I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5151 

To establish a military family immigration advisory committee, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 18, 2019 

Mr. TAKANO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Veterans’ 

Affairs, and Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined 

by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 

within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To establish a military family immigration advisory 

committee, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Honoring the Oath 

5 Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

7 It is the sense of Congress that— 

8 (1) military service to the United States is a 

9 sacrifice that demonstrates loyalty to the Nation; 


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1 (2) a noncitizen who takes an oath of enlist2 ment or an oath of office to join the United States 

3 Armed Forces—promising to support and defend the 

4 Constitution of the United States against all en5 emies, foreign and domestic—deserves facilitated ac6 cess to naturalization; 

7 (3) such noncitizen and his or her family mem8 bers deserve consideration for the exercise of pros9 ecutorial discretion in immigration removal pro10 ceedings; and 

11 (4) a noncitizen veteran who is deported after 

12 consideration under this Act should be provided the 

13 same veterans’ benefits to which a similarly situated 

14 United States citizen veteran would be entitled. 

15 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

16 In this Act: 

17 (1) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Advi18 sory Committee’’ means the Military Family Immi19 gration Advisory Committee established pursuant to 

20 section 5. 

21 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT22 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com23 mittees’’ means— 

24 (A) the Committee on Armed Services of 

25 the Senate; 


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1 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security 

2 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 

3 (C) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

4 Senate; 

5 (D) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

6 the Senate; 

7 (E) the Committee on Armed Services of 

8 the House of Representatives; 

9 (F) the Committee on Homeland Security 

10 of the House of Representatives; 

11 (G) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

12 House of Representatives; and 

13 (H) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

14 the House of Representatives. 

15 (3) ARMED FORCES.—The term ‘‘Armed 

16 Forces’’ has the meaning given that term in section 

17 101 of title 10, United States Code. 

18 (4) COVERED FAMILY MEMBER.—The term 

19 ‘‘covered family member’’ means the noncitizen 

20 spouse or noncitizen minor child of— 

21 (A) a member of the Armed Forces serving 

22 on active duty or in a reserve component; or 

23 (B) a veteran, as defined in paragraph (4). 

24 (5) NONCITIZEN.—The term ‘‘noncitizen’’ 

25 means an individual who is not a national of the 


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1 United States (as defined in section 101(a)(22) of 

2 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

3 1101(a)(22))). 

4 (6) VETERAN.—The term ‘‘veteran’’ has the 

5 meaning given that term in section 101 of title 38, 

6 United States Code. 

7 SEC. 4. IDENTIFICATION OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

8 FORCES, VETERANS, AND COVERED FAMILY 

9 MEMBERS IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the time of the 

11 Master Calendar Hearing for any individual in removal 

12 proceedings, the Director of U.S. Immigration and Cus13 toms Enforcement shall identify whether the individual 

14 is— 

15 (1) a member of the Armed Forces serving on 

16 active duty or in a reserve component; 

17 (2) a veteran; or 

18 (3) a covered family member. 

19 (b) TRANSFER OF CASE FILES.—The Director of 

20 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shall trans21 fer a copy of the complete case file of any individual identi22 fied under subsection (a), immediately after such identi23 fication, to the Advisory Committee. 

24 (c) LIMITATION ON REMOVAL.—Notwithstanding any 

25 other provision of law, an individual described in subVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:33 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5151.IH H5151

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1 section (a) may not be removed until the Military Family 

2 Immigration Advisory Committee has provided rec3 ommendations with respect to that individual to the Sec4 retary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General 

5 under section 5. 

6 SEC. 5. MILITARY FAMILY IMMIGRATION ADVISORY COM7 MITTEE. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Homeland 

9 Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense 

10 and in cooperation with the Secretary of the Army, the 

11 Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of the Air Force, and 

12 the Commandant of the Coast Guard, shall establish an 

13 advisory committee, to be known as the ‘‘Military Family 

14 Immigration Advisory Committee’’, to provide rec15 ommendations to the Secretary of Homeland Security and 

16 the Attorney General on the exercise of prosecutorial dis17 cretion in cases involving removal proceedings of individ18 uals described in section 4(a). 

19 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Committee shall be 

20 composed of— 

21 (1) the Deputy Commanding General of Army 

22 Human Resources Command, or designee; 

23 (2) the Judge Advocate of the Army, or des24 ignee; 


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1 (3) the Deputy Commander of Navy Personnel 

2 Command, or designee; 

3 (4) the Judge Advocate of the Navy, or des4 ignee; 

5 (5) the Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force; 

6 (6) the Judge Advocate of the Air Force, or 

7 designee; 

8 (7) the Deputy Commandant for Mission Sup9 port of the Coast Guard; 

10 (8) the Judge Advocate of the Coast Guard, or 

11 designee; and 

12 (9) the Deputy Commandant of Manpower and 

13 Reserve Affairs of the Marine Corps, or designee. 

14 (c) CASE REVIEWS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 

16 the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs En17 forcement notifies the Advisory Committee of the 

18 case of an individual described in section 4(a), the 

19 Advisory Committee shall meet to review the case 

20 and to provide a written recommendation to the Sec21 retary of Homeland Security on whether the indi22 vidual— 

23 (A) notwithstanding the grounds for re24 moval asserted by U.S. Immigration and Cus25 toms Enforcement, should be granted— 


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1 (i) a stay of removal and allowed to 

2 apply for asylum; 

3 (ii) deferred action; or 

4 (iii) parole; or 

5 (B) should be removed from the United 

6 States. 

7 (2) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—An indi8 vidual who is the subject of a case review under 

9 paragraph (1) may submit information to the Advi10 sory Committee, and the Advisory Committee shall 

11 consider such information. 

12 (3) PROCEDURES.—In conducting each case re13 view under paragraph (1), the Advisory Committee 

14 shall consider, as factors weighing in favor of a rec15 ommendation under paragraph (1)(A)— 

16 (A) with respect to a member of the 

17 Armed Forces serving on active duty or in a re18 serve component, whether the individual— 

19 (i) took an oath of enlistment or an 

20 oath of office; 

21 (ii) received military decorations, cam22 paign medals, or service medals, was de23 ployed, or was otherwise evaluated for 

24 merit in service during his or her service in 

25 the Armed Forces; 


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1 (iii) is a national of a country that 

2 prohibits repatriation of an individual after 

3 any service in the Armed Forces; or 

4 (iv) contributed to his or her local 

5 community during his or her service in the 

6 Armed Forces; 

7 (B) with respect to a veteran, whether the 

8 individual— 

9 (i) took an oath of enlistment or an 

10 oath of office; 

11 (ii) completed a term of service in the 

12 Armed Forces and was discharged under 

13 conditions other than dishonorable; 

14 (iii) received military decorations, 

15 campaign medals, or service medals, was 

16 deployed, or was otherwise evaluated for 

17 merit in service during his or her service in 

18 the Armed Forces; 

19 (iv) is a national of a country that 

20 prohibits repatriation of an individual after 

21 any service in the Armed Forces; or 

22 (v) contributed to his or her local 

23 community during or after his or her serv24 ice in the Armed Forces; and 


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1 (C) with respect to a covered family mem2 ber, whether the individual— 

3 (i) supported a member of the Armed 

4 Forces serving on active duty or a veteran, 

5 including through financial support, emo6 tional support, or caregiving; or 

7 (ii) contributed to his or her local 

8 community during or after the military 

9 service of the member or of the veteran. 

10 (d) CONSULTATION WITH U.S. IMMIGRATION AND

11 CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT PRINCIPAL LEGAL ADVISOR.— 

12 The Principal Legal Advisor of U.S. Immigration and 

13 Customs Enforcement, or designee, shall consult with the 

14 Advisory Committee at the request of members of the Ad15 visory Committee. 

16 (e) BRIEFINGS ON UNSUITABILITY OF NONCITIZEN

17 MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.—The Under Sec18 retary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness shall pro19 vide detailed briefings to the Advisory Committee regard20 ing the reasons for determining the unsuitability of noncit21 izen members of the Armed Forces whose cases are being 

22 considered by the Advisory Committee. 

23 (f) BRIEFINGS ON ACTIONS IN RESPONSE TO REC24 OMMENDATIONS.—Not less frequently than quarterly, the 

25 Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide detailed 


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1 briefings to the Advisory Committee regarding actions 

2 taken in response to the recommendations of the Advisory 

3 Committee, including detailed explanations for any cases 

4 in which a recommendation of the Advisory Committee 

5 was not followed. 

6 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

7 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec8 essary to carry out this section. 

9 SEC. 6. LIST OF COUNTRIES UNWILLING TO REPATRIATE 

10 UNITED STATES VETERANS. 

11 The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation 

12 with the Secretary of State, shall compile and annually 

13 update a list of countries that refuse to repatriate nation14 als of such country who have enlisted or been appointed 

15 in the United States Armed Forces. 

16 SEC. 7. PROGRAM OF CITIZENSHIP THROUGH MILITARY 

17 SERVICE. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu19 rity, acting through the Director of U.S. Citizenship and 

20 Immigration Services, and the Secretary of Defense shall 

21 jointly carry out a program under which any individual 

22 noncitizen who serves on active duty in the Armed Forces, 

23 and the noncitizen spouse and any noncitizen minor child 

24 of such individual, shall be naturalized as a United States 

25 citizen if such individual, and such spouse or child, is not 


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1 otherwise ineligible for citizenship under the immigration 

2 laws (as that term is defined in section 101(a)(17) of the 

3 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(17))). 

4 (b) JAG TRAINING.—The Secretary of Defense shall 

5 ensure that appropriate members of the judge advocate 

6 general corps of the Armed Forces shall receive training 

7 to function as liaisons with U.S. Citizenship and Immigra8 tion Services with respect to applications for citizenship 

9 of noncitizen members of the Armed Forces assigned to 

10 units in such areas. 

11 (c) TRAINING FOR RECRUITERS.—The Secretary of 

12 Defense shall ensure that all recruiters in the Armed 

13 Forces receive training regarding— 

14 (1) the steps required for a noncitizen member 

15 of the Armed Forces to receive citizenship; 

16 (2) limitations on the path to citizenship for 

17 family members of such individuals; and 

18 (3) points of contact at the Department of 

19 Homeland Security to resolve emergency immigra20 tion-related situations with respect to such individ21 uals and their family members. 

22 (d) APPLICATION FOR NATURALIZATION.— 

23 (1) BIOMETRICS.— 

24 (A) SUBMISSION OF BIOMETRIC INFORMA25 TION.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure 


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1 that, at the time of accession into the Armed 

2 Forces, biometric information of an individual 

3 who has applied, or who plans to apply, for nat4 uralization is submitted to U.S. Citizenship and 

5 Immigration Services for the purposes of such 

6 application. 

7 (B) ACCEPTANCE OF BIOMETRIC INFORMA8 TION.—The Director of U.S. Citizenship and 

9 Immigration Services shall accept any biometric 

10 information submitted pursuant to subpara11 graph (A). 

12 (2) FILING OF APPLICATION.—The Secretary of 

13 Homeland Security, in coordination with the Sec14 retary of Defense, shall ensure that each noncitizen 

15 individual who accesses into the Armed Forces is 

16 permitted to file an application for naturalization as 

17 part of the accessions process. 

18 (3) ADJUDICATION OF APPLICATION.—The Sec19 retary of Homeland Security, in coordination with 

20 the Secretary of Defense, shall ensure that the appli21 cation for naturalization of any individual who ap22 plies for naturalization during the accessions process 

23 into the Armed Forces is adjudicated not later than 

24 the last day of active service of the individual in the 

25 Armed Forces. 


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1 (e) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The Secretary of each mili2 tary department shall annually submit to the appropriate 

3 congressional committees a report on the number of all 

4 noncitizens who enlisted or were appointed in their depart5 ment, all members of the Armed Forces in their depart6 ment who naturalized, and all members of the Armed 

7 Forces in their department who were discharged or re8 leased without United States citizenship under the juris9 diction of such Secretary during the preceding year. 

10 SEC. 8. STUDY AND REPORT ON NONCITIZEN VETERANS 

11 REMOVED FROM THE UNITED STATES. 

12 (a) STUDY REQUIRED.—Not later than 1 year after 

13 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

14 Defense, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the 

15 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall jointly carry out a 

16 study on noncitizen veterans of the Armed Forces who 

17 were removed from the United States during the period 

18 beginning on January 1, 1990, and ending on the date 

19 of the enactment of this Act, which shall include— 

20 (1) the number of noncitizens removed by U.S. 

21 Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Im22 migration and Naturalization Service during the pe23 riod covered by the report who served on active duty 

24 in the Armed Forces or in a reserve component of 


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1 the Armed Forces for a period of more than 180 

2 days; 

3 (2) for each noncitizen described in paragraph 

4 (1)— 

5 (A) the country of origin of the noncitizen; 

6 (B) the length of time the noncitizen 

7 served as a member of the Armed Forces; 

8 (C) the grounds for removal under section 

9 237(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

10 (8 U.S.C. 1227) or section 212(a) of the Immi11 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182), as 

12 applicable; and 

13 (D) whether the noncitizen appealed the 

14 removal order; 

15 (3) the number of noncitizens described in 

16 paragraph (1) who— 

17 (A) were discharged or released from serv18 ice under honorable conditions; 

19 (B) were deployed overseas; 

20 (C) served on active duty in the Armed 

21 Forces in an overseas contingency operation; 

22 (D) were awarded military decorations, 

23 campaign medals, or service medals; 

24 (E) applied for benefits under laws admin25 istered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or 


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1 (F) are receiving benefits described in sub2 paragraph (E); and 

3 (4) a description of the reasons preventing any 

4 of the noncitizens who applied for benefits described 

5 in paragraph (3)(E) from receiving such benefits. 

6 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

7 of the completion of the study required under subsection 

8 (a), the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Homeland 

9 Security, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall joint10 ly submit a report containing the results of such study 

11 to the appropriate congressional committees. 

Æ 


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