[House Report 112-617]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
112th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 112-617
======================================================================
FOR THE RELIEF OF BARTOSZ KUMOR
_______
July 24, 2012.--Referred to the Private Calendar and ordered to be
printed
_______
Mr. Smith of Texas, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1857]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the
bill (H.R. 1857) for the relief of Bartosz Kumor, having
considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment
and recommend that the bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
Purpose and Summary.............................................. 1
Background and Need for the Legislation.......................... 1
Hearings......................................................... 2
Committee Consideration.......................................... 2
Committee Votes.................................................. 2
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 2
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................ 3
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 3
Performance Goals and Objectives................................. 3
Advisory on Earmarks............................................. 4
Section-by-Section Analysis...................................... 4
Purpose and Summary
The bill grants permanent resident status to Bartosz Kumor.
Background and Need for the Legislation
Bartosz ``Bart'' Kumor was born in Poland in 1984. Bart's
parents separated, leaving his mother as his sole provider. As
she earned very little money, she found it very difficult to
provide for her son. Bart's mother sent him (on a visitor's
visa) to live with his uncle, Jerzy Wydmuch, in the United
States in 1993 at the age of nine. In 1994, Bart obtained a
student visa and began to attend school. The following year,
Mr. Wydmuch became Bart's legally appointed guardian.
Around this time, Mr. Wydmuch, a United States citizen,
consulted with an attorney to begin the adoption process.
Initially, the attorney with whom Mr. Wydmuch consulted delayed
the process based upon his busy trial schedule. The attorney
also lacked knowledge of the requirements of immigration law
that an adoption be completed by the age of 16 for a child to
be eligible for permanent residence as an immediate relative of
a U.S. citizen. It also took some time to obtain the formal
consent of Bart's mother in Poland. The adoption process was
completed in 2001, when Bart was 17 years of age.
Bart obtained an undergraduate degree from the University
of Michigan and a law degree from Wayne State Law School. He
was in lawful status throughout most of his presence in the
U.S., first as a visitor visa, then as a foreign student and
most recently on optional practical training, but fell out of
status last year.
H.R. 1857 grants Mr. Kumor permanent residence.
There is much precedent for private bills that involve
adoptions that were initiated, but not completed, by the alien
child's 16th birthday, as required by immigration law.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\See, e.g., Priv. L. No. 108-1 (H.R. Rep. No. 108-532), Priv. L.
No. 108-6 (H.R. Rep. No.108-529), Priv. L. No. 107-6 (H.R. Rep. No.
107-729), Priv. L. No. 106-7 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-906) & Priv. L. No.
105-5 (H.R. Rep. 105-125).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
On October 5, 2011, the Immigration Subcommittee voted to
request an ICE report on Mr. Kumor. On May 3, 2012, ICE
provided the report. It revealed no derogatory information.
Hearings
The Committee on the Judiciary held no hearings on H.R.
1857.
Committee Consideration
On June 28, 2012, the Committee met in open session and
ordered the bill H.R. 1857 favorably reported without
amendment, by voice vote, a quorum being present.
Committee Votes
In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that there
were no recorded votes during the Committee's consideration of
H.R. 1857.
Committee Oversight Findings
In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises 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.
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures
Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives is inapplicable because this legislation does
not provide new budgetary authority or increased tax
expenditures.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth, with
respect to the bill, H.R. 1857, the following estimate and
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, July 5, 2012.
Hon. Lamar Smith, Chairman,
Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
reviewed the following legislation ordered reported by the
House Committee on the Judiciary on June 28, 2012:
LH.R. 823, a bill for the relief of Maria
Carmen Castro Ramirez and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas;
LH.R. 824, a bill for the relief of Daniel
Wachira;
LH.R. 316, a bill for the relief of Esther
Karinge;
LH.R. 794, a bill for the relief of Allan
Bolor Kelley;
LH.R. 357, a bill for the relief of Corina de
Chalup Turcinovic; and
LH.R. 1857, a bill for the relief of Bartosz
Kumor.
Those bills would make certain individuals eligible for
permanent U.S. residence and could have a very small effect on
fees collected by the Department of Homeland Security and thus
would affect direct spending. Therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures apply. CBO estimates, however, that enacting those
pieces of legislation would not have a significant impact on
the federal budget.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark
Grabowicz, who can be reached at 226-2860.
Sincerely,
Douglas W. Elmendorf,
Director.
Enclosure
cc:
Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
Ranking Member
Performance Goals and Objectives
The Committee states that pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, H.R.
1857 grants permanent residence to Bartosz Kumor.
Advisory on Earmarks
In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, H.R. 1857 does not contain any
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of Rule XXI.
Section-by-Section Analysis
The following discussion describes the bill as reported by
the Committee.
Sec. 1. Permanent Resident Status for Bartosz Kumor.
Subsection (a) provides that Bartosz Kumor shall be
eligible for issuance of an immigrant visa or for adjustment of
status to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent
residence upon filing an application for issuance of an
immigrant visa under section 204 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA) or for adjustment of status to lawful
permanent resident.
Subsection (b) provides that if Mr. Kumor enters the United
States before the filing deadline specified in subsection (c),
he shall be considered to have entered and remained lawfully
and shall, if otherwise eligible, be eligible for adjustment of
status under section 245 of the INA.
Subsection (c) provides that subsections (a) and (b) shall
apply only if the application for issuance of an immigrant visa
or the application for adjustment of status is filed with
appropriate fees within 2 years after the date of the enactment
of this Act.
Subsection (d) provides that upon the granting of an
immigrant visa or permanent residence to Mr. Kumor the
Secretary of State shall instruct the proper officer to reduce
by 1, during the current or next following fiscal year, the
total number of immigrant visas that are made available to
natives of the country of his birth under section 203(a) of the
INA or, if applicable, the total number of immigrant visas that
are made available to natives of the country of his birth under
section 202(e) of the INA.
Subsection (e) provides that the natural parents, brothers,
and sisters of Mr. Kumor shall not, by virtue of such
relationship, be accorded any right, privilege, or status under
the INA.