[House Report 116-423]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
116th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session } { 116-423
======================================================================
FOR THE RELIEF OF MARIA CARMEN CASTRO RAMIREZ AND J. REFUGIO CARRENO
ROJAS
_______
May 22, 2020.--Referred to the Private Calendar and ordered to be
printed
_______
Mr. Nadler, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1548]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the
bill (H.R. 1548) for the relief of Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez
and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas, 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.......................... 2
Hearings......................................................... 3
Committee Consideration.......................................... 3
Committee Votes.................................................. 3
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 4
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................ 4
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 4
Duplication of Federal Programs.................................. 5
Performance Goals and Objectives................................. 5
Advisory on Earmarks............................................. 5
Section-by-Section Analysis...................................... 6
Purpose and Summary
H.R. 1548, ``For the relief of Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez
and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas,'' would provide the beneficiaries
of this private bill, Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr. Carreno Rojas,
with an opportunity to obtain lawful permanent resident status
in the United States.
Background and Need for the Legislation
A. IMMIGRATION BACKGROUND
Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas
were both born in Guanajuato, Mexico and separately entered the
United States without inspection approximately 30 years ago.
The couple married in 1992 and have three U.S. citizen
children: Guadalupe Carreno Castro, age 26; Ivan Carreno
Castro, age 25; and Jose Carreno Castro, age 12.
In 1994, Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr. Carreno Rojas were
placed in separate deportation proceedings. Following
protracted proceedings and various requests for relief from
deportation, both received final deportation orders. On January
27, 2009, Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr. Carreno Rojas were
arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Shortly
thereafter, Mr. Carreno Rojas was deported from the United
States, while Ms. Castro Ramirez remained in the United States
pursuant to the grant of multiple stays of removal associated
with the introduction of private bills on the couple's behalf.
Desperate to be reunited with his family, Mr. Carreno Rojas
reentered the United States without inspection in 2011.
B. NO CRIMINAL HISTORY OR NEGATIVE PUBLIC RECORDS
In March 2019, the Subcommittee on Immigration and
Citizenship voted in favor of requesting a report from the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Ms. Castro Ramirez and
Mr. Carreno Rojas. The report was issued on April 25, 2019 and
revealed no criminal history or negative public records about
either individual.
C. MEDICAL CONDITIONS
Two of the couple's children suffer from severe medical
conditions. As a child, Guadalupe was diagnosed with acute
Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy. This condition can lead to
permanent neurological impairment and life-threatening seizures
if not properly controlled. Twelve-year-old Jose suffers from
severe asthma that requires the care of a pediatric pulmonology
specialist, prescription medication, and emergency medical
services when necessary. Additionally, Jose has been referred
for psychological treatment, and recently suffered a perforated
eardrum, which resulted in some hearing loss requiring
corrective surgery.
The couple has private insurance, which they receive
through their employers and which allows them to receive
quality medical care that they can afford. Medical experts have
confirmed that the family would be subjected to sub-standard
medical care if forced to relocate to Mexico, as a result of
limited medical expertise and shortages of required
medications. This would make it difficult for Jose to receive
appropriate care for his asthma, including emergency medical
care. The medication that Guadalupe takes to treat her
condition is unavailable in most parts of Mexico. If the family
is relocated to Mexico, the negative impact on their health and
well-being would be significant.
The risks for Jose if he were to remain in the United
States apart from his parents are also significant. A licensed
therapist confirmed that if Jose remained in the United States
while his parents were forced to relocate to Mexico, he would
likely ``experience negative effects on his personal health
[which] could manifest as worsened frequency of asthma attacks,
severity of symptoms, or length of time that the attacks
occur.''\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Psychological Assessment of Extreme Hardship, Jose Antonio
Carreno Castro, East Bay Area Therapy at 10 (Mar. 2, 2020), on file
with Subcommittee.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
D. HOUSE PRECEDENT FOR CONSIDERATION OF PRIVATE
IMMIGRATION BILLS
In the modern era, Congress has passed numerous private
bills for similarly situated individuals, including in cases
where the beneficiary, or the U.S. citizen spouse or child of a
beneficiary, suffered from a serious illness and could not
receive proper treatment in the beneficiary's home country.
For example, in the 106th Congress, the House passed a
private bill for Marina Khalina and her son Albert Kifakov, the
latter of whom had cerebral palsy and would require lifelong
medical treatment that was unavailable in their home country of
Russia.\2\ Also in the 106th Congress, the House passed a
private bill for the relief of Jacqueline Salinas--who was
paralyzed from the waist down and her children, one of whom was
afflicted with bone cancer.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\See H.R. Rep. No. 106-956 (2000); See also S.150, 106th Cong.
(1999).
\3\See H.R. Rep. No. 106-962 (2000); See also S.1513, 106th Cong.
(1999).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the 104th Congress, the House passed a private bill for
Oscar Salas-Velazquez, whose U.S. citizen child and wife were
carriers of an antigen that predisposes them to developing
Reiter's syndrome--a severe, disabling, incurable arthritic
disease which can be triggered by an intestinal infection from
organisms widespread in Mexico.\4\ Requiring Mr. Salas-
Velazquez's wife and child to join him in Mexico would very
likely result in the development of Reiter's syndrome.\5\ In
the 106th Congress, the House also passed a private bill for
Saeed Rezai, whose U.S. citizen wife was stricken with multiple
sclerosis.\6\ Medical professionals indicated that her
condition would likely deteriorate rapidly from the severe
stress resulting from her husband's removal.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\See H.R. Rep. No. 104-810 (1996); See also H.R. 1031, 104th
Cong. (1995).
\5\Id.
\6\See H.R. Rep. No. 106-905 (2000); See also H.R. 5266, 106th
Cong. (2000).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hearings
The Committee on the Judiciary held no hearings on H.R.
1548.
Committee Consideration
On March 11, 2020, the Committee met in open session and
ordered the bill, H.R. 1548, favorably reported without
amendment, by a 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. 1548.
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. 1548, 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, May 12, 2020.
Hon. Jerrold Nadler,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1548, a bill for
the relief of Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez and J. Refugio
Carreno Rojas.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is David
Rafferty, who can be reached at 226-2840.
Sincerely,
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director.
Enclosure.
cc: Honorable Doug Collins
Ranking Member
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
H.R. 1548 would allow the two people named in the bill to
become lawful permanent residents. Enacting H.R. 1548 could
increase direct spending and reduce revenues because lawful
permanent residents are eligible for certain federal benefits,
such as Medicaid and premium tax credits for health insurance
purchased through the marketplaces established by the
Affordable Care Act, if they otherwise meet the eligibility
requirements for those benefits. CBO estimates that those
effects would not be significant because only two people would
be affected by the bill.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is David Rafferty.
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy
Director of Budget Analysis.
Duplication of Federal Programs
No provision of H.R. 1548 establishes or reauthorizes a
program of the federal government known to be duplicative of
another federal program, a program that was included in any
report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress
pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program
related to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of
Federal Domestic Assistance.
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.
1548 would provide Maria Carmen Castro Ramirez and J. Refugio
Carreno Rojas with an opportunity to obtain lawful permanent
resident status in the United States.
Advisory on Earmarks
In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, H.R. 1548 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 lawful permanent residence upon filing
the appropriate application.
Subsection (b) provides that if Ms. Castro Ramirez or Mr.
Carreno Rojas enter the United States before the filing
deadline specified in subsection (d), they shall be considered
to have entered and remained lawfully and shall be eligible for
adjustment of status as of the date of the enactment of this
Act.
Subsection (c)(1) provides that Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr.
Carreno Rojas may not be removed from the United States, denied
admission, or considered ineligible for lawful permanent
residence by reason of any ground for removal or
inadmissibility that is reflected in the records of the
Department of Homeland Security or the Department of State as
of the date of the enactment of this Act.
Subsection (c)(2) provides that the Secretary of Homeland
Security shall rescind any outstanding orders of removal or
deportation, or any finding of inadmissibility or
deportability, that has been entered against Ms. Castro Ramirez
or Mr. Carreno Rojas.
Subsection (d) requires Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr. Carreno
Rojas to apply for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status
within 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
Subsection (e) provides that upon granting an immigrant
visa or permanent residence to Ms. Castro Ramirez and Mr.
Carreno Rojas, the Secretary of State shall reduce by two, the
total number of immigrant visas that are made available to
natives of the country of their birth.
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 Immigration and Nationality Act.