[House Report 105-360]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



105th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 1st Session                                                    105-360
_______________________________________________________________________


 
                  FOR THE RELIEF OF JOHN ANDRE CHALOT

                                _______
                                

 October 31, 1997.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House and 
                         ordered to be printed

_______________________________________________________________________


 Mr. Hyde, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 2732]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 2732) for the relief of John Andre Chalot, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment 
and recommend that the bill do pass.

                          purpose and summary

    This bill provides that for the purpose of determining 
eligibility for relief under the Agreement Between the 
Government of the United States and the Government of the 
Federal Republic of Germany Concerning Final Benefits to 
Certain United States Nationals Who Were Victims of National 
Socialist Measures of Persecution, John Andre Chalot will be 
deemed to be a naturalized citizen of the United States as of 
September 3, 1943, the date he entered the U.S. Armed Forces.

                background and need for the legislation

    John Andre Chalot served in the Armed Forces of the United 
States during World War II. During his service he was captured 
by the Nazis and interned at the infamous concentration camp 
known as Buchenwald.
    John Andre Chalot, was too young to enlist in the U.S. 
Army, so he went to Canada and joined the Royal Canadian Air 
Force. He flew Spitfires with the RCAF based in England from 
1940-1943, and transferred to the U.S. Army Air Corps, 358th 
Fighter Squadron, in 1943, receiving a commission as a second 
lieutenant. Early in 1944, Mr. Chalot was flying a P-51 mission 
over Germany when his plane was hit and he crash-landed in 
Holland. With the help of the Resistance, he managed to get to 
Paris, but was arrested and imprisoned there. In August 1944, 
he and his fellow prisoners, including 168 Allied airmen, were 
crowded into boxcars and transported to Buchenwald, where they 
were suffered extreme deprivations and were even subjected to 
Nazi medical experiments. Mr. Chalot and most of his fellow 
airmen were eventually transferred to Stalag Luft III, a POW 
camp, where they remained until their liberation.
    Mr. Chalot had immigrated with his family from France 
before the age of two. He never completed his naturalization 
prior to going to war. He survived the war, came to the United 
States as a war hero, and obtained his American citizenship.
    Fifty years later, when he applied for compensation under a 
United States and Germany agreement as an American national who 
was a victim of Nazi persecution, he was informed that he was 
not eligible because he was not a U.S. citizen at the time of 
the persecution.
    According to the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, Mr. 
Chalot is one of only two individuals that fall into this 
category. In the formal denial, the Foreign Claims Settlement 
Commission stated that they were bound by the international 
agreement and could not allow this otherwise deserving 
individual inclusion in the reparation group.

                                hearings

    The Committee's Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims held 
no hearings on H.R. 2732.

                        committee consideration

    On October 29, 1997, the Committee on the Judiciary met in 
open session and ordered reported favorably the bill H.R. 2732, 
by voice vote, a quorum being present.

                      committee oversight findings

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(A) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee reports 
that the findings and recommendations of the Committee, based 
on oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the 
descriptive portions of this report.

         committee on government reform and oversight findings

    No findings or recommendations of the Committee on 
Government Reform and Oversight were received as referred to in 
clause 2(l)(3)(D) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives.

               new budget authority and tax expenditures

    Clause 2(l)(3)(B) of House Rule XI is inapplicable because 
this legislation does not provide new budgetary authority or 
increased tax expenditures.

               congressional budget office cost estimate

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(C) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets 
forth, with respect to the bill, H.R. 2732, the following 
estimate and comparison prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 403 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                   Washington DC, October 30, 1997.
Hon. Henry J. Hyde,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 2732, a bill for 
the relief of John Andre Chalot.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark 
Grabowicz.
            Sincerely,
                                              James L. Blum
                                   (For June E. O'Neill, Director).
    Enclosure.

H.R. 2732--A bill for the relief of John Andre Chalot

    CBO estimates that enacting this legislation would not 
affect the federal budget. Because H.R. 2732 would not affect 
direct spending or receipts, pay-as-you-go procedures would not 
apply. This bill contains no intergovernmental or private-
sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 
of 1995 and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    H.R. 2732 would classify John Andre Chalot as a naturalized 
citizen of the United States as of August 8, 1942. This action 
would make him eligible for reparations from Germany relating 
to his imprisonment during World War II. According to the 
Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, enacting this legislation 
would not affect the commission's operation.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Mark Grabowicz. 
This estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                   constitutional authority statement

    Pursuant to rule XI, clause 2(l)(4) of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee finds the authority for 
this legislation in Article 1, Section 8, Clause 10 of the 
Constitution.

                              agency views

    The comments of the Immigration and Naturalization Service 
on H.R. 2732 are as follows:

                        U.S. Department of Justice,
                    Immigration and Naturalization Service,
                                  Washington, DC, October 30, 1997.
Hon. Henry J. Hyde,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: Per your request for a report relative 
to H.R. 2732, for the relief of John Andre Chalot.
    The bill would make Mr. Chalot eligible for compensation by 
deeming him a naturalized U.S. citizen as of the date he began 
his military service for the purposes of the Foreign Claims 
Settlement Act.
    In lieu of a report, it has been requested that the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service provide the date of 
naturalization for the beneficiary. Mr. Chalot was naturalized 
on September 18, 1945. Attached is a copy of the naturalization 
certificate.
            Sincerely,
                                            Allen Erenbaum,
                          Acting Director, Congressional Relations.




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