of the enactment of this Act;
(2) has been continuously physically present in the United
States for a period of not less than 3 years; and
(3) subject to subsection (c), is not inadmissible under
paragraph (1), (2), (3), (6)(D), (6)(E), (6)(F), (6)(G), (8),
or (10) of section 212(a) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)).
(b) Aliens Eligible for Adjustment of Status.--An alien
shall be eligible for adjustment of status under this section
if the alien is an individual--
(1) who--
(A) is a national of a foreign state (or part thereof) (or
in the case of an alien having no nationality, is a person
who last habitually resided in such state) with a designation
under subsection (b) of section 244 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a(b)) on January 1, 2017, who
had or was otherwise eligible for temporary protected status
on such date notwithstanding subsections (c)(1)(A)(iv) and
(c)(3)(C) of such section; and
(B) has not engaged in conduct since such date that would
render the alien ineligible for temporary protected status
under section 244(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1245a(c)(2)); or
(2) who was eligible for Deferred Enforced Departure as of
January 20, 2021 and has not engaged in conduct since that
date that would render the alien ineligible for Deferred
Enforced Departure.
(c) Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), with
respect to any benefit under this title, and in addition to
any waivers that are otherwise available, the Secretary may
waive the grounds of inadmissibility under paragraph (1),
subparagraphs (A), (C), and (D) of paragraph (2),
subparagraphs (D) through (G) of paragraph (6), or paragraph
(10)(D) of section 212(a) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)) for humanitarian purposes, for family
unity, or because the waiver is otherwise in the public
interest.
(2) Exception.--The Secretary may not waive a ground
described in paragraph (1) if such inadmissibility is based
on a conviction or convictions, and such conviction or
convictions would otherwise render the alien ineligible under
section 244(c)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1254a(c)(2)(B)).
(d) Application.--
(1) Fee.--The Secretary shall, subject to an exemption
under section 303(c), require an alien applying for
adjustment of status under this section to pay a reasonable
fee that is commensurate with the cost of processing the
application, but does not exceed $1,140.
(2) Background checks.--The Secretary may not grant an
alien permanent resident status on a conditional basis under
this section until the requirements of section 302 are
satisfied.
(3) Withdrawal of application.--The Secretary of Homeland
Security shall, upon receipt of a request to withdraw an
application for adjustment of status under this section,
cease processing of the application and close the case.
Withdrawal of the application under this subsection shall not
prejudice any future application filed by the applicant for
any immigration benefit under this title or under the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
SEC. 203. CLARIFICATION.
Section 244(f)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1254a(f)(4)) is amended by inserting after
``considered'' the following: ``as having been inspected and
admitted into the United States, and''.
TITLE III--GENERAL PROVISIONS
SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS.
(a) In General.--In this Act:
(1) In general.--Except as otherwise specifically provided,
any term used in this Act that is used in the immigration
laws shall have the
[[Page H1510]]
meaning given such term in the immigration laws.
(2) Appropriate united states district court.--The term
``appropriate United States district court'' means the United
States District Court for the District of Columbia or the
United States district court with jurisdiction over the
alien's principal place of residence.
(3) Area career and technical education school.--The term
``area career and technical education school'' has the
meaning given such term in section 3 of the Carl D. Perkins
Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2302).
(4) DACA.--The term ``DACA'' means deferred action granted
to an alien pursuant to the Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals policy announced by the Secretary of Homeland
Security on June 15, 2012.
(5) Disability.--The term ``disability'' has the meaning
given such term in section 3(1) of the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102(1)).
(6) Federal poverty line.--The term ``Federal poverty
line'' has the meaning given such term in section 213A(h) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1183a).
(7) High school; secondary school.--The terms ``high
school'' and ``secondary school'' have the meanings given
such terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(8) Immigration laws.--The term ``immigration laws'' has
the meaning given such term in section 101(a)(17) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(17)).
(9) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education''--
(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B), has the meaning
given such term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002); and
(B) does not include an institution of higher education
outside of the United States.
(10) Recognized postsecondary credential.--The term
``recognized postsecondary credential'' has the meaning given
such term in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102).
(11) Secretary.--Except as otherwise specifically provided,
the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Homeland
Security.
(12) Uniformed services.--The term ``Uniformed Services''
has the meaning given the term ``uniformed services'' in
section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code.
(b) Treatment of Expunged Convictions.--For purposes of
adjustment of status under this Act, the terms ``convicted''
and ``conviction'', as used in this Act and in sections 212
and 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1182, 1254a), do not include a judgment that has been
expunged or set aside, that resulted in a rehabilitative
disposition, or the equivalent.
SEC. 302. SUBMISSION OF BIOMETRIC AND BIOGRAPHIC DATA;
BACKGROUND CHECKS.
(a) Submission of Biometric and Biographic Data.--The
Secretary may not grant an alien adjustment of status under
this Act, on either a conditional or permanent basis, unless
the alien submits biometric and biographic data, in
accordance with procedures established by the Secretary. The
Secretary shall provide an alternative procedure for aliens
who are unable to provide such biometric or biographic data
because of a physical impairment.
(b) Background Checks.--The Secretary shall use biometric,
biographic, and other data that the Secretary determines
appropriate to conduct security and law enforcement
background checks and to determine whether there is any
criminal, national security, or other factor that would
render the alien ineligible for adjustment of status under
this Act, on either a conditional or permanent basis. The
status of an alien may not be adjusted, on either a
conditional or permanent basis, unless security and law
enforcement background checks are completed to the
satisfaction of the Secretary.
SEC. 303. LIMITATION ON REMOVAL; APPLICATION AND FEE
EXEMPTION; AND OTHER CONDITIONS ON ELIGIBLE
INDIVIDUALS.
(a) Limitation on Removal.--An alien who appears to be
prima facie eligible for relief under this Act shall be given
a reasonable opportunity to apply for such relief and may not
be removed until, subject to section 306(c)(2), a final
decision establishing ineligibility for relief is rendered.
(b) Application.--An alien present in the United States who
has been ordered removed or has been permitted to depart
voluntarily from the United States may, notwithstanding such
order or permission to depart, apply for adjustment of status
under this Act. Such alien shall not be required to file a
separate motion to reopen, reconsider, or vacate the order of
removal. If the Secretary approves the application, the
Secretary shall cancel the order of removal. If the Secretary
renders a final administrative decision to deny the
application, the order of removal or permission to depart
shall be effective and enforceable to the same extent as if
the application had not been made, only after all available
administrative and judicial remedies have been exhausted.
(c) Fee Exemption.--An applicant may be exempted from
paying an application fee required under this Act if the
applicant--
(1) is 18 years of age or younger;
(2) received total income, during the 12-month period
immediately preceding the date on which the applicant files
an application under this Act, that is less than 150 percent
of the Federal poverty line;
(3) is in foster care or otherwise lacks any parental or
other familial support; or
(4) cannot care for himself or herself because of a
serious, chronic disability.
(d) Advance Parole.--During the period beginning on the
date on which an alien applies for adjustment of status under
this Act and ending on the date on which the Secretary makes
a final decision regarding such application, the alien shall
be eligible to apply for advance parole. Section 101(g) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(g)) shall
not apply to an alien granted advance parole under this Act.
(e) Employment.--An alien whose removal is stayed pursuant
to this Act, who may not be placed in removal proceedings
pursuant to this Act, or who has pending an application under
this Act, shall, upon application to the Secretary, be
granted an employment authorization document.
SEC. 304. DETERMINATION OF CONTINUOUS PRESENCE AND RESIDENCE.
(a) Effect of Notice to Appear.--Any period of continuous
physical presence or continuous residence in the United
States of an alien who applies for permanent resident status
under this Act (whether on a conditional basis or without the
conditional basis as provided in section 104(c)(2)) shall not
terminate when the alien is served a notice to appear under
section 239(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1229(a)).
(b) Treatment of Certain Breaks in Presence or Residence.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and
(3), an alien shall be considered to have failed to
maintain--
(A) continuous physical presence in the United States under
this Act if the alien has departed from the United States for
any period exceeding 90 days or for any periods, in the
aggregate, exceeding 180 days; and
(B) continuous residence in the United States under this
Act if the alien has departed from the United States for any
period exceeding 180 days, unless the alien establishes to
the satisfaction of the Secretary of Homeland Security that
the alien did not in fact abandon residence in the United
States during such period.
(2) Extensions for extenuating circumstances.--The
Secretary may extend the time periods described in paragraph
(1) for an alien who demonstrates that the failure to timely
return to the United States was due to extenuating
circumstances beyond the alien's control, including--
(A) the serious illness of the alien;
(B) death or serious illness of a parent, grandparent,
sibling, or child of the alien;
(C) processing delays associated with the application
process for a visa or other travel document; or
(D) restrictions on international travel due to the public
health emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and
Human Services under section 319 of the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C. 247d) with respect to COVID-19.
(3) Travel authorized by the secretary.--Any period of
travel outside of the United States by an alien that was
authorized by the Secretary may not be counted toward any
period of departure from the United States under paragraph
(1).
(c) Waiver of Physical Presence.--With respect to aliens
who were removed or departed the United States on or after
January 20, 2017, and who were continuously physically
present in the United States for at least 4 years prior to
such removal or departure, the Secretary may, as a matter of
discretion, waive the physical presence requirement under
section 102(b)(1)(A) or section 202(a)(2) for humanitarian
purposes, for family unity, or because a waiver is otherwise
in the public interest. The Secretary, in consultation with
the Secretary of State, shall establish a procedure for such
aliens to apply for relief under section 102 or 202 from
outside the United States if they would have been eligible
for relief under such section, but for their removal or
departure.
SEC. 305. EXEMPTION FROM NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS.
Nothing in this Act or in any other law may be construed to
apply a numerical limitation on the number of aliens who may
be granted permanent resident status under this Act (whether
on a conditional basis, or without the conditional basis as
provided in section 104(c)(2)).
SEC. 306. AVAILABILITY OF ADMINISTRATIVE AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.
(a) Administrative Review.--Not later than 30 days after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall
provide to aliens who have applied for adjustment of status
under this Act a process by which an applicant may seek
administrative appellate review of a denial of an application
for adjustment of status, or a revocation of such status.
(b) Judicial Review.--Except as provided in subsection (c),
and notwithstanding any other provision of law, an alien may
seek judicial review of a denial of an application for
adjustment of status, or a revocation of such status, under
this Act in an appropriate United States district court.
(c) Stay of Removal.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), an
alien seeking administrative or judicial review under this
Act may not be removed from the United States until a final
decision is rendered establishing that the alien is
ineligible for adjustment of status under this Act.
(2) Exception.--The Secretary may remove an alien described
in paragraph (1) pending judicial review if such removal is
based on criminal or national security grounds described in
this Act. Such removal shall not affect the alien's right to
judicial review under this Act. The Secretary shall promptly
return a removed alien if a decision to deny an application
for adjustment of status under this Act, or to revoke such
status, is reversed.
SEC. 307. DOCUMENTATION REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Documents Establishing Identity.--An alien's
application for permanent resident status under this Act
(whether on a conditional basis,
[[Page H1511]]
or without the conditional basis as provided in section
104(c)(2)) may include, as evidence of identity, the
following:
(1) A passport or national identity document from the
alien's country of origin that includes the alien's name and
the alien's photograph or fingerprint.
(2) The alien's birth certificate and an identity card that
includes the alien's name and photograph.
(3) A school identification card that includes the alien's
name and photograph, and school records showing the alien's
name and that the alien is or was enrolled at the school.
(4) A Uniformed Services identification card issued by the
Department of Defense.
(5) Any immigration or other document issued by the United
States Government bearing the alien's name and photograph.
(6) A State-issued identification card bearing the alien's
name and photograph.
(7) Any other evidence determined to be credible by the
Secretary.
(b) Documents Establishing Entry, Continuous Physical
Presence, Lack of Abandonment of Residence.--To establish
that an alien was 18 years of age or younger on the date on
which the alien entered the United States, and has
continuously resided in the United States since such entry,
as required under section 102(b)(1)(B), that an alien has
been continuously physically present in the United States, as
required under section 102(b)(1)(A) or 202(a)(2), or that an
alien has not abandoned residence in the United States, as
required under section 104(a)(1)(B), the alien may submit the
following forms of evidence:
(1) Passport entries, including admission stamps on the
alien's passport.
(2) Any document from the Department of Justice or the
Department of Homeland Security noting the alien's date of
entry into the United States.
(3) Records from any educational institution the alien has
attended in the United States.
(4) Employment records of the alien that include the
employer's name and contact information, or other records
demonstrating earned income.
(5) Records of service from the Uniformed Services.
(6) Official records from a religious entity confirming the
alien's participation in a religious ceremony.
(7) A birth certificate for a child who was born in the
United States.
(8) Hospital or medical records showing medical treatment
or hospitalization, the name of the medical facility or
physician, and the date of the treatment or hospitalization.
(9) Automobile license receipts or registration.
(10) Deeds, mortgages, or rental agreement contracts.
(11) Rent receipts or utility bills bearing the alien's
name or the name of an immediate family member of the alien,
and the alien's address.
(12) Tax receipts.
(13) Insurance policies.
(14) Remittance records, including copies of money order
receipts sent in or out of the country.
(15) Travel records.
(16) Dated bank transactions.
(17) Two or more sworn affidavits from individuals who are
not related to the alien who have direct knowledge of the
alien's continuous physical presence in the United States,
that contain--
(A) the name, address, and telephone number of the affiant;
and
(B) the nature and duration of the relationship between the
affiant and the alien.
(18) Any other evidence determined to be credible by the
Secretary.
(c) Documents Establishing Admission to an Institution of
Higher Education.--To establish that an alien has been
admitted to an institution of higher education, the alien may
submit to the Secretary a document from the institution of
higher education certifying that the alien--
(1) has been admitted to the institution; or
(2) is currently enrolled in the institution as a student.
(d) Documents Establishing Receipt of a Degree From an
Institution of Higher Education.--To establish that an alien
has acquired a degree from an institution of higher education
in the United States, the alien may submit to the Secretary a
diploma or other document from the institution stating that
the alien has received such a degree.
(e) Documents Establishing Receipt of a High School
Diploma, General Educational Development Credential, or a
Recognized Equivalent.--To establish that in the United
States an alien has earned a high school diploma or a
commensurate alternative award from a public or private high
school, has obtained the General Education Development
credential, or otherwise has satisfied section
102(b)(1)(D)(iii), the alien may submit to the Secretary the
following:
(1) A high school diploma, certificate of completion, or
other alternate award.
(2) A high school equivalency diploma or certificate
recognized under State law.
(3) Evidence that the alien passed a State-authorized exam,
including the General Education Development test, in the
United States.
(4) Evidence that the alien successfully completed an area
career and technical education program, such as a
certification, certificate, or similar alternate award.
(5) Evidence that the alien obtained a recognized
postsecondary credential.
(6) Any other evidence determined to be credible by the
Secretary.
(f) Documents Establishing Enrollment in an Educational
Program.--To establish that an alien is enrolled in any
school or education program described in section
102(b)(1)(D)(iv) or 104(a)(1)(C), the alien may submit school
records from the United States school that the alien is
currently attending that include--
(1) the name of the school; and
(2) the alien's name, periods of attendance, and current
grade or educational level.
(g) Documents Establishing Exemption From Application
Fees.--To establish that an alien is exempt from an
application fee under this Act, the alien may submit to the
Secretary the following relevant documents:
(1) Documents to establish age.--To establish that an alien
meets an age requirement, the alien may provide proof of
identity, as described in subsection (a), that establishes
that the alien is 18 years of age or younger.
(2) Documents to establish income.--To establish the
alien's income, the alien may provide--
(A) employment records or other records of earned income,
including records that have been maintained by the Social
Security Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, or any
other Federal, State, or local government agency;
(B) bank records; or
(C) at least two sworn affidavits from individuals who are
not related to the alien and who have direct knowledge of the
alien's work and income that contain--
(i) the name, address, and telephone number of the affiant;
and
(ii) the nature and duration of the relationship between
the affiant and the alien.
(3) Documents to establish foster care, lack of familial
support, or serious, chronic disability.--To establish that
the alien is in foster care, lacks parental or familial
support, or has a serious, chronic disability, the alien may
provide at least two sworn affidavits from individuals who
are not related to the alien and who have direct knowledge of
the circumstances that contain--
(A) a statement that the alien is in foster care, otherwise
lacks any parental or other familiar support, or has a
serious, chronic disability, as appropriate;
(B) the name, address, and telephone number of the affiant;
and
(C) the nature and duration of the relationship between the
affiant and the alien.
(h) Documents Establishing Qualification for Hardship
Exemption.--To establish that an alien satisfies one of the
criteria for the hardship exemption set forth in section
104(a)(2)(C), the alien may submit to the Secretary at least
two sworn affidavits from individuals who are not related to
the alien and who have direct knowledge of the circumstances
that warrant the exemption, that contain--
(1) the name, address, and telephone number of the affiant;
and
(2) the nature and duration of the relationship between the
affiant and the alien.
(i) Documents Establishing Service in the Uniformed
Services.--To establish that an alien has served in the
Uniformed Services for at least 2 years and, if discharged,
received an honorable discharge, the alien may submit to the
Secretary--
(1) a Department of Defense form DD-214;
(2) a National Guard Report of Separation and Record of
Service form 22;
(3) personnel records for such service from the appropriate
Uniformed Service; or
(4) health records from the appropriate Uniformed Service.
(j) Documents Establishing Earned Income.--
(1) In general.--An alien may satisfy the earned income
requirement under section 104(a)(1)(C)(iii) by submitting
records that--
(A) establish compliance with such requirement; and
(B) have been maintained by the Social Security
Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, or any other
Federal, State, or local government agency.
(2) Other documents.--An alien who is unable to submit the
records described in paragraph (1) may satisfy the earned
income requirement by submitting at least two types of
reliable documents that provide evidence of employment or
other forms of earned income, including--
(A) bank records;
(B) business records;
(C) employer or contractor records;
(D) records of a labor union, day labor center, or
organization that assists workers in employment;
(E) sworn affidavits from individuals who are not related
to the alien and who have direct knowledge of the alien's
work, that contain--
(i) the name, address, and telephone number of the affiant;
and
(ii) the nature and duration of the relationship between
the affiant and the alien;
(F) remittance records; or
(G) any other evidence determined to be credible by the
Secretary.
(k) Authority to Prohibit Use of Certain Documents.--If the
Secretary determines, after publication in the Federal
Register and an opportunity for public comment, that any
document or class of documents does not reliably establish
identity or that permanent resident status under this Act
(whether on a conditional basis, or without the conditional
basis as provided in section 104(c)(2)) is being obtained
fraudulently to an unacceptable degree, the Secretary may
prohibit or restrict the use of such document or class of
documents.
SEC. 308. RULE MAKING.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall publish in the
Federal Register interim final rules implementing this Act,
which shall allow eligible individuals to immediately apply
for relief under this Act. Notwithstanding section 553 of
title 5, United States Code, the regulation shall be
effective, on an interim basis, immediately upon publication,
but may be
[[Page H1512]]
subject to change and revision after public notice and
opportunity for a period of public comment. The Secretary
shall finalize such rules not later than 180 days after the
date of publication.
(b) Paperwork Reduction Act.--The requirements under
chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, (commonly known
as the ``Paperwork Reduction Act'') shall not apply to any
action to implement this Act.
SEC. 309. CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.
(a) In General.--The Secretary may not disclose or use
information (including information provided during
administrative or judicial review) provided in applications
filed under this Act or in requests for DACA for the purpose
of immigration enforcement.
(b) Referrals Prohibited.--The Secretary, based solely on
information provided in an application for adjustment of
status under this Act (including information provided during
administrative or judicial review) or an application for
DACA, may not refer an applicant to U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, or
any designee of either such entity.
(c) Limited Exception.--Notwithstanding subsections (a) and
(b), information provided in an application for adjustment of
status under this Act may be shared with Federal security and
law enforcement agencies--
(1) for assistance in the consideration of an application
for adjustment of status under this Act;
(2) to identify or prevent fraudulent claims;
(3) for national security purposes; or
(4) for the investigation or prosecution of any felony
offense not related to immigration status.
(d) Penalty.--Any person who knowingly uses, publishes, or
permits information to be examined in violation of this
section shall be fined not more than $10,000.
SEC. 310. GRANT PROGRAM TO ASSIST ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish, within
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, a program to award
grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible nonprofit
organizations that will use the funding to assist eligible
applicants under this Act by providing them with the services
described in subsection (b).
(b) Use of Funds.--Grant funds awarded under this section
shall be used for the design and implementation of programs
that provide--
(1) information to the public regarding the eligibility and
benefits of permanent resident status under this Act (whether
on a conditional basis, or without the conditional basis as
provided in section 104(c)(2)), particularly to individuals
potentially eligible for such status;
(2) assistance, within the scope of authorized practice of
immigration law, to individuals submitting applications for
adjustment of status under this Act (whether on a conditional
basis, or without the conditional basis as provided in
section 104(c)(2)), including--
(A) screening prospective applicants to assess their
eligibility for such status;
(B) completing applications and petitions, including
providing assistance in obtaining the requisite documents and
supporting evidence; and
(C) providing any other assistance that the Secretary or
grantee considers useful or necessary to apply for adjustment
of status under this Act (whether on a conditional basis, or
without the conditional basis as provided in section
104(c)(2)); and
(3) assistance, within the scope of authorized practice of
immigration law, and instruction, to individuals--
(A) on the rights and responsibilities of United States
citizenship;
(B) in civics and English as a second language;
(C) in preparation for the General Education Development
test; and
(D) in applying for adjustment of status and United States
citizenship.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) Amounts authorized.--There are authorized to be
appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each of the
fiscal years 2022 through 2032 to carry out this section.
(2) Availability.--Any amounts appropriated pursuant to
paragraph (1) shall remain available until expended.
SEC. 311. PROVISIONS AFFECTING ELIGIBILITY FOR ADJUSTMENT OF
STATUS.
An alien's eligibility to be lawfully admitted for
permanent residence under this Act (whether on a conditional
basis, or without the conditional basis as provided in
section 104(c)(2)) shall not preclude the alien from seeking
any status under any other provision of law for which the
alien may otherwise be eligible.
SEC. 312. SUPPLEMENTARY SURCHARGE FOR APPOINTED COUNSEL.
(a) In General.--Except as provided in section 302 and in
cases where the applicant is exempt from paying a fee under
section 303(c), in any case in which a fee is charged
pursuant to this Act, an additional surcharge of $25 shall be
imposed and collected for the purpose of providing appointed
counsel to applicants seeking judicial review of the
Secretary's decision to provisionally deny an application
under this Act.
(b) Immigration Counsel Account.--There is established in
the general fund of the Treasury a separate account which
shall be known as the ``Immigration Counsel Account''. Fees
collected under subsection (a) shall be deposited into the
Immigration Counsel Account and shall remain available until
expended for purposes of providing appointed counsel as
required under this Act.
(c) Report.--At the end of each 2-year period, beginning
with the establishment of this account, the Secretary of
Homeland Security shall submit a report to the Congress
concerning the status of the account, including any balances
therein, and recommend any adjustment in the prescribed fee
that may be required to ensure that the receipts collected
from the fee charged for the succeeding two years equal, as
closely as possible, the cost of providing appointed counsel
as required under this Act.
SEC. 313. ANNUAL REPORT ON PROVISIONAL DENIAL AUTHORITY.
Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of
this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Homeland
Security shall submit to the Congress a report detailing the
number of applicants that receive--
(1) a provisional denial under this Act;
(2) a final denial under this Act without seeking judicial
review;
(3) a final denial under this Act after seeking judicial
review; and
(4) an approval under this Act after seeking judicial
review.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The bill, as amended, shall be debatable for
1 hour, equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking
minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective
designees.
The gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) and the gentleman from Ohio
(Mr. Jordan) each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
General Leave
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on H.R. 6.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2\1/2\ minutes.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act of 2021, is
vital legislation that establishes a path to lawful permanent resident,
or LPR, status for two critically important populations that are in
dire need of protection.
The Dream Act creates an earned path to LPR status for Dreamers,
individuals who entered the United States in their youth and who have
lived here for most of their lives. Dreamers are part of the fabric of
our Nation, aptly demonstrated by their commitment to bettering our
country through the pursuit of education, military service, and
employment.
It is undeniable that Dreamers enrich our Nation. They are our
neighbors and coworkers, they are classmates with our children, and
they serve in our military with distinction. They are an essential part
of our communities, where they contribute to our thriving economy and
make America a stronger, more united, and more diverse Nation.
Similarly, the American Dream and Promise Act provides a path to LPR
status for individuals who either held, or were eligible for temporary
protective status, TPS, as of January 1, 2017; or deferred enforced
departure, DED, as of January 20, 2021.
TPS is a form of humanitarian relief provided to individuals from
countries experiencing dangerous conditions and crises. DED is like
TPS, but it is derived solely from the President's constitutional
powers to conduct foreign relations.
Like Dreamers, TPS and DED recipients are essential to our
communities. Many of them have lived in the United States for decades.
They make up a significant portion of the workforce in key industries,
including construction, food service, and home healthcare. They
contribute to the U.S. economy, not only through their work, but also
through consumer spending and tax revenue, and they have been
particularly essential in serving our country during the COVID-19
pandemic.
I have no doubt that some of my Republican colleagues will stand
before us today and use what they claim is a crisis at the border as an
excuse not to support this bill. But let's get one thing straight, this
legislation is not about the border, this legislation is about finally
delivering on our promise to America's Dreamers and others who are
equally deserving of our protection.
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleagues, Lucille Roybal-Allard,
Nydia Velazquez, and Yvette Clarke, for their commitment to this
important legislation, and to the millions of people this legislation
will protect.
I hope that all my colleagues will stand up for them when it truly
counts and will support H.R. 6 today.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
[[Page H1513]]
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, there is a crisis at the border. There has been a crisis
at the border for weeks. And instead of addressing the crisis, instead
of having a hearing in the committee, Democrats have passed bills that
defund the police, restrict Americans' Second Amendment liberties, and
federalize election law. And not one of those bills--by the way, not
one of those bills went through committee.
In fact, the Judiciary Committee--74 days of this Congress, the full
Judiciary Committee has yet to have a hearing on anything. We have
asked to have a hearing on the border crisis, the real crisis. We asked
to have a hearing on cancel culture, the attack on peoples' First
Amendment liberties. We asked to have a hearing on conservatorships. No
full committee hearing this entire Congress, but they can pass bills to
defund the police, restrict Americans' Second Amendment liberties,
Federalize election law. And now, while there is a crisis on the
border, they bring a bill to the floor that gives amnesty to 3 million
illegal aliens.
Seventy-four days of the 117th Congress, the Democrats have taken
away the Republicans' right to offer a motion to recommit; they have
kicked Marjorie Taylor Greene off a committee; two Democrats wrote a
letter trying to cancel ``Fox News,'' ``Newsmax,'' and ``One America
News.'' The Democratic chair of the House Administration Committee
compiled a dossier on 140 Republican Members, and they are preparing to
steal an election from Republican Congresswoman Miller-Meeks.
And today, they are going to pass a bill--try to pass a bill which,
as I said before, gives amnesty to 3 million illegal immigrants. We
have got gang members crossing the border. We have got people whose
name is on the terrorist watch list crossing the border. We have got
COVID positive illegals crossing the border.
We have had 100,000 encounters with foreigners on the border in
February alone. Housing illegal immigrants in the Dallas Convention
Center; the administration sending FEMA in to help. Even though they
refuse to call the crisis a crisis, they are sending in the disaster
agency to help with the situation. If that is not a crisis, frankly, I
don't know what one is.
A crisis that President Trump, 2 months ago, told us was coming. I
want to read what President Trump said in January. Two months ago, this
is what President Trump said: ``If our border security measures are
reversed, it will trigger a tidal wave of illegal immigration, a wave
like you've never seen before.'' Boy was that accurate.
If our border security measures are reversed. What has the Biden
administration done? They placed a moratorium on deportation, they
ended the Remain in Mexico program, and they have stopped building the
wall. I think that is a reversal. I think that is a reversal of the
measures that were put in place. What did it trigger? A tidal wave of
illegal immigration, a wave like you have never seen before. It sure
did. The tidal wave is here, and the Democrats' answer is amnesty. Wow.
Such a deal for the American people. Such a deal for the American
taxpayer.
Democrats answer: Defund the police, attack Second Amendment
liberties of Americans, federalize election law, try to cancel ``Fox
News,'' ``Newsmax,'' ``One America News,'' compile a dossier on
Republicans, kick one congresswoman off of her committees, and try to
take an election from another, all while they are creating a crisis on
the border, and then respond to it all with, what? A bill that gives
amnesty to 3 million illegal immigrants. That is what this legislation
does today.
Mr. Speaker, I hope we vote ``no.'' I hope we can stop this
legislation. This is not what the American people bargained for. This
is not common sense, and I hope we defeat this measure.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the distinguished
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Roybal-Allard).
Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, as a co-author of H.R. 6, I rise in
strong support of the American Dream and Promise Act.
I thank Speaker Pelosi for making the American Dream and Promise Act
one of the top 10 Democratic priorities in the 117th Congress.
I also thank Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren and the Judiciary Immigration
Subcommittee for their invaluable hard work on this bill.
Today, this House has another opportunity to pass H.R. 6 and, once
and for all, end the fear and uncertainty that have plagued the lives
of our Nation's Dreamers, who have become an integral part of the
fabric of American society.
According to the Center for American Progress, each year Dreamers
contribute over $17.3 billion in Federal taxes, nearly $9.7 billion in
State and local taxes, and their households have $75 billion in buying
power.
Over the course of this deadly corona pandemic, an estimated 202,500
DACA recipients have risked their lives to protect the health and
safety of Americans.
Yet, in spite of the critical role they play in our society, over 2.1
million Dreamers live in a state of limbo, doubt, and anxiety of being
deported to a country most do not know.
H.R. 6 eliminates the ambiguity in their lives and recognizes the
talents and indispensable contributions Dreamers make to our country.
While their individual stories may vary, they share the common
denominator of embracing and exemplifying American values and love for
this country, the only country they call home.
The American Dream and Promise Act has the support of Democrats,
Republicans, and Independents, as well as businesses, organized labor,
faith groups, educators, health professionals, former cabinet
officials, and the majority of the American public.
This unprecedented coalition of support highlights that protecting
our Dreamers and providing them with a path to citizenship is not a
partisan issue. It is an issue about who we are as Americans, and what
is in the best interest of our country.
By passing the American Dream and Promise Act, we will live up to our
American values of fairness, justice, and compassion. And these
incredible young Dreamers, like generations of immigrants before them,
can continue to play their vital role in the well-being our Nation.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the American
Dream and Promise Act today.
Mr. Speaker, as a co-author of H.R. 6, I rise in strong support of
the Dream and Promise Act.
I thank Speaker Pelosi for making the Dream and Promise Act one of
the top ten Democratic priorities in the 117th Congress.
I also thank Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren and the Judiciary Immigration
sub-Committee for their invaluable hard work on this bill.
During the last Congress a similar version of the Dream Act passed
the House with bipartisan support. But unfortunately, the Senate failed
to take up the bill.
Today this House has another opportunity to pass H.R. 6, and once and
for all end the fear and uncertainty that has plagued the lives of our
nations Dreamers who have become an integral part of the fabric of our
American society.
According to the Center for American Progress, each year Dreamers
contribute over $17.3 billion in federal taxes, nearly $9.7 billion in
state and local taxes, and their households have $75 billion in buying
power.
During this health emergency they also demonstrated the vital role
they play in American society.
Over the course of this deadly Corona pandemic, an estimated 202,500
DACA recipients have risked their lives to protect the health and
safety of Americans.
Dreamers are amongst the essential workers helping to package and
stock our food, the teachers of our children, and the doctors, nurses,
and caregivers who daily have sacrificed their lives to save the lives
of others.
Yet inspite of the critical role they play in our society, over 2.1
million Dreamers live in a state of limbo, doubt, and anxiety of being
deported to a country most do not know.
H.R. 6 eliminates the ambiguity in their lives and recognizes the
talents and indispensable contributions Dreamers make to our country.
I have the privilege of representing the 40th Congressional district,
home to 24,000 Dreamers--the largest number in any congressional
district.
Since I co-authored the original Dream Act twenty years ago, known
then as the Student Adjustment Act, I have met many of them and
hundreds more, from all over the country, who have traveled to our
nation's capital to tell their personal stories of hope, fear,
exclusion, and heartbreak.
[[Page H1514]]
While their individual stories may vary, they share the common
denominator of embracing and exemplifying American values and love for
this country, the only country they call home.
They are American in every way, except on paper.
They are Dreamers like Gabriela Cortes who was brought here at age
two and will graduate in May with a Bachelor of Science degree. She
says the Dream Act gives her hope because quote,'' This is the only way
I can fully contribute to my country, the only home I know.''
They are Dreamers like Sheila Salinas Navarro who is a first year PhD
student at USC Leonard School of Gerontology. She says, quote, ``We
need permanent solutions so that folks like me can contribute to this
nation. All I ask is an opportunity to do so.''
And they are Dreamers like Marvin Perez, brought to this country at
age five and now attending Glendale Community college. He says he wants
the opportunity to continue working on becoming a physician.''
H.R. 6 will give them and all our Dreamers the opportunity to reach
their full potential, contribute to their community, and help ensure
America remains the strongest and greatest nation in the world.
The Dream and Promise Act has the support of Democrats, Republicans,
and Independents, as well as businesses, organized labor, faith groups,
educators, health professionals, former Cabinet officials, and majority
of the American public.
This unprecedented coalition of support highlights that protecting
our Dreamers and providing them with a path to citizenship is not a
partisan issue.
It is an issue about who we are as Americans and what is in the best
interest of our country.
By passing the Dream and Promise Act, we will live up to our American
values of fairness, justice, and compassion. And these incredible young
Dreamers like generations of immigrants before them, can continue to
play their vital role in the well-being of our nation.
I urge my colleagues to vote yes on the Dream and Promise Act today.
{time} 1245
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
California (Mr. McClintock), who is the ranking member on the
Immigration and Citizenship Subcommittee.
Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, last year, we finally achieved
operational control of our southern border for the first time in
decades. The Trump administration had made it clear that our border
would be enforced, and illegal immigration dropped dramatically.
That all ended on January 20, when Joe Biden issued executive orders
to stop deporting illegal immigrants, abandon the border wall, admit
anyone claiming to be under 18, and rescinding the Remain in Mexico
policy for asylum claims. That message has been heard loud and clear.
The Border Patrol reported more than 100,000 encounters in February
alone. Think about that. That is the entire population of South Bend,
Indiana, or Green Bay, Wisconsin, in a single month, and it is getting
worse.
We are way beyond the debate over whether this is a border crisis.
The question now is whether we have a border at all.
What is the Democrats' response? This bill promises a path to
citizenship not only for 700,000 DACA recipients but millions more who
illegally arrived prior to January 1, were under 19 when they arrived,
and have only committed two misdemeanors.
How do they prove they qualify, Mr. Speaker? Under this bill, it
means having a friend vouch for you.
Now, we all sympathize with those illegally brought here as young
children years ago, and more than 200 Republicans supported legislation
in the 115th Congress to give them legal status. But it included
measures that secured our border and enforced our laws to discourage
another generation of young people being brought here exactly as we are
seeing unfold today.
Why are so many children being placed in the hands of Mexican
criminal cartels and forced to suffer the 2,000-mile trail of terror to
our border? Because it works.
Mr. Speaker, this bill proves the Mexican crime cartels are right:
You will be admitted into our country and need only wait for the next
amnesty.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren).
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, imagine this: You are 17 years old. You
have worked hard, and you are the valedictorian of your high school
class, the quarterback on the football team. You go down to apply for
your driver's license, and you find out for the first time that you
were actually not born in the United States and that you are
undocumented.
There is no possibility for you to get right with the law, but you
did nothing wrong. You don't even remember the place that you were
born.
That is the circumstance that tens of thousands of young people find
themselves in, and this bill allows those young people to get right
with the law--they have done nothing wrong--and go on to become the
full Americans that they are except for their paperwork.
It does something else that is important, which is it recognizes that
there is a group of people who are here under visas, but because the
Senate messed up--that is a term of art--the per country cap bill that
this House passed by 365 votes in the last Congress, there is a huge
backlog from large countries so long that the dependents of lawful
temporary visa holders age out. They have no remedy, just as the other
Dreamers. They can't go back to the country they were born in because
their parents are legally here. They have no capacity to become the
full Americans that they are. This also resolves that problem.
It is distressing to hear the rhetoric about the border. In fact, the
uptick at the southern border began last April, and it relates to
hurricanes and disorder in three Central American countries.
We need to pay attention to what is going on in those three
countries, and that is something the Biden administration is taking
steps to do to solve that problem where it starts. I will just note
that nobody is escaping from Costa Rica. It is the disorder in three
countries that needs to be resolved.
Mr. Speaker, vote ``yes'' on this bill.
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Biggs).
Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, as we see the ongoing impacts of Biden's
inhumane border crisis, I rise in opposition to H.R. 6.
Mr. Speaker, it is irresponsible to be considering this bill today.
This bill provides amnesty to millions of those who are illegally in
this country. This promise of amnesty is a magnet for aliens attempting
to enter the United States today. For at least 35 years, we have seen a
direct correlation between promises of amnesty and an increase in
illegal border crossing.
The ongoing Biden inhumane border crisis is a direct result of then-
candidate and now-President Biden's flawed border policies, including
amnesty. That is why I reintroduced the Fund and Complete the Border
Wall Act earlier this year and introduced the Stopping Border Surges
Act earlier this week.
These bills include real reforms that will have real impacts.
Specifically, the Stopping Border Surges Act fixes problems caused by
the Flores settlement agreement that prevent DHS from detaining family
units for more than 20 days, ensures that unaccompanied alien children
are quickly and safely returned to their homes, and promotes increased
integrity in the asylum system.
H.R. 6 will cause more problems than it will solve. It has serious
flaws that lead to fraud and abuse.
This bill gives the Secretary broad authority to waive grounds of
inadmissibility for humanitarian purposes, family unity, or because the
waiver is otherwise in the public interest. That means that, under this
bill, even convicted criminals will be eligible for amnesty.
If that is not bad enough, under this bill, aliens who were removed
from the country by DHS will be allowed to return and get amnesty. Let
me repeat that: Aliens who were ordered removed by an immigration judge
after receiving due process and were actually removed will be allowed
to return and get amnesty.
Last year, USCIS, the agency that administers this amnesty program,
almost had to furlough 70 percent of its workforce because the fees it
collects do not cover the costs of adjudicating immigration benefits.
But this bill actually sets the amnesty fee arbitrarily low and will
allow most aliens to obtain a fee waiver. That is a recipe for
disaster.
[[Page H1515]]
This bill prohibits information from being shared with ICE so that
our immigration laws cannot be enforced. Instead of prohibiting
information sharing, we should require information sharing.
This bill does nothing to secure the border or close loopholes in our
immigration laws that encourage illegal immigration.
Mr. Speaker, I oppose this bill, and I encourage my colleagues to do
the same.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Jayapal).
Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the
American Dream and Promise Act.
As an immigrant myself who came to America alone at the age of 16 and
who spent a decade in the immigrant rights movement before coming to
Congress, I stand with the Dreamers and TPS and DED recipients who have
courageously proclaimed ``undocumented and unafraid'' in the streets
and Halls of Congress and built this movement for justice.
These Dreamers, TPS, and DED holders have lived in the shadows for
too long, doing our Nation's essential work while living a life of
uncertainty and fear every day.
Mr. Speaker, Congress--we--right here and right now can change that.
We can stand up for our 4.4 million essential community members who
have made the United States home. We can legislate what they deserve,
which is a roadmap to citizenship and a future of hope, opportunity,
and contribution.
Let's stop the hypocrisy of criminalizing immigrants. Let's give
recognition and hope today. Vote ``aye'' on the American Dream and
Promise Act.
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Roy).
Mr. ROY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio for yielding me
time.
Mr. Speaker, a couple of nights ago, I was in Laredo, Texas, doing an
interview while overlooking the Rio Grande. My interview was
interrupted by a stream of human smugglers and people shouting ``run
for the ladders, run for the fences'' coming from the water. Then, some
went back across the river.
I went over to a facility where children are being housed right now.
They are the people being smuggled by cartels for profit. That is
happening right now today. While we sit in here and debate this bill,
it is happening right now.
A child is being abused right now by cartels. And this body, the
``people's House,'' is doing nothing--nothing--to address cartels that
have ownership of our borders right now.
We are not doing our job. A secure border is pro-immigrant. Instead,
what we are doing today is we are going to pass legislation that is a
magnet for more trafficking of children. We are going to pass
legislation today that empowers cartels. We are going to pass
legislation today that is a Band-Aid on a broken system because this
body refuses to do its constitutional duty to secure the borders of the
United States. That is what we are going to do today.
Meanwhile, nothing is going to improve the life of the little girl
sitting in Nuevo Laredo right now being abused under the hands of CDN
for the $3,000 or $7,000 to move that little girl across the river
while Border Patrol doesn't have the resources to secure the border.
I was down on the river with the guy who is on a 3-mile stretch of
the border--one guy--and he can do nothing about that flow while
narcotics and fentanyl come across our border.
So, pat ourselves on the back today, Mr. Speaker, for a bill that is
going to get passed and headline speeches given about how all this is
so great for immigrants. Meanwhile, immigrants today are getting raped,
abused, beaten, sold into indentured slavery, and put into human sex
trafficking because we refuse to secure the border of the United
States. And we will never get a chance to offer an amendment on the
floor of this body to do anything about it.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer).
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, let us remember that the United States Senate in 2013,
with 14 Republicans and the balance of Democrats, well over 60 people,
voted for comprehensive immigration reform, as I recall, and, perhaps
the chairman can correct me, I believe $47 billion for security. Maybe
the staff can shake their head if that was the right number. It was a
very substantial number; it might not be the exact number.
On this side of the aisle, we pleaded with the majority to bring a
comprehensive immigration bill to the floor. They were in charge. They
could have brought whatever security that they wanted. They could have
brought comprehensive immigration reform to the floor.
The bills that were brought to the floor bore no relationship, with
all due respect, to the Senate-passed bipartisan bill, so we did not
achieve comprehensive immigration reform. There was no conference;
there was no back-and-forth; and there was no response to that
bipartisan bill.
So, I tell my friend from Texas, yes, there is a problem. There is a
problem in trafficking, and we need to deal with it.
But I also tell this House that what it ought to know is that the
immigration system is broken. I wait for somebody to arise and say: No,
it is fine.
Nobody believes it is fine, Mr. Speaker. These bills are not
comprehensive immigration reform, but they are supported by the
American people because they know that Dreamers, TPS, and DED are
adding to this country's value.
Mr. Speaker, for 135 years, America's bright beacon to the world has
been that statue that stands in New York Harbor. It lifts her lamp
beside the golden door for those who are yearning to breathe free.
My father came through that door. He was 32 years of age in 1934. He
came from Denmark. He came for the reason most come, not fleeing,
however, from a dangerous land, as some are now doing, but looking for
opportunity and a better life. They have come throughout our history
from every corner of the world, braving hardship and seeking
opportunity, arriving here to build businesses, raise families, and
contribute to strengthening communities.
Dreamers have done that. They did not come at their insistence. They
came at their parents' insistence or somebody else's insistence, but
they are here, and they know America as their home.
Immigrants are a reason why America became the world's most powerful
and most prosperous country. For years now, however, our immigration
and visa system has been terribly broken, so much so that millions in
this country live in fear, holding their breath every day that they
could be deported to faraway lands that are not their homes because
America is their home.
{time} 1300
For Dreamers, it has been their home since their earliest days. And,
today, this House is going to take action, as we did last Congress, to
help them breathe easier.
The minority leader and I were meeting at the White House some years
ago, and then-President Trump said: If you send me a Dreamers bill, I
will sign it.
Well, we never sent it. The minority leader and I negotiated, along
with others--the administration and Senator Durbin, the minority
leader, and Senator Cornyn. We didn't get there, sadly.
This bill will correct a wrong that has brought fear and uncertainty
to so many Americans. Yes, Americans. America is their home and their
country. We are talking about patriotic and law-abiding residents, many
of whom have been here for decades and are working to build a strong
community and serving on the front lines of this pandemic as healthcare
professionals, first responders, and essential workers.
We owe them the chance to live without fear of deportation and family
separation. There are other problems we ought to talk about and we have
talked about. But, certainly, these Dreamers and those with TPS who
have been here for a long period of time, and DED, this bill is just
for them.
When I say ``just,'' I don't mean solely. I mean justice.
We passed the American Dream and Promise Act last Congress with
bipartisan support, and I hope we can do the same today.
[[Page H1516]]
I want to thank Representative Roybal-Allard for her leadership on
H.R. 6, and all of those in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and
yourself, Mr. Speaker, for the extraordinary work you have done.
We are also voting, of course, today on another immigration bill this
week, H.R. 1603, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. I rise in
support of that as well.
This legislation, offered by Chairwoman Lofgren, provides a pathway
to permanent legal residency to undocumented agricultural workers and
their families who are living here and filling a critical economic need
from which we benefit, every one of us, every day; and that is the food
on our table.
Without that change, workers and their employers will continue to
operate under a cloud of uncertainty and instability. These reforms are
long overdue, and I want to thank Chairwoman Lofgren for her work to
bring them to the floor.
I hope, as part of broader immigration reform efforts, that we can
address the status of seasonal non-agricultural workers on H-2B, who
contribute so much to our economy and communities working in
landscaping, hospitality, and, in my own State of Maryland, the crab
industry.
After the House passes this legislation and H.R. 6, I hope the Senate
will move quickly to send them to President Biden for his signature.
The Dream and Promise Act, some 75 percent of Americans are for that.
We have been passing legislation that an overwhelming majority of
Americans are for, and somehow, the Senate didn't get it or didn't
care. Hopefully, this year they will.
If enacted, these two bills would provide a pathway to permanent
legal status for some 3 million to 4 million people. They are here.
They are among us. They help us. They work with us. They pay taxes.
Let's bring them out from under the cloud of being kicked out.
This legislation today is a major achievement and will hasten the
moment when 3 million to 4 million immigrants and their families can
breathe a little easier, a little freer, knowing they are welcomed and
valued here in America, that they are truly a part of this country.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support both of these pieces of
legislation.
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I would just point out that the majority
leader is not accurate in what he said. Republicans, 2 years ago, had
bills that were much more comprehensive than what the Democrats are
bringing to the floor this week. We had a bill that dealt with merit-
based immigration, E-Verify, added workers to enforcement border
security. It is just not accurate to say our plan was not
comprehensive. We had two bills, as the Republican leader mentioned.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr.
McCarthy), the Republican leader.
Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the Republican leader of the
Judiciary for yielding. He is correct that when the Republicans were in
the majority, they brought two bills to the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the gentleman and others, and
even the majority leader, that not one Democrat voted for either of
those bills. Not one Democrat voted for a bill to move to the Senate.
They actually denied the bill from going to the Senate, even if you
wanted to change it to become law. That is just a little truth in
history.
Mr. Speaker, I am going to say something that President Biden refuses
to say. There is a crisis on our southern border. It is a humanitarian
crisis. It is a public health crisis, a national security crisis. It is
a Biden border crisis, and it is spiraling out of control with no signs
of ending.
When candidate Biden told migrants in June to immediately surge to
the border, I knew his immigration policies would be bad. But I did not
think it would be this bad. I did not think that would mean 13,000
unaccompanied minors in U.S. custody.
I did not think it would mean moving them from border facilities
across the country: 1,000 of them went to Midland Texas; 3,000 to
Dallas; and, likely, to more cities tomorrow.
I did not think the Biden administration would require COVID tests
for American citizens entering the country, but not for illegal
immigrants.
I did not think Biden's own DHS Secretary would have to admit that we
are ``on pace to encounter more individuals on the southwest border
than we have in the last 20 years,'' Mr. Speaker.
I did not think I would hear the President of Mexico refer to our
President Joe Biden as the ``migrant President.''
And I did not think it would only take 2 months to create the worst
border crisis in the history of America.
But, unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, that is exactly what happened. When
I visited the border on Monday, one thing was abundantly clear: This
crisis started at midnight on January 20.
Mr. Speaker, it started when President Biden stopped building the
wall, even though there are only a few miles left to complete. When he
made that decision, he had to pay more money to the contractors to
break the contract. It started when he promised to make all 11 million
illegal immigrants citizens.
Now, my colleague from Florida (Mr. Gimenez) spoke with a family from
Honduras about their journey to the border. He asked them how long the
trek was. They said it was 22 days. The story of this family is a story
we have heard from many and it is not unique.
You see, thousands decided to cross the border now because of
President Biden's promises and policies. They listened to him in June
when he said: You need to surge the border.
As one migrant family recently told FOX News: Yes, I listened to the
news that they were letting people in.
When I was there Monday, I was speaking to the border agents, the
American citizens, and the migrants. The number one thing was clear:
the crisis at the border is the worst they have ever seen.
When we went to El Paso, we toured the new processing facility. We
built it under the last administration. It is huge, 98,000 square feet.
And when I asked the chief patrol agent, Chief Chavez said: We built it
so large with capacity, we didn't believe it could ever meet capacity.
But that day we marked history. That day they hit capacity: 1,040
people, mostly children unaccompanied.
You know what it meant when you hit capacity?
That meant 120 border agents got pulled off the border to protect us
to go into the center. That is what a crisis looks like, even if the
administration won't say it.
We also saw overworked Border Patrol agents in the El Paso facility.
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank them. What they are being asked to do is
extraordinary: the pressure on them, the pressure from the
administration not to allow press to see what is happening; the
pressure of being over capacity with the number of people there; the
pressure to do it under a pandemic. That is what a crisis looks like.
When we sat and talked to the doctor from the medical unit, he told
us that approximately 10 percent of every immigrant has COVID, but they
are not tested. You see, that is only for American citizens when they
reenter. But they are not tested and they are sent to other cities.
And, as many of you know here, you could be tested and you are
positive, but the person you have been standing around, put into one
unit for a number of days, sleeping very close next to, after you have
interacted the entire time in one unit, a closed unit, that you will
become positive in the next 5 days. But that is okay because you will
be shipped to another city. But that city has been trying to combat
this pandemic. Who knows what happens next.
And the most alarming, Mr. Speaker, was when we were briefed in
Monument Three in El Paso. They told us that they caught people on the
terrorist watch list. I know that the Speaker would be concerned about
that. I was alarmed. I questioned further. It is not just people on the
terrorist watch list. We found people from other nations, from Iran,
from Turkey.
Mr. Speaker, when I went to the press conference right after that, I
mentioned that because I think every American--one terrorist is too
much in this Nation that could get through. I believe, Mr. Speaker,
that you believe that, too.
But Congressman Gallego, the chairman of the Subcommittee on
Intelligence and Special Operations--and
[[Page H1517]]
he also represents a border State--I thought he would tweet arm-in-arm
to stop this.
But you know what the gentleman said, Mr. Speaker?
He tweeted on Monday that I was ``either lying or I was wrong''
because he hadn't heard anything about it. I believe he even challenged
me because he had such high clearance because he is on Intel.
And Congresswoman Escobar, who represents part of El Paso, I thought
the gentlewoman would be very concerned, too, because this is where
they are entering, where they caught these people on a terrorist watch
list. Not everybody gets put on one. Mr. Speaker, what she said was
that I was trying to ``fuel the division'' because I just said that a
terrorist was caught coming through.
But, on Tuesday, Axios confirmed that four people matching terrorist
watch lists were arrested at the border, three from Yemen and one from
Serbia.
Biden's DHS Secretary also confirmed that this indeed happened. I am
not sure if their Twitter account is down or if they have been blocked,
but I have not heard an apology or a correction. I know Twitter does
that to Members of Congress, but I hope they are back on and I will
soon get the apology or the acknowledgment of a correction and the
respect.
If Members with security clearance haven't heard about the terrorist
threats on the border, I suggest they pay closer attention to the
classified briefings.
Mr. Speaker, the responsibility for this crisis rests squarely on the
shoulders of President Biden. After weeks of claiming they could handle
it, his administration is now attempting to blame the growing crisis on
the previous President. But nothing could be further from the truth.
Words and actions have meanings, and Biden has sent the message that
our border is open.
So there is no question that President Biden provoked the problem.
The question is: How can we stop it?
Mr. Speaker, when I was there in El Paso, 150 miles of the wall was
supposed to be built. But at midnight on January 20, 133 miles had been
finished. Instead of finishing the project, they stopped. You could go
to the ranch where they took down the old barrier because they were
going to put up the new wall, and there is nothing there. It is not
just people coming across illegally, but animals move back and forth.
So far, the Biden administration congressional Democrats aren't
providing any solutions. Mr. Speaker, we want to solve this problem.
That is why I sent a letter to the President 2 weeks ago to sit down.
When the President said immigrants should surge to the border, we
understood what he meant. So all those who were seeking asylum
automatically got in, COVID or not, no tests required.
{time} 1315
We saw that the Biden administration told migrants: We aren't saying
don't come; just don't come now. You see, that was from the Secretary.
Those are really strong words.
But, Mr. Speaker, what moved me the most was speaking to border
agents, one who was a father, and one that was a mother, talking about
the unaccompanied children. He told me a story of coming upon children,
a one-year-old, a three-year-old, and a five-year-old all holding
hands. No one in sight for miles away. It is remarkable that they got
there.
But the question is: How many didn't make it? How many lives have
been lost or abused, simply because they heard a message, or you
stopped the PACR program, or you changed from ``remain in Mexico,'' or
you stopped finishing the wall that was almost complete?
Mr. Speaker, those who defend the border told me that they have never
seen so much fentanyl as they have in the last month. They have never
seen the tactics that were used of storming the wall all at once. Just
in this one small section, if you looked--it would just go a number of
blocks--100 to 200 people a night are apprehended.
We saw last week, with the Democrat's so-called COVID relief bill,
$22 billion in healthcare subsidies that illegal immigrants are
eligible for, another clear message. But zero dollars are dedicated to
helping the men and women patrolling the border.
Mr. Speaker, they need the help. They are stretched so thin. They are
stretched so thin, in the middle of COVID, where they are dealing with
something where they are not even testing for COVID but they have to
interact.
This new facility, 98,000 square feet, is a beautiful facility. It
has already met capacity for the first time in history with the new
administration. But if you look across into the parking lot, the dirt
parking lot, where the border agents have to park, they were moving
their cars. They had to put up tents, because the surge is so great.
You see, they listened to the words of candidate Biden and they watched
the actions of President Biden.
But there is no new money. I know that COVID bill was the--well, we
shouldn't call it COVID. It is less than 9 percent for COVID. But, Mr.
Speaker, do you realize in that bill, prisoners will get more money
than the Border Patrol? Do you realize that they are going to have to
use their own operation money that is stretched so thin? So not only
can the Border Patrol not be on the border, now they are taking any
money for the future to deal with the surge today.
The American people deserve leaders who will work with the
seriousness of purpose, what this crisis requires. That is why I wrote
a letter to President Biden 2 weeks ago asking to meet about the
crisis. Since then, the crisis has only gotten worse, but,
unfortunately, the President still hasn't responded. Today, I sent
President Biden a second letter offering to relay what we learned at
the border, since he refuses to go there. But I believe he would
benefit from a hearing of what we saw and heard.
Mr. Speaker, if the President won't go there and the President puts
orders to deny the press from learning so the American people can't
know, I think it would behoove him to hear from the people who are
there.
I also introduced five solutions based on the information from our
trip. All of them are rooted in the basic idea that we are both a
Nation of immigrants and a Nation of laws.
Mr. Speaker, I know you are proud of your heritage, and I am proud of
mine, like every single American. I know how many of us come from
immigrant families. I know when you walk into my office, where you have
been, Mr. Speaker, you look on my wall and you will see the documents
from Ellis Island. April 23 of this year will mark the 100th
anniversary of my grandfather, Guido Palladino, coming from Italy as a
young child, boarding a ship to come here for a better life.
You see, America believes in immigration, but there is no time to
break the law and come illegally. There is a process to come here.
If we implement now these commonsense solutions, it will help to stop
the border crisis.
Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, the Biden border crisis is a
humanitarian, health, and national security crisis, and it is
deteriorating quickly.
To protect our citizens from further harm, our Government must send a
clear and united message to the citizens of Mexico and Central America.
That message is simple: There is never a right time to break the law
and enter the United States illegally.
The time for delay, denial, and distraction is over.
Mr. Speaker, I know you care about this issue. I know you care about
what is happening at the border. Mr. Speaker, I ask you, convey that to
the President. If he cares as much as you, he will travel there. I know
it is tough to travel, but when you have Air Force One--and I know he
has got a schedule--it is not far to fly to the border. His own
Secretary has said this is the worst it has been in 20 years.
Mr. Speaker, there is not one law that has passed here that created
that crisis.
Mr. Speaker, to all your constituents and all of those in America,
there are terrorists who have been caught; there are children walking
in the desert by themselves; there are cartels making a fortune off the
parts and disadvantaging of America.
We are in the middle of a pandemic where people are not being tested
but shipped to other cities. This isn't political, Mr. Speaker. This is
about this Nation. Join with us on our letter. Let's solve this problem
together.
[[Page H1518]]
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/4\ minutes to the gentlewoman
from Texas (Ms. Escobar).
Ms. ESCOBAR. Mr. Speaker, we are here today to talk about our
Dreamers, the precious resource we have in our country. But, of course,
unfortunately, what we are hearing is as much fear-mongering as
possible from our Republican colleagues about immigrants.
My name was mentioned, and the minority leader chose to come into my
safe and secure community earlier this week to use my community as a
prop, so I need to respond.
In 2019, Mr. Speaker, I led codels to El Paso and brought nearly 20
percent of Congress to my community. I invited everyone. I stood in the
well and invited Republicans, Democrats, everyone. Only Democrats took
me up on my offer to see the entire picture. Not just law enforcement,
but to meet with advocates, attorneys, everyone who makes up the system
of immigration on the border. Not a single Republican attended.
Last session, we, as a Congress, passed a number of bills, including
supplemental bills, to address what was happening on the border and to
address immigration. No Republicans supported our effort.
Last week, when I learned the minority leader was coming into my
community, I sent him a letter, invited him to meet with everyone who
was available to help give him the full picture. He refused.
Their strategy is the same strategy they have employed with COVID: Do
nothing.
We will finally address this. I rise to support our Dreamers and H.R.
6.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Dreamers across the
country. These are young people who have lived in the United States for
the majority of their lives; they already call the United States home
and are citizens in all but name.
The Dream and Promise Act creates a path to citizenship for those who
were brought to the United States as children. They're people who have
lived their entire lives as members of our communities and just want
the opportunity to become citizens of the country where they grew up,
go to school, and work. Which makes our communities safer and stronger.
This bill provides strict guidance for earning citizenship and
recipients are required to meet the standards and specifications of the
program in order to maintain their status.
When a parent makes the harrowing decision to take their child and
leave their home behind, it's so that their child might have a better
life. Like a lot of our grandparents and great-grandparents, they're
coming to the United States for the opportunity to live the American
Dream.
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I will just point out, I was at the border 2
years ago, the Rio Grande; Mr. Roy was at the border last week; Mr.
McCarthy was at the border this week. The previous speaker, Mr.
Speaker, said that Republicans didn't come when she invited. We have
all been down there and seen what goes on. Just this week, we have been
down there to see the current crisis.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr.
Grothman).
Mr. GROTHMAN. Mr. Speaker, we take up this bill at a time when almost
three times as many people are crossing the border as were this time
last year.
Under President Obama, it was a bad day if we had 1,000 contacts at
the border. Now, we are having 3,000 contacts a day.
These bills are being introduced, advertising that people who come
here legally are suckers, and we are going to give preference to people
who didn't come here legally.
I would further like to ask that we delay the vote until the Biden
administration removes the muzzling of the Border Patrol. We do not
really know what is going on at the border, when this most opaque of
administrations tells the Border Patrol that they cannot tell the press
or Congressmen what is going on.
James Madison must be spinning in his grave. He gave the press
freedom, and they refuse to use it.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the gentleman from
Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline).
Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, Dreamers are American citizens in every
sense of the word. For most, America is the only home they have ever
known.
Despite what my colleagues on the other side of the aisle argue,
Dreamers are not a drain on the country.
Dreamers contribute to our economy by adding an estimated $42 billion
to the GDP every year. That is six times more than the cost of DACA.
They participate in our workforce, own small businesses, create jobs,
pay taxes, and spend billions of dollars every year on goods and
services. Most importantly, they enrich our lives and are valued
members of our communities.
When the pandemic hit, over 62,000 Dreamers stepped up and provided
lifesaving healthcare to all of us. Now, it is our turn to look out for
our neighbors, our coworkers, and our friends. They have earned the
right to call America home.
H.R. 6 provides a path to citizenship for Dreamers as well as
temporary protected status and deferred enforced departure recipients.
I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.'' There is nothing more American
than the Dream Act.
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman
from Texas (Ms. Van Duyne).
Ms. VAN DUYNE. Mr. Speaker, the crisis at the border is astounding in
its scale, as thousands of illegal immigrants, enabled by drug cartels
and human traffickers, enter the country on a daily basis, many of them
unaccompanied minors, untested for COVID-19. Yet our colleagues across
the aisle accuse us of using this crisis at the border as an excuse.
Context matters and policies have consequences.
This is a surge at levels we have never seen before, and it is a
direct reaction to the Biden administration dispensing with numerous
measures which protected our southern border.
Yet, it is another day of political theater today on the House floor
and another set of bills without any real debate.
In addition to the lackluster effort here in Congress, our President
needs to enforce our laws. I and 20 of my colleagues from Texas
recently urged the Texas Attorney General to hold the President's feet
to the fire and enforce the laws, such as Title 42.
The President can use whatever language he wants to to describe what
is happening on our southern border, but his reckless policies are
creating a disastrous situation for Texans, putting our health and
safety in grave jeopardy.
Today could have been an opportunity for real debate and to send a
message that this manufactured crisis needs to stop and make true
reforms to our immigration system, yet that could not be further from
the truth.
It is obvious we have a broken immigration system, but Democrats'
flagrant disregard of laws to appease the far left is dangerous and out
of touch with the challenges real Americans are facing right now.
Ignoring laws, such as Title 42, denying a border crisis, that is not
leadership, and Texans know better than to take that sitting down.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this bill.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the gentleman from
Colorado (Mr. Neguse).
Mr. NEGUSE. Mr. Speaker, I had prepared remarks, but I cannot let the
minority leader's remarks go unanswered.
Some of my colleagues are aware of this. I was born in Minority
Leader McCarthy's district, in Bakersfield, California. My parents came
to this country 40 years ago as refugees. Because of the incredible
freedoms and opportunities that our wonderful country has to offer, we
have been able to live the American Dream. How dare he denigrate a
majority that is working to ensure that that dream remains secure for
thousands of Dreamers.
In his district, in my district, across the United States, young
people who live in fear, young people who have known no other country
but the United States as their home, that is what this bill is about.
Let's pass H.R. 6. Let's ensure that these Dreamers are treated the
way they should be, as Americans.
Mr. Speaker, I stand before you as the son of refugees. My parents
came to this country nearly 40 years ago in search of the American
Dream. Their ability to offer my sister and I countless freedoms and
opportunities and the fact that just one generation removed I can stand
in this chamber as a member of Congress, is powerful proof that that
dream still exists.
[[Page H1519]]
It is our duty to ensure that access to that dream remains
attainable, for the 800,000 young Dreamers currently living in the
shadows, for immigrants serving our communities on the frontlines of
this pandemic--all while living in tremendous uncertainty and fear.
This bill will codify what we already know to be true, that their
home is here.
We must pass H.R. 6. We must pursue the dream and the promise that is
embedded in our great nation.
I urge all my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
North Carolina (Mr. Bishop).
Mr. BISHOP of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, the American people are a
generous people, instinctively drawn to the idea of amnesty. It is a
fine word, ``amnesty.'' It means a general pardon for offenses, an act
of forgiveness for past offenses.
Of course, in the immigration arena, amnesty means not only pardon or
forgiveness for violating our laws, but also a grant of important
rights; ultimately, the privilege of citizenship. Sometimes that
important distinction can be overlooked.
{time} 1330
But what is particularly despicable in the present legislation is
that Democrats exploit that fundamental spirit of generosity by
misleading the American people about the scope of the proposed amnesty,
its recipients, and its implications.
They would have you believe that this legislation responds to those
President Obama dubbed Dreamers. In the gentlewoman from California's
description, it is a 17-year-old who worked hard and became a model
student and quarterback on the high school football team who doesn't
even remember the time before he lived in the United States.
But this bill is not the Dream Act. Rather, it crushes the dreams of
American workers. It is not for only 641,000 active DACA recipients. In
this bill, Democrats want to provide amnesty for more than 2.9 million
illegal immigrants, including even people who entered the United States
illegally by January 1, 2021, just over 2 months ago, and all at a time
when our unemployment rate is over 6 percent and working Americans are
the hardest-pressed by the economic impacts of Democrats' affinity for
lockdowns.
This bill also allows dangerous criminals and gang members to gain
amnesty benefits, even if they have been convicted of multiple
misdemeanors. If this bill is signed into law, adults from Syria,
Yemen, Sudan, Somalia, Liberia, and Venezuela will receive amnesty.
This body should be prioritizing relief for American citizens, not
illegal immigrants. I urge my colleagues to reject this misleading
rhetoric and this dangerous bill.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, the FBI and the Secretary of Homeland
Security said the greatest threat to America is domestic terrorism,
White racism, white supremacy, not babies who have come here innocently
and through no fault of their own.
I rise with great enthusiasm to support H.R. 6 and to join my
colleague, Congresswoman Roybal-Allard, in her work. For two decades,
we have stood alongside each other.
The American Dream and Promise Act provides immigrant youth and
current or potential holders of temporary protected status or deferred
enforced departure the opportunity to become citizens.
This is the very same person. This person, his name is Alonso
Guillen. He was a DACA. He died coming to Houston during Hurricane
Harvey trying to save lives. Cesar Espinosa, who organized a civil
rights organization, is a DACA recipient, and the EMS person who worked
with us during Hurricane Harvey, or Liberians on deferred status, and
TPS persons.
Let me just say, support this because it is the right thing to do.
They are not terrorists. It is not amnesty.
Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the Committees on the Judiciary
and on Homeland Security, as an original cosponsor of legislation to
extend the full promise of America to Dreamers, and a representative of
a state on the southern border, I rise in strong support of H.R. 6, the
``American Dream and Promise Act of 2019,'' and the underlying
legislation.
The American Dream and Promise Act of 2019 establishes a roadmap to
U.S. citizenship for (1) immigrant youth and (2) current or potential
holders of (a) temporary protected status (TPS) or (b) deferred
enforced departure (DED).
Ensuring a path to earned citizenship is a non-negotiable principle
for me and the sine qua non of meaningful immigration reform
legislation.
Indeed, providing a path to earned access to citizenship has been a
central feature of every comprehensive immigration reform bill I have
co-sponsored or sponsored in the Congress since 2007 when I became
Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and
introduced the ``Save America Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act,
(H.R. 1525),'' which I have reintroduced in each succeeding Congress.
Like H.R. 6, Section 501 of my legislation provides a path to earned
legalization status to those undocumented immigrants who have resided
in the United States for 5 years and meet other eligibility
requirements.
Mr. Speaker, as we stand today on the precipice of passing the
American Dream and Promise Act of 2019, I am thinking of the hundreds
of thousands of young immigrants whose lives will be changed for the
better by keeping our promise to them, so they can realize their dreams
and making America better, stronger, and more prosperous.
And at this moment, I am thinking of Alonso Guillen, an heroic
DREAMER who lived in my congressional district, and who came to the
United States from Mexico as a child and died when his boat capsized
while he was rescuing survivors of the flooding caused by Hurricane
Harvey in the Houston area.
That is the type of courage, honor, and commitment to service we are
talking when we speak of DREAMERS.
Mr. Speaker, Title I of H.R. 6, the Dream Act of 2019, contains
provisions regarding relief for immigrant youth.
Title II of the bill, American Promise Act of 2019, contains
provisions related to persons eligible Temporary Protected Stats (TPS)
or Deferred Enforcement Departure; the third and final title contains
general provisions that apply to both Titles I & II).
Mr. Speaker, I support H.R. 6 because it keeps America's word to the
more than 800,000 young people we asked to come out of the shadows and
walk proudly and unashamedly as legitimate members of the American
community.
The legislation does this by providing conditional permanent resident
(CPR) status and a roadmap to lawful permanent resident (LPR) status
and, eventually, earned U.S. citizenship for immigrant youth who
entered the U.S. before age 18, have four or more years of residency,
and graduated from high school (or the equivalent).
H.R. 6 also provides an opportunity to apply for LPR status for
people who currently have or who may be eligible for TPS or DED and who
have three or more years of residency.
Mr. Speaker, individuals who are eligible for protection under the
bill have lived in the United States for much of their lives; the
average Dreamer came to the United States at the age of 8, while the
average TPS- or OED-eligible person arrived in 1997.
Without permanent protections such as those in H.R. 6, the future of
these immigrants, and their families, are at risk in the United
States--as well as the fiscal and economic contributions they make.
Passing this legislation is the right thing to do and now is the time
to do it; in fact, it is long overdue.
I am mindful also, Mr. Speaker, that in addition to helping restore
America's reputation as the most welcoming nation on earth, the
legislation the House will pass also positions America to better
compete and win in the global economy of the 21st century.
According to expert studies, including one by the Center for American
Progress, ending deferred action for childhood arrivals would result in
a loss of $460.3 billion from the national GDP over the ensuing decade
and would remove an estimated 685,000 workers from the nation's economy
and workforce at a time when more, not fewer, workers are desperately
needed.
And 10 states, including my home state of Texas, would stand to lose
more than $8 billion annually in state GDP.
Mr. Speaker, immigrants eligible for protection under H.R. 6 are part
of Texas's social fabric.
Texas is home to 386,300 immigrants who are eligible for protection
under the Dream and Promise Act, 112,000 of whom reside in Harris
County.
These individuals live with 845,300 family members and among those
family members, 178,700 are U.S.-born citizen children.
Dreamers in Texas who are eligible for protection under the bill
arrived in the United States at the average age of 8.
TPS- and DED-eligible immigrants in Texas who would be eligible for
protection under H.R. 6 have on average lived in the United States
since 1996.
[[Page H1520]]
Immigrants eligible for the Dream and Promise Act own 43,500 homes in
Texas and pay $340,500,000 in annual mortgage payments.
Eligible immigrants in Texas and their households contribute
$2,234,800,000 in federal taxes and $1,265,200,000 in state and local
taxes each year.
Annually, these households generate $10,519,000,000 in spending power
in Texas and help power the national economy.
Mr. Speaker, let me highlight some of the more important provisions
of the American Dream and Promise Act.
H.R. 6 helps young persons in the following ways:
1. Extends the length of conditional permanent resident (CPR) status
from eight to ten years to give applicants more time to fulfill
requirements;
2. Stays the removal of minors who are not yet eligible for relief
but may become eligible in the future and who temporarily unenroll from
school;
3. Permits people with CPR to obtain legal permanent resident (LPR)
status without satisfying the employment, military, or educational
tracks if their deportation would cause ``hardship'' to themselves or
immediate family members (instead of ``extreme hardship'');
4. Includes apprenticeship programs as a qualifying education to
obtain CPR status;
5. Eliminates the costly medical examination for applicants;
6. Establishes a fee ceiling of $495 for immigrant youth applying for
CPR status;
7. Clarifies that people with CPR can access professional,
commercial, and business licenses;
8. Permits people with CPR who obtain a certificate or credential
from an area career and technical education school to obtain LPR
status; and
9. Updates the criminal background bars and inadmissibility
requirements.
Additionally, H.R. 6 provides LPR status to CPR holders who (1) serve
in the uniformed services for two years; (2) complete two years at or
obtain a degree from an institution of higher education; or (3) work 75
percent of the time in CPR.
Another important feature of this legislation is that makes it easier
for states to provide in-state tuition to immigrant students and
establishes that CPR-holders are eligible for federal loans, work
study, services, and grants.
For persons with TPS or DED status, the American Dream and Promise
Act provides much needed relief.
First, H.R. 6 provides LPR status for people with TPS or DED (and
those who were eligible but did not apply) who apply within three years
from the date of enactment if they (1) had at least three years of
continuous residence (as well as residence since the date required the
last time that the person's nation of origin was designated) and (2)
were eligible for or had (a) TPS on September 25, 2016, or (b) DED on
September 28, 2016.
This protection covers nationals of 13 countries: El Salvador,
Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Liberia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Sierra Leone,
Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
I believe similar protections should be extended to Guatemalan
nationals in our country, which is why I will soon reintroduce the
``Continue American Safety Act,'' which extends TPS status to Guatemala
and I look forward to working with my colleagues to achieve this
outcome.
Second, H.R. 6 classifies people with TPS or DED as inspected and
admitted for the purposes of Immigration & Nationality Act (INA)
section 245(a), making it easier to obtain LPR status through existing
channels (e.g., a family-based petition).
Third, H.R. 6 stays the removal or deportation of an individual while
an application is pending.
Fourth, the American Dream and Promise Act establishes a fee ceiling
of $1,140 for people with TPS or DED applying for LPR status.
Fifth, the legislation provides greater transparency by requiring the
Secretary of the Homeland Security (DHS) to provide an explanation for
and report within three days of publishing notice to terminate TPS
designation for certain nationals.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6 is exceptional legislation and a welcome
development but is not a substitute for undertaking the comprehensive
reform and modernization of the nation's immigration laws supported by
the American people.
Only Congress can do that and passage of H.R. 6 shows that this House
has the will and is up to the challenge.
Comprehensive immigration reform is desperately needed to ensure that
Lady Liberty's lamp remains the symbol of a land that welcomes
immigrants to a community of immigrants and does so in a manner that
secures our borders and protects our homeland.
Mr. Speaker, let us build on the historic legislation that is the
American Dream and Promise Act and seize the opportunity to pass
legislation that secures our borders, preserves America's character as
the most open and welcoming country in the history of the world, and
will yield hundreds of billions of dollars in economic growth.
I urge all Members to join me in voting for H.R. 6, the American
Dream and Promise Act of 2021.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen).
Mr. COHEN. Madam Speaker, when we came to Congress, my class of 2006
was offered the opportunity to go to Harvard University for a seminar.
We were told there that one of the greatest problems facing this
country was the lack of workers, that our birthrate was declining, and
that we need more people to come to this country and more workers to
supply our workforce and our economy. Those situations have not gotten
better.
These Dreamers are trained in America. They have been educated in
America. They are talented. They are smart. We are not only doing the
right thing by giving them this pathway to citizenship, but we are
doing the right thing for America because we need their talent to make
this country even greater.
That is why I support the Dreamers act.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stanton).
Mr. STANTON. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6, the American
Dream and Promise Act. Dreamers have been waiting far too long for
meaningful congressional action.
By passing H.R. 6, we are telling Dreamers all over our country: We
see you, we hear you, and we know your home is here in the United
States of America.
Arizona is fortunate to have nearly 24,000 DACA recipients. They are
teachers, community organizers, and essential workers contributing
greatly to our economy. In this pandemic, they make sure our grocery
store shelves are stocked and our families are fed. They work long
shifts in COVID hospital wings and now are vaccinating our communities.
That is who they are, giving back and contributing an estimated $240
million in taxes yearly in Arizona alone. Dreamers are essential to
rebuilding our economy, and it is long past time we put them on a path
to citizenship.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
California (Mr. Garcia).
Mr. GARCIA of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition
to H.R. 6.
As a first-generation American, I know firsthand the opportunities
that America provides. I understand why every person on this planet
should want to come to this beautiful country. We are a land of
immigrants, built on hard work, and blessed by freedoms that are
protected by law and order and secured by our Constitution.
I sympathize with the Dreamers, I really do, but this bill should not
be considered before addressing our broken immigration system that led
to this very problem. Providing amnesty to Dreamers while ignoring the
crisis at the border is like cleaning up spilled water before fixing
the broken pipe.
If Congress fails to reform our immigration system and fails to
secure our borders, future migrants will be subjected to the same
situation in which Dreamers today find themselves.
We need to fix our broken immigration system and secure our borders.
If my colleagues are sincere about their care and passion for the
Dreamers, they should work with us to secure the border today so that
the Dreamers have a chance tomorrow.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Pelosi), the distinguished Speaker of the House.
Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and
once again, I salute him for his leadership.
This is the third bill in 2 days that he has brought to the floor,
yesterday for the ERA and Violence Against Women Act, and today, here
we are with this legislation for the Dreamers.
Madam Speaker, this issue is near and dear to my heart but, more
importantly, to my head. This is so important for our country.
[[Page H1521]]
Three years ago, I came to the floor and spoke about our Dreamers for
8 hours and 6 minutes. Have no fear, I will not use my Speaker's minute
to that extent today. But I wish I could because I have so much to say
about what Dreamers mean to America.
I rise with tremendous pride, joy, and hope this day as the House
prepares to take this momentous step forward for our democracy by
passing H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act.
I want to salute some of our leaders in Congress. As I acknowledged
Mr. Nadler, the distinguished chair of the committee, let us also
acknowledge Lucille Roybal-Allard, the godmother of this legislation,
who carries forth a commitment to the newcomers to our country in her
DNA, the same commitment of her father, the late Chairman Ed Roybal, as
he championed newcomers to our Nation.
She has been with this legislation for 20 years that I know of, and
it was she and Howard Berman who introduced it initially a generation
ago. Ten years ago, she authored this legislation, and we were
successful on the floor. We were successful in passing it in the House
because of the leadership of Congresswoman Roybal-Allard but also
Chairwoman Nydia Velazquez, who at the time was the chair of the
Hispanic Caucus. The Hispanic Caucus really led the way and taught the
Congress about what Dreamers mean to America, in case that had not been
within the experience of our Members.
In this legislation today, Nydia Velazquez has the ``promise.'' This
is Dreamers and promise. She has the promise, TPS and DED--again, very
important to our country.
Yvette Clarke, from the Congressional Black Caucus, who is very much
a part of all of this today, has the TPS piece of this.
I was so pleased to hear this morning CAPAC, the Congressional Asian
Pacific American Caucus, have Congresswoman Strickland, of African-
American and Korean descent, speak in terms of what this means to the
Asian Pacific American community, something that Chair Judy Chu reminds
us of every day.
This has now gone beyond the Hispanic Caucus, the Black Caucus, the
Asian Pacific Caucus, and to all of us in the Congress. This
legislation is protecting Dreamers and TPS and DED recipients and
honors the truth that immigrants are the constant reinvigoration of our
country. When they come here with their hopes and dreams and
aspirations, these parents bringing their children, their hopes and
dreams and aspirations for a better future for their children, that
courage, that determination, those aspirations are American traits.
They all make America more American with all of that.
Indeed, they are true and legitimate heirs, these Dreamers are, of
our Founders. E pluribus unum, from many, one, we talk about that all
the time. Many in this Chamber have been part of the fight to protect
our patriotic Dreamers for years.
As I said, when I stood here for 8 hours and 6 minutes, the longest
speech on record in the House in history, I was reading letters that
Members were handing me about the story of the Dreamers. As Mr. Stanton
mentioned, they are teachers, professionals, CEOs, entrepreneurs. They
contribute to our community in every way. I was so pleased to hear him
talk about that because one of the first meetings I ever went to about
Dreamers was under the leadership of one of the predecessors of our
Members from Arizona, Congressman Ed Pastor. Chairman Pastor, Mr.
Grijalva, and Harry Mitchell, all three, had a meeting at Arizona State
University about helping these young people. That was in 2007.
So, this has been going on for a while. Next month, as I mentioned,
marks the 20th year since the Dream Act was introduced by Congresswoman
Roybal-Allard, and it was on a bipartisan basis. When we passed it 10
years ago, it was on a bipartisan basis. Sadly, we couldn't prevail
with 60 votes in the Senate. But since then, millions of Americans have
come together to organize and mobilize for Dreamers: labor leaders, the
business community, faith organizations, national security officials,
law enforcement, and more.
We often talk about Dreamers having the support of the three Bs:
badges, in terms of law enforcement; Bible, in terms of faith-based;
and the business community.
The true VIPs of the moment are the Dreamers and immigrants who have
spoken out with great dignity and eloquence, refusing to be forced back
into the shadows.
This determination has made a difference. It is their courage that is
sending this legislation to the Senate and then to the President's
desk.
Before I close, I want to acknowledge the work of Congresswoman Zoe
Lofgren, the chair of the Immigration Subcommittee of the Judiciary
Committee. Zoe Lofgren is also the chair of House Administration, so I
call her Madam Chair-Madam Chair. She has taught immigration law. She
has been an immigration lawyer, and she chairs the Immigration
Subcommittee. We could not be better served than by her intricate
knowledge of immigration law, both on this legislation and legislation
we will take up later, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. I thank
Zoe Lofgren for that.
Again, Dreamers and TPS and DED recipients are American in every way.
They have lived and worked in our country for decades, if not their
entire lives. They are an integral thread in the fabric of our Nation.
For the Dreamers, it is less time, for others more.
Dreamers power our businesses, our economy, and are CEOs and
taxpayers, all of them. They advance innovation and America's
technological edge as entrepreneurs and researchers. They protect our
national security, military might, and servicemembers and civilian
experts.
That is why I am so grateful to Chair Roybal-Allard, Chair Velazquez,
Chair Judy Chu, and Congresswoman Strickland for advancing this
legislation to help Dreamers and TPS and DED recipients.
{time} 1345
So many on the front lines of the pandemic are frontline healthcare
workers and first responders; transportation, sanitation, and food
workers; and teachers. They give so much to our country.
These immigrant communities strengthen, enrich, and ennoble our
Nation, and they must be allowed to stay. There is nothing partisan
about protecting Dreamers and TPS and DED recipients.
The Dream Act has long had bipartisan support in both Chambers.
Support for TPS and DED recipients is also bipartisan in the country.
Nearly three-quarters of the public support a path to citizenship.
I always love to quote President Reagan. In his last speech as
President of the United States, this was his last message as President
to the American people. He said: ``Thanks to each wave of new arrivals
to this land of opportunity, we are a nation forever young, forever
bursting with energy and new ideas, and always on the cutting edge,
always leading the world to the next frontier. This quality is vital to
our future as a nation. If we ever closed the door to new Americans,
our leadership in the world would soon be lost.''
I urge a bipartisan vote.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, may I inquire as to the amount of time
remaining for each side.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. DeGette). The gentleman from Ohio has 13
minutes. The gentleman from New York has 14\3/4\ minutes.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from New York (Mr. Jones).
Mr. JONES. Madam Speaker, I swear, sometimes I stand in this Chamber
and feel like I am in the Twilight Zone, listening to a number of my
Republican colleagues espouse white supremacist ideology to denigrate
our wonderful Dreamers.
I am over here standing with a clear understanding that this bill
does not go far enough.
I want to share the story of a constituent of mine, Mr. Paul
Pierrilus, of our Spring Valley, New York, community, who was deported
to Haiti, a country where he had never even been, in apparent defiance
of the President's 100-day executive order.
We need a bill that goes further. I am going to vote for this, but we
need a bill that goes further, that forgives people who make mistakes.
[[Page H1522]]
Mr. Pierrilus, in his case, made a mistake in his early 20s. We need
a bill that allows him to return home, and I am going to be fighting
for that moving forward.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I will tell you what this bill does. Page
51, section 310: ``Grant program to assist eligible applicants. The
Secretary shall establish, within U.S. Citizen and Immigration
Services, a program to award grants.''
So while there is a disaster on the border, so much so that we have
to send FEMA there, this bill not only gives amnesty to illegals, it
uses American tax dollars to help the illegals apply for amnesty.
Such a deal for the American taxpayer. That is what this legislation
does. That is what this bill is about.
At a time when we have chaos on the border, this bill gives amnesty
to 3 million illegals and uses American tax dollars to help those same
illegals apply for the amnesty. I mean, the disrespect that the
Democrats have for the American taxpayer is astounding to me. It is
truly astounding.
I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Herrell).
Ms. HERRELL. Madam Speaker, I find the name of this bill, the
American Dream and Promise Act, to be quite a nightmare because while
this may be a bill that will help some, it destroys the dreams of the
American children.
The contradiction and the hypocrisy in this entire bill can be summed
up in this way: I have heard over and over, Madam Speaker, these
Dreamers are frontline workers; they have been in harm's way; they have
helped with this pandemic. Yet, we are going to open the border and
allow people into our country that do not have a COVID test. We are
putting our Dreamers in harm's way. I find the hypocrisy of this bill
somewhat puzzling.
But I also want to point out that this bill allows those convicted of
dangerous crimes, including MS-13 and other gang members, to receive a
green card by including the following exceptions if the applicants with
multiple misdemeanor convictions, even if the crime was violent or
resulted in death or bodily injury, they can still get a green card. It
will not take into account violent crimes committed as a juvenile when
adjudicating the application.
I strongly urge a ``no'' vote on this bill.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the distinguished
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Garcia).
Ms. GARCIA of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the
American Dream and Promise Act.
Before I continue with my remarks, I want to remind Mr. Jordan and
the others across the aisle that no human being is illegal. We are all
children of God.
I have dedicated my life to public service to help immigrants who
come to the U.S. in search of a prosperous and dignified life.
Since 2001, when the Dream Act was first conceived, Dreamers have
waited.
In 2012, DACA enabled eligible young adults to work lawfully, attend
school, and contribute to society without the constant threat of
deportation.
However, Dreamers are still waiting.
In Texas, over 213,000 Dreamers contribute $963 million in local,
State, and Federal taxes and have played a critical role in our State's
response to the COVID pandemic.
Dreamers have waited.
It is time for us to deliver. We should treat them with respect. I
urge passage.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from California (Mr. Correa).
Mr. CORREA. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Let me just bring back the issue at hand, which is our Dreamers.
Dreamers are taxpayers. They obey the law. They work. They go to
school. They are firefighters. They are police officers. They are
nurses. Dreamers are Jose Angel Garibay.
This man from my district made the ultimate sacrifice for this United
States, his adopted country. Orange County's first Iraqi war death,
Jose Angel Garibay was killed in action on March 23, 2003.
At the age of 21, Jose became Orange County's first combat casualty
in Iraq. Jose Angel Garibay did the right thing. He sacrificed his life
for his country.
Let us do the right thing and pass this legislation to honor
Dreamers.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser).
Mr. MEUSER. Madam Speaker, I thank the ranking member from Ohio, Mr.
Jordan, for yielding.
Madam Speaker, I rise today to oppose H.R. 6.
Under the leadership of President Trump, illegal border crossings
dropped dramatically, and our border was secured.
Since taking office, President Biden has halted construction of our
border wall, attempted a moratorium on deportations, and, in so doing,
created significant incentives for illegal immigration.
In February, over 100,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended at our
southern border, three times the number in the same month the year
previous.
Speaking to Border Patrol agents, Republicans and Democrats are told
the same thing: This is a humanitarian crisis. Violent cartels are
taking advantage of innocent people to smuggle drugs into our country.
Yet, the Biden administration placed a gag order on CBP agents. What
is going on here? Are we going to face the problem, or are we going to
hide it with gag orders?
Now Democrats are introducing H.R. 6, which only exacerbates the
Biden policies at the border by creating the incentive of amnesty with
no discussion of border security.
Madam Speaker, it is time for the House to wake up. This is
disastrous policy, and it is in full view. There is no hiding from it.
We should oppose H.R. 6 on humanitarian grounds.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Chu).
Ms. CHU. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 6, the
American Dream and Promise Act, to put Dreamers and TPS and DED
immigrants on a path to citizenship.
These are our friends, neighbors, and colleagues. They have graduated
from our schools, served in our military, and worked in our
communities. During the pandemic, they have kept our country running
with over 200,000 Dreamers and over 130,000 TPS holders in essential
jobs at hospitals, grocery stores, and schools.
As the chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, I
know this is important to so many, including the Asian-American and
Pacific Islander community, who are 7 percent of the entire population
but 16 percent of the undocumented. That means there are well over
100,000 Asian-American immigrants who urgently need relief.
This bill means so much to so many. I urge a ``yes'' vote for H.R. 6.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. I yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentlewoman from
New York (Ms. Clarke).
Ms. CLARKE of New York. Madam Speaker, as an original co-lead of this
legislation, I rise today in support of the bill that is near and dear
to my heart, H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act.
As the proud daughter of Jamaican immigrants, I understand the need
for the American Dream and Promise Act, and more importantly, we need a
humane and dignified 21st century immigration system. Comprehensive
immigration reform is what is required.
Let me be very clear, crystal clear: Our immigration system is
broken, and the time has come for the values of our Nation to be
reflected in our immigration policy.
However, this is not just a moral issue. It is an economic one, as
well. If COVID-19 has taught us anything, essential workers are the
lifeblood of our economy. They have risked their lives during a global
pandemic to serve, support, and protect American communities. We have
relied on them during this crisis, and it is time to give them a way
out of the shadows.
Let's pass H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act. Let's see it
through the Senate, and let's get it signed into law.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Carter).
[[Page H1523]]
Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition of
this bill because we have a crisis along our southern border.
We have record numbers of migrants seeking to come into our country.
The number of unaccompanied children illegally crossing the border
increased 63 percent last month. This is truly a humanitarian and
security crisis, but the current administration is not adequately
addressing it. In fact, they are not addressing it at all.
Instead of doing more to protect our border, the administration is
rolling back policies that discourage this kind of mass migration.
Today, we are considering a bill that does nothing to solve the
problem. In fact, it shows that there are no repercussions for breaking
our laws and encourages more to attempt to enter the country illegally.
We need a comprehensive and bipartisan solution to this crisis that
discourages entering illegally and rewards following the law.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett).
Mr. DOGGETT. Madam Speaker, I rise on behalf of those who teach, who
heal, who protect, who study; for those whose entrepreneurial talent
advances our economy--for all of our Dreamers. They have so much to
contribute and they are American in every way except on paper.
For so many long years, they have been burdened with uncertainty
because of the anti-immigrant hysteria whipped up by these Republican
fanatics. In San Antonio, San Marcos, and Austin I have met with them
personally; Dreamers in Texas, where releasing their full potential,
through approval of this bill, would have such benefit to all of us.
Today let's move forward to reject the Republican nightmare and
achieve the dream so that these deserving young people may truly share
in the entire American Dream. This bill must only be the beginning.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Pfluger).
Mr. PFLUGER. Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 6.
Bringing an amnesty bill to the floor this week in the middle of a
complete and total crisis on our southern border is not only tone-deaf;
it is wrong.
I traveled to the border on Monday and surveyed the facilities, the
border, and the environment. It is a mess. Thousands of people are
coming across our borders illegally.
If we really cared about children, we would be looking at the
policies that are incentivizing the drug cartels, the traffickers, the
coyotes that are bringing them across, exploiting them in every way. It
is heartbreaking.
Some wish our Nation harm, including the individuals who have been
found out to be on the terror watch list who have been apprehended
crossing the border.
This bill will only incentivize more illegal crossings. What a week
to put this bill to a vote.
We cannot begin to address the issues we are facing when our border
is broken. I implore my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to
work with us in a bipartisan manner to secure the border and then move
on.
{time} 1400
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee).
Ms. LEE of California. Madam Speaker, first of all, let me say that I
rise in strong support of H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act. I
thank Congresswoman Roybal-Allard, Chairman Nadler, and Chairwoman
Lofgren for advancing this legislation and supporting our Dreamers.
It is time that we protect these young people who have never called
any other country than America home. Dreamers and individuals eligible
for TPS or Deferred Enforcement Departure contribute mightily to their
communities and to our economy. They deserve a pathway to citizenship.
Now, the Dreamers in my State of California and in my Congressional
district have made so many contributions under very scary and difficult
circumstances.
Madam Speaker, yes, they are as American as I am. I ask for an
``aye'' vote.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green).
Mr. GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, my constituent, Mr. Jose Escobar,
was living his American Dream, married to an American-born woman, two
American-born children, living in an American-built house, paying
American taxes. Yet when he reported to ICE, he was taken out of the
arms of his wife and babies, sent to El Salvador with $20 and the
clothes on his back. It took us more than 2 years to get him home, but
I went to El Salvador with his wife, and we brought him home.
Madam Speaker, I will support this legislation because I want no one
else to experience what Mr. Jose Escobar experienced.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Leger Fernandez).
Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ. Madam Speaker, I rise for every child who was
ever raised in this beautiful country but told they are not American;
for every Dreamer who has lived in fear that they will be forced from
the only home they have ever known.
Madam Speaker, Dreamers are teachers, students, and healthcare
workers. They feed us, care for us, and inspire us. They strengthen our
economy. Now is the moment. We must give them the same opportunities
and protections that they deserve as Americans.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Minnesota (Mr. Stauber).
Mr. STAUBER. Madam Speaker, when I speak to families back home, they
understand that there are individuals and children in the country who
were brought here through no fault of their own. They are understanding
and compassionate people who want a solution that is fair and just. But
something that I also hear from these same families is their concern
and fear for providing green cards and paths to citizenship to gang
members and criminals.
The text of this bill only compounds those fears--preventing the
United States Government from using readily available information to
remove gang members who are national security threats and other public
safety threats.
This motion to recommit ensures that those individuals whose
applications would be denied on the basis of criminal grounds, national
security grounds, public safety risks, or as gang members, are
considered by the Department of Homeland Security for removal from the
United States.
Madam Speaker, under H.R. 6, information provided in an application
for a green card may not be used for the purposes of immigration
enforcement, even if the DHS denies the application or it is withdrawn.
This means that if an applicant has a murder conviction, a rape
conviction, or if the applicant is a gang member, and DHS knows about
it because of the application, DHS can't even refer that person for
removal.
To be clear, this MTR does not direct the DHS to remove an applicant
if they are denied on any other basis. Only applicants who are denied
on criminal or national security grounds as public safety risks or as
gang members would be affected.
As crime rates skyrocket in cities across the country, the American
people are asking for serious solutions. They are crying out for help.
And this bill only further enables murderers, rapists, and gang members
to exploit our system.
If the Democrats see fit to listen to the American people and exclude
these criminals and gang members from receiving green cards under H.R.
6, then they should vote for this motion to recommit to ensure
dangerous individuals are denied a safe haven here in our neighborhoods
and communities where our children go to school and play.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, may I inquire how much time is remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from New York has 8\3/4\
minutes remaining. The gentleman from Ohio has 6 minutes remaining.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentleman from New York (Mr. Espaillat).
[[Page H1524]]
Mr. ESPAILLAT. Madam Speaker, I rise to support H.R. 6, the American
Dream and Promise Act.
Madam Speaker, how hypocritical and shameful of the other side of the
aisle. They want to deny Dreamers, yet those Dreamers provide education
and daycare services for their children.
They want to deny Dreamers, but those Dreamers take care of their
frail and elderly parents.
They want to deny Dreamers, but their parents pick the crops and the
fruits that they eat at their table.
Madam Speaker, how hypocritical. They want to deny Dreamers, yet
those Dreamers, as members of the National Guard, protected us right
here against an angry, racist mob.
Madam Speaker, I know that too well because I came to this Nation
without any papers. And I sit as a Member of Congress and my vote is
equal to any of their votes. It is equal to any of their votes because,
in this country, you can dream and it has promise.
Madam Speaker, we will not go back. We will continue to move forward.
I support H.R. 6.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia).
Mr. GARCIA of Illinois. Madam Speaker, this bill is critical for
millions. That is why I supported it in the previous Congress, but it
also contains some deep flaws that perpetuate racial injustice. I,
along with 47 Members, worked to eliminate those racially motivated
barriers to legalization from this bill. These harmful provisions will
deny immigrant youth a better future.
In this moment of racial reckoning, we have missed an opportunity.
Yet I will vote for this bill, and I urge support because we can do
better so that every immigrant child has a fair chance to call America
home.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Arrington).
Mr. ARRINGTON. Madam Speaker, don't ask the President. Ask the people
of Texas and they will tell you the truth. Biden's unilateral actions
are the cause for this unprecedented crisis.
My Democrat colleagues' response to their fellow Americans: An
amnesty that will only add fuel to the fire of the burning chaos at the
southern border.
Madam Speaker, how did we go from America first to America last in
just days?
Taken together, these perverse incentives will further encourage
lawlessness, enrich cartels, enable the abuse and exploitation of the
most vulnerable people, cheat those who have respected our process,
compromise the health and safety of the American people, and undermine
the sovereignty and security of our great Nation.
Madam Speaker, don't ask the President. Ask the people of Texas and
they will tell you the truth. The cartels are in control at the border
and the left is in control of the Democrat party.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from
Massachusetts (Ms. Pressley).
Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I thank Chairman Nadler for yielding.
Madam Speaker, the tragic events of this week underscore both our
responsibility and the urgency we must move to legislate our values and
to stand on the side of justice.
I represent Massachusetts Seventh, a district which is 40 percent
immigrants. I rise today in solidarity with them.
H.R. 6 is a critical step towards citizenship for Dreamers, TPS, and
DED holders. However, the criminal bar provisions added to this bill
further entangles our racist criminal legal system in the citizenship
process.
I thank Congressman Garcia and partners for leading the fight to
eliminate this language. There is more work to be done, but this bill
moves us in the right direction of a more just America, one which
values the lives of immigrants and not just their labor.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from
Michigan (Mrs. McClain).
Mrs. McCLAIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today because I am absolutely
furious. Every single day, 5,000 new illegal aliens cross our southern
border. Every single day, more men, more women and children are
smuggled across our border and being trafficked. Every single day, the
drug cartels and human traffickers are raping and abusing our women and
children. One out of three of these women and children are being raped.
I ask the administration this: How is that not a crisis?
Madam Speaker, for almost 2 months, our Nation has refused to call
this a crisis, what is occurring at our border. You cannot solve a
problem unless you first admit there is a problem; and we have a
problem. This bill today does nothing to solve that problem or even
acknowledge that we have a problem.
We, as a Congress, need to say in unison: We have a crisis at our
border.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky).
Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Speaker, there is no doubt the American Dream
and Promise Act will bring much-needed relief to our Dreamers and our
immigrant communities, and I will be voting for the bill.
However, many of my constituents are disappointed that H.R. 6
includes harsh exclusions that will block many of our long-term members
of our community from citizenship simply because of misdeeds, mistakes
that they made years and years ago. I will continue to advocate for
them.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, if we adopt the motion to recommit, we
will instruct the Committee on the Judiciary to consider the amendment
to H.R. 6 to ensure that gang members do not receive any benefits under
the underlying bill and are swiftly removed from the country.
Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include the text of my
amendment in the Record immediately prior to the vote on the motion to
recommit.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Ohio?
There was no objection.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from California (Mr. Ruiz).
Mr. RUIZ. Madam Speaker, I, and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
rise in support of H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act, which
will make an incredible positive difference for our Nation.
It is precisely now, during a pandemic, when we need this
legislation. Dreamers are doctors, nurses, lab technicians, contact
tracers, and job creators. Dreamers are on the front lines of the
COVID-19 pandemic. They strengthen our economy and they make
invaluable contributions to America.
Madam Speaker, the American Dream and Promise Act will provide a
pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, TPS holders, and DED recipients.
We must pass this bill today.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 15 seconds to the
gentleman from California.
Mr. RUIZ. Madam Speaker, I thank the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
members, Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard, Congresswoman Nydia
Velazquez, as well as Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, for their remarkable
efforts on this piece of legislation.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Hice).
Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, there is an unprecedented crisis
at the southern border. Literally, hundreds of thousands of illegal
immigrants are crossing into the United States, stretching our patrol
officers and enforcement down there to a breaking point.
In February of this year, over 100,000 illegals were apprehended.
That is a 28 percent increase from the year before. And I guarantee
you, it is only going to get worse. The projections are even more than
that this coming month.
Illegal border crossings are now five times higher than before
President Biden was inaugurated. And this is all fueled by the ``open
border'' policies of this administration promising amnesty, ending the
wall construction, halting deportations, handcuffing our law
enforcement, and undermining border security.
President Trump gave President Biden a secure southern border, and in
[[Page H1525]]
less than 3 months, it has been dismantled. This is absolute insanity.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the
gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, meanwhile, here in Washington,
the Democratic majority is cheerfully pushing more legislation to
incentivize more illegals coming here. We have this bill promoting
amnesty. We are literally exalting illegals in this country over those
who have waited years to become citizens.
Madam Speaker, this is not rocket science. The Democratic party knows
this is going to create a greater crisis, and they simply don't care.
It is time to stop fueling the crisis and start solving it.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''
{time} 1415
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, how much time do we have remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from New York has 5\1/2\
minutes remaining. The gentleman from Ohio has 2 minutes remaining.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Cuellar).
Mr. CUELLAR. Madam Speaker, I rise in favor of Dreamers who call the
U.S. home. Dreamers are our neighbors, our colleagues, our classmates.
They are individuals that serve as essential workers, teachers, medical
personnel, that fully contribute to our country and make America
stronger. They pay taxes. They work. They have no criminal record. They
help us, and those are the type of individuals that we need.
Madam Speaker, my question is: Why are we afraid of a 7-year-old?
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished
gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Manning).
Ms. MANNING. Madam Speaker, I rise today as the granddaughter of
immigrants in support of the American Dream and Promise Act. We need a
pathway to citizenship for Dreamers who arrived in the United States as
children and know this country as their only home; for TPS recipients
who, like my grandparents, sought refuge in the United States when
crises in their home countries put their very lives at risk.
These are doctors, nurses, first responders, who cared for us during
the pandemic. Many have served bravely as members of our military.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' for our friends
and neighbors who yearn to become citizens of the country they already
call home.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentleman from New York (Mr. Suozzi).
Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, 100 years ago my father was born in a
small medieval village in the mountaintops of southern Italy. He came
to America as a young boy, and in his St. Dominic's High School
yearbook, he wrote that his goal in life was to become a real American.
Twenty-seven years ago, I served as the young mayor of my hometown of
Glen Cove. I addressed the issue of a growing population of new
immigrants from Central and South America who gathered on street
corners looking for daywork by creating the first dayworkers' site
anywhere on the East Coast of the United States of America.
Today, those same men who gathered on street corners have their own
businesses, own homes, their children went to school with my children.
One Dreamer from El Salvador who graduated from high school with my
daughter went on to graduate from college with a degree in biomedical
engineering, got a master's in biomedical engineering, and is now
pursuing a doctorate in the same subject.
Today, I will support the American Dream and Promise Act for Mario,
and for Nelson, and for all the other Dreamers whose goal is like my
father's, to be a real American.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Louisiana (Mr. Scalise), the distinguished whip.
Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio for
yielding.
Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this amnesty bill. And
if you look at what is happening at our southern border right now,
America is facing a serious crisis. Our southern border is being
overrun, the facilities, the detention centers that are set up to hold
people who are coming across, are being overwhelmed.
In fact, if you listen to what the border agents are telling us, it
is total mayhem, to quote one of the border agents. Many facilities are
not at 100 percent or 200 percent or 300 percent capacity, but even
worse than that. There are kids who aren't getting enough food, who
aren't being able to shower more than once a week.
This is going on in American detention facilities today, and
President Biden refuses to acknowledge the problem. Part of dealing
with the problem is to first admit there is a problem, and President
Biden doesn't even want to acknowledge it.
And then on the heels of this border crisis that is going on right
now, there is a bill on the House floor to create amnesty, to create a
bigger magnet, saying, come to the southern border.
The Homeland Security Secretary has been pressed repeatedly the last
few days to tell people to stop coming across the border illegally, and
he won't do it. He says, Well, they will come right now. As if there is
a time to break the law.
Let's get back to legal immigration, a system that actually works for
America. But when you have a crisis at the border, the last thing you
should do is make it worse. That is what this bill does.
We should be having an honest conversation about how to make our
legal system of immigration work; not how to ignite a crisis at the
border and make it worse. We know how bad it is over there. In fact,
because of the encouragement to cross the border illegally, there are
caravans of young kids coming across, and reports that up to a third of
all the women coming across are being sexually assaulted on the
journey. Stop this humanitarian crisis. Reject this bill.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
We do have a crisis in this country: the crisis consists of a
shortage of workers. As our birth rate goes down, as our aging goes up,
we have fewer and fewer workers. And since economists tell us that the
number of workers is what produces prosperity, this is a crisis for the
country.
Fortuitously, we have a situation where we have several million
people in this country who are Americans, who have lived almost their
entire lives in America, who, as was mentioned before, find out they
weren't born in this country only when they apply for a driver's
license when they are 18 years old. They are a resource for this
country, and they ought to be legalized, which is what this bill does,
so that we can utilize their talents properly and remain under rule of
law.
Madam Speaker, organizations, associations, and industry leaders from
across the political spectrum support passage of H.R. 6, the American
Dream and Promise Act of 2021. They include among them: United We
Dream, Service Employees International, the AFL-CIO--and these unions
do not fear competition, they know it is good--the U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops, United States Chamber of Commerce, Apple, and the
National Education Association.
After closing the books on 4 years of disastrous and inhumane
immigration policies, today we begin a new chapter, one based on
compassion, reason, and the fundamental values we hold dear as
Americans.
Passage of H.R. 6 is long overdue. Today's vote will dictate the
future of millions of Dreamers and recipients of the TPS and DED and
will greatly help the economy of this country.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in support of the
American Dream and Promise Act of 2021, and I yield back the balance of
my time.
Ms. ESHOO. Madam Speaker, I'm proud to support H.R. 6, the American
Dream and
[[Page H1526]]
Promise Act to ensure that millions of young Americans can remain in
the only country they've ever known and loved.
The bill provides a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, young people
who came to the U.S. as children without legal status. It provides
conditional legal status for ten years to those with a high school
diploma or equivalent credential, and they must pay a fee and pass a
background check. They can also earn permanent legal status if they
attend college, work lawfully, or serve in the military.
I supported President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA) program which provided temporary legal status and work permits
to over 650,000 young people, but only Congress can provide permanent
legal status and a pathway to citizenship through statute. After
putting their faith in the government when they registered for DACA and
enduring the Trump Administration's three-year legal battle to end this
program, these young people deserve the certainty of a permanent
solution.
The American Dream and Promise Act also provides permanent legal
status to recipients of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred
Enforced Departure (DED), programs that provide temporary legal status
to immigrants from countries experiencing war, natural disasters, or
other ongoing crises.
Many of the individuals I've described are longtime U.S. residents
who contribute to their communities and our economy and are Americans
in all but name. Our legislation provides them with an earned pathway
to citizenship so they can be legally recognized as full members of
society and no longer live in fear of deportation. They deserve this,
and I urge all Members to support the American Dream and Promise Act.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill,
the Dream and Promise Act. Let me thank Speaker Pelosi, Chairman
Nadler, Chairwoman Lofgren, Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, and Rep. Yvette
Clarke for all their work to make humane immigration reform a priority.
I am a proud co-author of the Dream and Promise Act, which will
finally give peace of mind to millions who are American in every way
but on paper by providing a pathway to citizenship. These are Dreamers,
TPS, and DED recipients, yes. But they are also our co-workers,
friends, family members and hardworking, law-abiding members of our
communities.
And under this bill, we can shield qualifying recipients of TPS, DED
and DACA from deportation and create a more comprehensive pathway to
citizenship.
So, let's do the right thing, the American thing, and pass this bill.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R.
6, the DREAM and PROMISE Act of 2021. This timely legislation would
finally provide a solution to the millions of immigrants who have faced
uncertainty on their legal status for too long as a result of this
country's broken immigration system.
When I was young and our family had the opportunity to travel to go
see family or to see the country, I did not have a say in where we went
or how long we stayed there. I was a child. Simply put, this was not my
decision. Similarly, the children of undocumented immigrants who were
brought to our country did not have a say on where their parents were
bringing them, or how long they would be staying here. They were
innocent children.
And while we've debated for over two decades on meaningful
immigration reform, these individuals have had the opportunity to grow
up with our children and families, attend the same schools and
universities, have families of their own, and make immeasurable
contributions to our communities. DREAMERs have been able to live the
American Dream in every way but one--on paper.
The legislation that we are debating today not only provides a
pathway to legalization and citizenship for these individuals but also
to those who fled political unrest and natural disasters in their home
countries. Currently protected under TPS (Temporary Protected Status),
these individuals face the same uncertainty about their futures as
DREAMERs. And like DREAMERs, they too have been in our country for
decades and play a critical role in the success of our communities.
DREAM and PROMISE Act of 2021 is widely popular--supported by a
majority of Americans--and, notably, bipartisan. It is backed by
business leaders, labor unions, and educators alike. Some of its
advocates are my constituents, who have told their stories and inspired
me with their commitment and unwavering dedication to their work, their
families, our community in North Texas, and to the country they call
home, the United States of America.
Madam Speaker, I strongly believe that we must act now and pass
legislation to offer a common-sense and logical solution to our broader
immigration issues. The DREAM and PROMISE Act would take a meaningful
step towards that goal and would lay out a path in which we could do
that, which is why I urge my colleagues to support it and look forward
to the Senate's immediate consideration.
Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Madam Speaker, today, I am pleased to rise in
support of the American Dream and Promise Act (H.R. 6) to provide
permanent protections for Dreamers and those currently protected by
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED)
programs.
Over the past few years, the lives of these Dreamers, who have
largely known no other home than the United States, have been filled
with even greater uncertainly and court challenges. This bill aims to
permanently change that and give security and a pathway to citizenship
for our Dreamers.
The vast majority of DACA-eligible students over the age of 18
received a high school education here. Our nation has made an
investment in their future that not only transformed their lives, but
also has resulted in widespread economic and other benefits for our
country and communities. A few years ago, it was estimated that if
Wisconsin's DACA workers were deported, it would cost the state more
than $400 million annually.
Despite this uncertainty and outright hateful opposition from the
previous administration, these young men and women remain resolute and
many have served on the frontlines--as health care professionals and
other essential workers--during this deadly pandemic.
We successfully defended against ill-advised efforts to end DACA. Now
it is time to take the next step. We need to ensure that DREAMers can
continue enriching our country.
Likewise, TPS holders have also seen their lives thrown into turmoil
during an already turbulent time, with their fate depending on a series
of court decisions. Like Dreamers, TPS holders are active members of
their communities, many have lived here for years, and are critical
contributors to our economy.
It's always the right time to do the right thing. Now is the right
time to provide permanent protections and a pathway to citizenship for
those who have contributed so much to our country. I am pleased to
support this bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 233, the
previous question is ordered on the bill, as amended.
The question is on the engrossment and third reading of the bill.
The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was
read the third time.
Motion to Recommit
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion to
recommit.
The Clerk read as follows:
Mr. Jordan moves to recommit the bill H.R. 6 to the
Committee on the Judiciary.
The material previously referred to by Mr. Jordan is as follows:
Page 10, after line 8, insert the following:
(C) The Secretary knows or has reason to believe that the
alien is or has been a member of a criminal street gang (as
defined in subsection (a) of section 521 of title 18, United
States Code), or to have participated in the activities of a
criminal street gang knowing or having reason to know that
such activities will promote, further, aid, or support the
illegal activity of the criminal gang. For purposes of this
subparagraph, the Secretary may consider any and all credible
evidence of membership or participation in a criminal street
gang, including evidence obtained from a State or Federal
data base used for the purpose of recording and sharing
activities of alleged gang members across law enforcement
agencies.
Page 13, strike line 11 and all that follows through line
19.
Page 55, after line 18, insert the following:
SEC. 314. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN ALIENS FOUND INELIGIBLE FOR
ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.
Notwithstanding sections 102(e), 202(d)(3), and 309 of this
Act, an alien whose application would be denied based on
criminal, national security, gang, or public safety grounds,
as set out in section 102(c) or 202(a)(3) of this Act, shall
be referred by the Secretary of Homeland Security for a
determination of whether the alien should be placed in
removal proceedings under section 240 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a).
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 2(b) of rule XIX, the
previous question is ordered on the motion to recommit.
The question is on the motion to recommit.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the noes appeared to have it.
Mr. JORDAN. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this question
are postponed.
[[Page H1527]]
Pursuant to clause 1(c) of rule XIX, further consideration of H.R. 6
is postponed.
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