[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 158 (Thursday, September 29, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5925-S5926]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 6399. Mr. BOOKER submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to
amendment SA 5499 submitted by Mr. Reed (for himself and Mr. Inhofe)
and intended to be proposed to the bill H.R. 7900, to authorize
appropriations for fiscal year 2023 for military activities of the
Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense
activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel
strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was
ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
SEC. ___. ADDITION OF VIRGIN ISLANDS VISA WAIVER TO GUAM AND
NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS VISA WAIVER.
(a) In General.--Section 212(l) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(l)) is amended to read as
follows:
``(l) Guam and Northern Mariana Islands Visa Waiver
Program; Virgin Islands Visa Waiver Program.--
``(1) In general.--The requirement of subsection
(a)(7)(B)(i) may be waived by the Secretary of Homeland
Security, in the case of an alien applying for admission as a
nonimmigrant visitor for business or pleasure and solely for
entry into and stay in Guam or the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United
States, for a period not to exceed 45 days, if the Secretary
of Homeland Security, after consultation with the Secretary
of the Interior, the Secretary of State, and the Governor of
Guam and the Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, or the Governor of the Virgin Islands of the
United States, as the case may be, determines that--
``(A) an adequate arrival and departure control system has
been developed in Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United States;
and
``(B) such a waiver does not represent a threat to the
welfare, safety, or security of the United States or its
territories and commonwealths.
``(2) Alien waiver of rights.--An alien may not be provided
a waiver under this subsection unless the alien has waived
any right--
``(A) to review or appeal under this Act an immigration
officer's determination as to the admissibility of the alien
at the port of entry into Guam or the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United
States; or
``(B) to contest, other than on the basis of an application
for withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3) of this
Act or under the Convention Against Torture, or an
application for asylum if permitted under section 208 of this
Act, any action for removal of the alien.
``(3) Regulations.--All necessary regulations to implement
this subsection shall be promulgated by the Secretary of
Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of the
Interior and the Secretary of State. The promulgation of such
regulations shall be considered a foreign affairs function
for purposes of section 553(a) of title 5, United States
Code. At a minimum, such regulations should include, but not
necessarily be limited to--
``(A) a listing of all countries whose nationals may obtain
the waivers provided by this subsection; and
``(B) any bonding requirements for nationals of some or all
of those countries who may present an increased risk of
overstays or other potential problems, if different from such
requirements otherwise provided by law for nonimmigrant
visitors.
``(4) Factors.--In determining whether to grant or continue
providing the waiver under this subsection to nationals of
any country, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in
consultation with the Secretary of the Interior and the
Secretary of State, shall consider all factors that the
Secretary of Homeland Security deems relevant, including
electronic travel authorizations, procedures for reporting
lost and stolen passports, repatriation of aliens, rates of
refusal for nonimmigrant visitor visas, overstays, exit
systems, and information exchange.
``(5) Suspension.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
monitor the admission of nonimmigrant visitors to Guam and
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the
Virgin Islands of the United States, under this subsection.
If the Secretary determines that such admissions have
resulted in an unacceptable number of visitors from a country
remaining unlawfully in Guam or the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United
States, unlawfully obtaining entry to other parts of the
United States, or seeking withholding of removal or asylum,
or that visitors from a country pose a risk to law
enforcement or security interests of Guam or the Commonwealth
of the Northern Mariana Islands, or of the Virgin Islands of
the United States, or of the United States (including the
interest in the enforcement of the immigration laws of the
United States), the Secretary shall suspend the admission of
nationals of such country under this subsection. The
Secretary of Homeland Security may in the Secretary's
discretion suspend the Guam and Northern Mariana Islands visa
waiver program, or the Virgin Islands visa waiver program, at
any time, on a country-by-country basis, for other good
cause.
``(6) Addition of countries.--The Governor of Guam and the
Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,
or the Governor of the Virgin Islands of the United States,
may request the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary
of Homeland Security to add a particular country to the list
of countries whose nationals may obtain the waiver provided
by this subsection, and the Secretary of Homeland Security
may grant such request after consultation with the Secretary
of the Interior and the Secretary of State, and may
promulgate regulations with respect to the inclusion of that
country and any special requirements the Secretary of
Homeland Security, in the Secretary's sole discretion, may
impose prior to allowing nationals of that country to obtain
the waiver provided by this subsection.''.
(b) Regulations Deadline.--Not later than one year after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of
Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of the
Interior and the Secretary of State, shall promulgate any
necessary regulations to implement the waiver provided in the
amendment made by subsection (a) for the Virgin Islands of
the United States.
(c) Waiver Countries.--The regulations described in
subsection (b) shall include a listing of all member or
associate member countries of the Caribbean Community whose
nationals may obtain, on a country-by-country basis, the
waiver provided by this section, except that such regulations
shall
[[Page S5926]]
not provide for a listing of any country if the Secretary of
Homeland Security determines that such country's inclusion on
such list would represent a threat to the welfare, safety, or
security of the United States or its territories and
commonwealths, or would increase fraud or abuse of the
nonimmigrant visa system.
(d) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Documentation requirements.--Section 212(a)(7)(B)(iii)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1182(a)(7)(B)(iii)) is amended to read as follows:
``(iii) Special visa waiver programs.--For a provision
authorizing waiver of clause (i) in the case of visitors to
Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or
the Virgin Islands of the United States, see subsection
(l).''.
(2) Admission of nonimmigrants.--Section 214(a)(1) of such
Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(a)(1)) is amended by striking ``Guam or
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands'' each place
such term appears and inserting ``Guam or the Commonwealth of
the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the
United States''.
(e) Fees.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
establish an administrative processing fee to be charged and
collected from individuals seeking to enter the Virgin
Islands of the United States in accordance with section
212(l) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1182(l)), as amended by this Act. Such fee shall be set at a
level that will ensure recovery of the full costs of such
processing, any additional costs associated with the
administration of the fees collected, and any sums necessary
to offset reduced collections of the nonimmigrant visa fee or
the electronic travel authorization fee that otherwise would
have been collected from such individuals.
______