[House Report 112-622]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


112th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     112-622

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



 
                    FOR THE RELIEF OF ESTHER KARINGE

                                _______
                                

  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. 316]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 316) for the relief of Esther Karinge, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends 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........................     3
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................     3
Performance Goals and Objectives.................................     4
Advisory on Earmarks.............................................     4
Section-by-Section Analysis......................................     4

                          Purpose and Summary

    The bill grants permanent resident status to Esther 
Karinge.

                Background and Need for the Legislation

    Esther Njeri Karinge was born in Kenya in 1962. She came to 
the United States in 1994 and applied for asylum in 1997. 
According to her asylum application, she had worked in Kenya 
for her uncle, a former Kenyan Councilor who fled the country 
and was living in exile. Due to his political views and the 
family's Kikuju ethnicity, Esther and her family allegedly 
suffered through continual harassment, and received several 
death threats, during a time of civil unrest in the region. An 
immigration judge denied her request for asylum in 1998 and her 
appeal was denied in 2003.
    Esther's son Nicholas was born in Massachusetts in 1995 
with multiple birth defects. He continues to suffer from 
several severe physical and mental disabilities, including 
cerebral palsy, spastic quadriplegia, hearing loss and 
developmental delays. Upon learning of these birth defects, 
Nicholas' father abandoned the family, leaving Esther as 
Nicholas' only parent and caretaker. Nicholas is completely 
dependent on Esther. He needs continuous medical care and 
requires medical management from numerous specialists. It is 
feared that ``[t]aking Nicholas back to Kenya . . . will 
eliminate the sophisticated therapy that is Nick's lifeline to 
diminishing the effects of cerebral palsy on his development. 
He is now receiving services in arguably the finest settings 
available in the world. Without these interventions, this 
extremely bright boy would be unable to navigate either 
physically or linguistically. His potential, which, with 
continued therapy and education, is limitless, will be 
drastically curtailed should current interventions be 
terminated.''
    H.R. 316 grants Ms. Karinge permanent residence.
    There is precedent in the modern era for the enactment of 
private bills where 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.\1\ 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.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\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.\2\ 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\See Priv. L. No. 106-13 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-905).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In the 110th Congress, the Immigration Subcommittee 
requested an ICE report on Ms. Karinge and ICE provided the 
Subcommittee with a report which contained no derogatory 
information. On May 8, 2008, the Subcommittee ordered H.R. 1485 
(providing relief to Ms. Karinge) favorably reported by voice 
vote. On May 14, 2008, the Committee ordered the bill favorably 
reported by voice vote. On September 16, 2008, the bill passed 
the House by voice vote. In the 111th Congress, the 
Subcommittee requested an ICE report and ICE provided a report 
which contained no derogatory information. On March 10, 2011, 
the Subcommittee again voted to request a report. On December 
19, 2011, ICE provided the report. It revealed no derogatory 
information.

                                Hearings

    The Committee on the Judiciary held no hearings on H.R. 
316.

                        Committee Consideration

    On June 28, 2012, the Committee met in open session and 
ordered the bill H.R. 316 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. 316.

                      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. 316, 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. 
316 grants permanent resident status to Esther Karinge.

                          Advisory on Earmarks

    In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H.R. 316 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 Esther Karinge.
    Subsection (a) provides that Esther Karinge 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 Ms. Karinge enters the 
United States before the filing deadline specified in 
subsection (c), she 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.
    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 Ms. Karinge, 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 her 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 her birth under 
section 202(e) of the INA.
    Subsection (e) provides that the natural parents, brothers, 
and sisters of Ms. Karinge shall not, by virtue of such 
relationship, be accorded any right, privilege, or status under 
the Immigration and Nationality Act.

                                  
