[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 81 (Monday, April 27, 2020)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 23441-23444]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-09068]
[[Page 23439]]
Vol. 85
Monday,
No. 81
April 27, 2020
Part II
The President
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Proclamation 10014--Suspension of Entry of Immigrants Who Present a
Risk to the United States Labor Market During the Economic Recovery
Following the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Outbreak
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 85 , No. 81 / Monday, April 27, 2020 /
Presidential Documents
___________________________________________________________________
Title 3--
The President
[[Page 23441]]
Proclamation 10014 of April 22, 2020
Suspension of Entry of Immigrants Who Present a
Risk to the United States Labor Market During the
Economic Recovery Following the 2019 Novel Coronavirus
Outbreak
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
The 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has significantly
disrupted the livelihoods of Americans. In Proclamation
9994 of March 13, 2020 (Declaring a National Emergency
Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)
Outbreak), I declared that the COVID-19 outbreak in the
United States constituted a national emergency,
beginning March 1, 2020. Since then, the American
people have united behind a policy of mitigation
strategies, including social distancing, to flatten the
curve of infections and reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-
2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This needed
behavioral shift has taken a toll on the United States
economy, with national unemployment claims reaching
historic levels. In the days between the national
emergency declaration and April 11, 2020, more than 22
million Americans have filed for unemployment.
In the administration of our Nation's immigration
system, we must be mindful of the impact of foreign
workers on the United States labor market, particularly
in an environment of high domestic unemployment and
depressed demand for labor. We must also conserve
critical State Department resources so that consular
officers may continue to provide services to United
States citizens abroad. Even with their ranks
diminished by staffing disruptions caused by the
pandemic, consular officers continue to provide
assistance to United States citizens, including through
the ongoing evacuation of many Americans stranded
overseas.
I have determined that, without intervention, the
United States faces a potentially protracted economic
recovery with persistently high unemployment if labor
supply outpaces labor demand. Excess labor supply
affects all workers and potential workers, but it is
particularly harmful to workers at the margin between
employment and unemployment, who are typically ``last
in'' during an economic expansion and ``first out''
during an economic contraction. In recent years, these
workers have been disproportionately represented by
historically disadvantaged groups, including African
Americans and other minorities, those without a college
degree, and the disabled. These are the workers who, at
the margin between employment and unemployment, are
likely to bear the burden of excess labor supply
disproportionately.
Furthermore, lawful permanent residents, once admitted,
are granted ``open-market'' employment authorization
documents, allowing them immediate eligibility to
compete for almost any job, in any sector of the
economy. There is no way to protect already
disadvantaged and unemployed Americans from the threat
of competition for scarce jobs from new lawful
permanent residents by directing those new residents to
particular economic sectors with a demonstrated need
not met by the existing labor supply. Existing
immigrant visa processing protections are inadequate
for recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak. The vast
majority of immigrant visa categories do not require
employers to account for displacement of United States
workers.
[[Page 23442]]
While some employment-based visas contain a labor
certification requirement, because visa issuance
happens substantially after the certification is
completed, the labor certification process cannot
adequately capture the status of the labor market
today. Moreover, introducing additional permanent
residents when our healthcare resources are limited
puts strain on the finite limits of our healthcare
system at a time when we need to prioritize Americans
and the existing immigrant population. In light of the
above, I have determined that the entry, during the
next 60 days, of certain aliens as immigrants would be
detrimental to the interests of the United States.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the
United States, by the authority vested in me by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, including sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 1182(f) and
1185(a), and section 301 of title 3, United States
Code, hereby find that the entry into the United States
of persons described in section 1 of this proclamation
would, except as provided for in section 2 of this
proclamation, be detrimental to the interests of the
United States, and that their entry should be subject
to certain restrictions, limitations, and exceptions. I
therefore hereby proclaim the following:
Section 1. Suspension and Limitation on Entry. The
entry into the United States of aliens as immigrants is
hereby suspended and limited subject to section 2 of
this proclamation.
Sec. 2. Scope of Suspension and Limitation on Entry.
(a) The suspension and limitation on entry pursuant to
section 1 of this proclamation shall apply only to
aliens who:
(i) are outside the United States on the effective date of this
proclamation;
(ii) do not have an immigrant visa that is valid on the effective date of
this proclamation; and
(iii) do not have an official travel document other than a visa (such as a
transportation letter, an appropriate boarding foil, or an advance parole
document) that is valid on the effective date of this proclamation or
issued on any date thereafter that permits him or her to travel to the
United States and seek entry or admission.
(b) The suspension and limitation on entry pursuant
to section 1 of this proclamation shall not apply to:
(i) any lawful permanent resident of the United States;
(ii) any alien seeking to enter the United States on an immigrant visa as a
physician, nurse, or other healthcare professional; to perform medical
research or other research intended to combat the spread of COVID-19; or to
perform work essential to combating, recovering from, or otherwise
alleviating the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, as determined by the
Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective
designees; and any spouse and unmarried children under 21 years old of any
such alien who are accompanying or following to join the alien;
(iii) any alien applying for a visa to enter the United States pursuant to
the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program;
(iv) any alien who is the spouse of a United States citizen;
(v) any alien who is under 21 years old and is the child of a United States
citizen, or who is a prospective adoptee seeking to enter the United States
pursuant to the IR-4 or IH-4 visa classifications;
(vi) any alien whose entry would further important United States law
enforcement objectives, as determined by the Secretary of State, the
Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees, based on a
recommendation of the Attorney General or his designee;
(vii) any member of the United States Armed Forces and any spouse and
children of a member of the United States Armed Forces;
[[Page 23443]]
(viii) any alien seeking to enter the United States pursuant to a Special
Immigrant Visa in the SI or SQ classification, subject to such conditions
as the Secretary of State may impose, and any spouse and children of any
such individual; or
(ix) any alien whose entry would be in the national interest, as determined
by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their
respective designees.
Sec. 3. Implementation and Enforcement. (a) The
consular officer shall determine, in his or her
discretion, whether an immigrant has established his or
her eligibility for an exception in section 2(b) of
this proclamation. The Secretary of State shall
implement this proclamation as it applies to visas
pursuant to such procedures as the Secretary of State,
in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland
Security, may establish in the Secretary of State's
discretion. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
implement this proclamation as it applies to the entry
of aliens pursuant to such procedures as the Secretary
of Homeland Security, in consultation with the
Secretary of State, may establish in the Secretary of
Homeland Security's discretion.
(b) An alien who circumvents the application of
this proclamation through fraud, willful
misrepresentation of a material fact, or illegal entry
shall be a priority for removal by the Department of
Homeland Security.
(c) Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed
to limit the ability of an individual to seek asylum,
refugee status, withholding of removal, or protection
under the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel,
Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,
consistent with the laws of the United States.
Sec. 4. Termination. This proclamation shall expire 60
days from its effective date and may be continued as
necessary. Whenever appropriate, but no later than 50
days from the effective date of this proclamation, the
Secretary of Homeland Security shall, in consultation
with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Labor,
recommend whether I should continue or modify this
proclamation.
Sec. 5. Effective Date. This proclamation is effective
at 11:59 p.m. eastern daylight time on April 23, 2020.
Sec. 6. Additional Measures. Within 30 days of the
effective date of this proclamation, the Secretary of
Labor and the Secretary of Homeland Security, in
consultation with the Secretary of State, shall review
nonimmigrant programs and shall recommend to me other
measures appropriate to stimulate the United States
economy and ensure the prioritization, hiring, and
employment of United States workers.
Sec. 7. Severability. It is the policy of the United
States to enforce this proclamation to the maximum
extent possible to advance the interests of the United
States. Accordingly:
(a) if any provision of this proclamation, or the
application of any provision to any person or
circumstance, is held to be invalid, the remainder of
this proclamation and the application of its provisions
to any other persons or circumstances shall not be
affected thereby; and
(b) if any provision of this proclamation, or the
application of any provision to any person or
circumstance, is held to be invalid because of the lack
of certain procedural requirements, the relevant
executive branch officials shall implement those
procedural requirements to conform with existing law
and with any applicable court orders.
Sec. 8. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this
proclamation shall be construed to impair or otherwise
affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or
the head thereof; or,
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
[[Page 23444]]
(b) This proclamation shall be implemented
consistent with applicable law and subject to the
availability of appropriations.
(c) This proclamation is not intended to, and does
not, create any right or benefit, substantive or
procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any
party against the United States, its departments,
agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or
agents, or any other person.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twenty-second day of April, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and forty-fourth.
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 2020-09068
Filed 4-24-20; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F0-P