[House Report 112-619]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


112th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     112-619

======================================================================



 
 FOR THE RELIEF OF MARIA CARMEN CASTRO RAMIREZ AND J. REFUGIO CARRENO 
                                 ROJAS

                                _______
                                

  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. 823]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 823) for the relief of Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez 
and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas, 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.........................................................     3
Committee Consideration..........................................     3
Committee Votes..................................................     3
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     3
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................     4
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................     4
Performance Goals and Objectives.................................     5
Advisory on Earmarks.............................................     5
Section-by-Section Analysis......................................     5

                          Purpose and Summary

    The bill grants permanent resident status to Maria Carmen 
Castro Ramirez and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas.

                Background and Need for the Legislation

    Ms. Castro Ramirez entered the U.S. illegally from Mexico 
in 1991. In 1992, she married another illegal immigrant from 
Mexico, Mr. Carreno Rojas. Maria then gave birth to three 
children in the U.S., who are all U.S. citizens pursuant to 
birthright citizenship. In January 2009, Mr. Carreno Rojas was 
deported to Mexico.
    All three of the children have serious medical needs. Most 
seriously, Guadalupe (18 years of age) suffers from a type of 
epilepsy. Dr. Michael Rodriguez, of the UCLA Department of 
Family Medicine stated that:
    Guadalupe . . . is diagnosed with acute Juvenile Myoclonic 
Epilepsy (JME), a potentially life threatening seizure 
disorder. Guadalupe's JME is controlled by . . . taking 
advanced medication, Keppra KL, a drug that is not available in 
Mexico. She receives continuous monitoring by a neurologist. 
She requires Keppra KL every day. If she has a lapse in her 
treatment, she could suffer severe and permanent adverse 
consequences, possibly even death. . . . [I]t is clear that 
[Guadalupe is] in grave danger if forced to relocate to Mexico, 
since it is highly unlikely that [she] would have access to the 
essential care [she needs] on a timely and continuous basis. . 
. . [F]or Guadalupe, it is certain that the Mexican health 
system will not be able to provide the same level of basic care 
she requires, including ensuring that she has the medications 
she needs, as well as crucial monitoring and follow up. [S]he 
will likely suffer severe and detrimental health consequences 
if forced to relocate, possibly even death.
    A younger child, Jose (five), has severe asthma and ``if 
there is a lapse in the management or treatment of his disease 
he will likely suffer from respiratory arrest leading to 
death'' (Dr. Monica Nayakwadi-Singer, Bayview Child Health 
Center). Dr. Rodriguez also claims that Jose would be in grave 
danger if forced to go move to Mexico.
    H.R. 823 grants Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr. Carreno Rojas 
permanent residence.
    In the modern era, Congress has approved private bills when 
an alien suffered a serious illness and could not receive 
proper treatment in their home country. For instance:
    In the 106th Congress, Congress passed a private bill for 
Marina Khalina and her son Albert Mifakhov.\1\ Marina was in 
the U.S. with her son on visitor's visas which could no longer 
be extended. The son was undergoing medical treatment for 
cerebral palsy which was unobtainable in Russia and which he 
would need until he became an adult.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\See Priv. L. No. 106-15 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-956).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In the 106th Congress, Congress passed a private bill for 
Jacqueline Salinas and her three children.\2\ One of the 
children who had a rare bone cancer had come to the U.S. with 
her father from Bolivia (where it could not be treated). St. 
Jude's Children's Hospital offered treatment at no cost to the 
family. The rest of the family joined them in the U.S. A car 
accident resulted in the death of the father, one child, and 
the permanent paralysis of Ms. Salinas from the waist down. The 
mother, who was pregnant at the time of the accident, gave 
birth to a U.S. citizen child. The hospital offered complete 
financial support to enable the family to remain in the U.S. 
The disability of the surviving parent and the need for ongoing 
cancer treatment for the sick child would have caused the 
family extreme hardship if they had to return to Bolivia.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\See Priv. L. No. 106-20 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-962).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    There is also precedent in the modern era for the enactment 
of private bills when the aliens' U.S. citizen family members 
suffered serious illnesses which would be exacerbated if the 
aliens were returned home or the U.S. citizens accompanied them 
home. A private bill was enacted in the 104th Congress for an 
alien who had earlier been deported to Mexico for marriage 
fraud.\3\ Before his deportation, he married his second wife in 
a legitimate marriage and they had two children. His wife and 
one of their children were carriers for Reiter's syndrome, a 
severe, disabling, incurable arthritic disease who could be 
triggered by an intestinal infection with an organism 
widespread in Mexico. Thus, they risked serious illness by 
joining him in Mexico. The private bill waived the grounds of 
inadmissibility for marriage fraud. The House Report stated 
that ``this legislation acknowledges the previously set 
precedent in private legislation that separation due to medical 
circumstances is viewed . . . as satisfying the standard of 
extreme hardship to an American citizen.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\See Priv. L. No. 104-3 (H.R. Rep. No. 104-810).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In the 106th Congress, a private bill was enacted granting 
permanent residence to an alien whose petition for permanent 
residence filed by his U.S. citizen wife had been denied 
because of marriage fraud in his first marriage.\4\ The INS 
believed this second marriage was valid. The alien's U.S. 
citizen wife had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and her 
doctor indicated that she might rapidly deteriorate as a result 
of any type of severe stress.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \4\See Priv. L. No. 106-13 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-905).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In the 111th Congress, the Immigration Subcommittee 
requested a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (``ICE'') 
report on Ms. Ramirez and Mr. Rojas and ICE provided the 
Subcommittee with a report which contained no derogatory 
information. On March 10, 2011, the Subcommittee again voted to 
request a report on Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr. Carreno Rojas. 
On January 18, 2012, ICE provided the report. It revealed no 
derogatory information.

                                Hearings

    The Committee on the Judiciary held no hearings on H.R. 
823.

                        Committee Consideration

    On June 28, 2012, the Committee met in open session and 
ordered the bill H.R. 823 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. 823.

                      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. 823, 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. 
823 grants permanent resident status to Maria Carmen Castro 
Ramirez and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas.

                          Advisory on Earmarks

    In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H.R. 823 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 Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez and 
        J. Refugio Carreno Rojas.
    Subsection (a) provides that Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez 
and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas shall each 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 Ms. Castro Ramirez or Mr. 
Carreno Rojas enters the United States before the filing 
deadline specified in subsection (d), they 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 as of the date of the enactment of this Act.
    Paragraph (1) of subsection (c) provides that Ms. Castro 
Ramirez and Mr. Carreno Rojas may not be removed from the 
United States, denied admission to the United States, or 
considered ineligible for lawful permanent residence in the 
United States by reason of any ground for removal or denial of 
admission that is reflected in the records of the Department of 
Homeland Security or the Visa Office of the Department of State 
on the date of the enactment of this Act.
    Paragraph (2) of subsection (c) provides that the Secretary 
of Homeland Security shall rescind any outstanding order of 
removal or deportation, or any finding of inadmissibility or 
deportability, that has been entered against Ms. Castro Ramirez 
or Mr. Carreno Rojas by reason of any ground described in 
paragraph (1).
    Subsection (d) 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 (e) provides that upon the granting of an 
immigrant visa or permanent residence to Ms. Castro Ramirez and 
Mr. Carreno Rojas, the Secretary of State shall instruct the 
proper officer to reduce by 2, during the current or next 
following fiscal year, the total number of immigrant visas that 
are made available to natives of the country of their 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 their birth under section 202(e) of the INA.
    Subsection (f) provides that the natural parents, brothers, 
and sisters of Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr. Carreno Rojas shall 
not, by virtue of such relationship, be accorded any right, 
privilege, or status under the INA.

                                  
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