89–007

107TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 107–129

FOR THE RELIEF OF RITA MIREMBE REVELL (A.K.A.

MARGARET RITA MIREMBE)

JULY 10, 2001.—Referred to the Private Calendar and ordered to be printed

Mr. SENSENBRENNER, from the Committee on the Judiciary,

submitted the following

R E P O R T

[To accompany S. 560]

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the bill

(S. 560) for the relief of Rita Mirembe Revell (a.k.a. Margaret Rita

Mirembe), 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 ................................................................................................................... 2

Committee Consideration ........................................................................................ 2

Committee Oversight Findings ............................................................................... 2

Performance Goals and Objectives ......................................................................... 2

New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures ...................................................... 3

Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate .......................................................... 3

Constitutional Authority Statement ...................................................................... 3

Agency Views ........................................................................................................... 3

Markup Transcript .................................................................................................. 4

PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

S. 560 would allow Rita Mirembe Revell (a.k.a. Margaret Rita

Mirembe) to become a permanent resident of the United States.

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION

Rita is an orphan from Uganda currently in the United States

on a student visa. She has lived with Dennis Revell and Maureen

Reagan since the age of 8. Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan began to financially support the Daughters of Charity orphanages in 1988.

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Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan began financially supporting Rita when

she was 3 years old. After being informed of the near impossibility

of adopting Rita due to Ugandan law, it was arranged to bring Rita

to the U.S. on a student visa instead. In February of 2000, the

Ugandan government relaxed the process for adoption of children

from that country. Unfortunately, Ms. Reagan has been fighting

malignant melanoma and cannot even fulfill the relaxed requirements now in place. Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan would have adopted Rita many years ago, given the opportunity. Ms. Reagan’s medical condition prohibits her from ever traveling to Uganda to adopt

Rita. The only way Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan can assure that

Rita remains a part of their family in the United States is through

a private bill.

The combination of Uganda’s adoption restrictions early in their

relationship with Rita and Ms. Reagan’s subsequent cancers have

made it virtually impossible for Rita to be adopted under the adoption laws of Uganda and in accordance with U.S. immigration law.

But for these factors, Rita would be the adopted daughter of the

only two people she has ever known to be her parents.

The uniqueness standard and extreme hardship standard for approval of private bills have been met through the combined facts

of: 1) Ugandan adoption law prohibiting adoption of Rita prior to

February 2000; 2) Ms. Reagan’s medical condition being prohibitive

of fulfilling an adoption now or at anytime in the future; 3) Mr.

Revell and Ms. Reagan’s total support of Rita since the age of 3;

and 4) the fact Rita has lived with Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan

since the age of 8 and they are the only parents she has ever

known.

HEARINGS

The Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims held

no hearings on S. 560.

COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

On June 6, 2001, the Committee on the Judiciary met in open

session and ordered reported favorably the bill S. 560 without

amendment by voice vote, a quorum being present.

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the

House of Representatives, the Committee reports 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.

PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

S. 560 does not authorize funding. Therefore, clause 3(c) of rule

XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives is inapplicable.

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NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY AND TAX EXPENDITURES

Clause 3(c)(2) of House Rule XIII 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 believes that the bill

would have no significant impact on the Federal budget. This is

based on the Congressional Budget Office cost estimate on S. 560.

That Congressional Budget Office cost estimate follows:

U.S. CONGRESS,

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE,

Washington, DC, June 22, 2001.

Hon. F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, Jr., Chairman,

Committee on the Judiciary,

House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 560, an act for the relief of

Rita Mirembe Revell (a.k.a. Margaret Rita Mirembe).

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,

DAN L. CRIPPEN, Director.

Enclosure

cc: Honorable John Conyers Jr.

Ranking Member

S. 560—An act for the relief of Rita Mirembe Revell (a.k.a. Margaret Rita Mirembe).

S. 560 would grant permanent U.S. residence to Rita Mirembe

Revell. CBO estimates that enacting this legislation would have no

significant impact on the Federal budget. S. 560 could have a very

small effect on fees collected by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, which are classified as direct spending, so pay-as-yougo procedures would apply.

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Mark Grabowicz, who

can be reached at 226–2860. This estimate was approved by Robert

A. Sunshine, Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

Pursuant to rule XIII, clause 3(d)(1) of the Rules of the House

of Representatives, the Committee finds the authority for this legislation in article 1, section 8, clause 4 of the Constitution.

AGENCY VIEWS

The comments of the Immigration and Naturalization Service on

S. 560 are as follows:

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MEMORANDUM OF INFORMATION FROM IMMIGRATION AND

NATURALIZATION SERVICE FILES RE: S. 560

The beneficiary, whose correct name is, Margaret Ritah

Mirembe, also known as Rita Mirembe Revell, a native and citizen

of Uganda, was born on an unknown month and day in 1985, in

Kampala, the capital of Uganda. She resides with her guardians,

Mr. Dennis Revell and Ms. Maureen Reagan, in Granite Bay, California. She is currently a freshman at a private parochial high

school in Sacramento. She has no relatives in the United States.

The beneficiary was abandoned in Kampala at about the age of two

and was raised in an orphanage until February 12, 1994 when the

interested parties were granted custody as her guardians. May 14,

1985 was established as the beneficiary’s birth date based on information available from the orphanage. She was admitted to the

United States on February 16, 1994 as a student and is currently

in status. The interested parties have filed a petition to adopt the

beneficiary in the Placer County Superior Court of California.

Mr. Dennis Revell, a native and citizen of the United States, was

born on December 24, 1952. He resides in Granite Bay with his

wife and the beneficiary. He obtained a Juris doctor from Western

State University in Fullerton, California, and is currently President and Chief Executive Officer of Revell Communications, a public relations corporation, earning about $52,800 a year.

Ms. Maureen Reagan, a native and citizen of the United States,

was born on January 4, 1941. She is the daughter of former President Ronald Reagan. She attended Marymount College in Arlington, Virginia. Ms. Reagan is a well-known national lecturer, political analyst, talk show host, best selling author, and advocate for

the advancement of women, research and education on Alzeihmer’s

disease and Melanoma. Ms. Reagan is currently undergoing cancer

treatment and is convalescing at home. She earns about $253,000

a year.

The interested parties were married on April 25, 1981 in Los An- geles, California. They claim assets of about $1,733,225 in real estate holdings, savings, investments and personal property, and liabilities of about $483,500 a year. There are no natural children

born of the marriage or any previous marriages.

All national agency checks, as well as fingerprint checks for the

beneficiary and interested parties were negative, with the exception of Ms. Maureen Reagan who has an FBI record because she

is the daughter of former President Reagan. This record was also

cleared.

MARKUP TRANSCRIPT

BUSINESS MEETING

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20, 2001

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY,

Washington, DC.

The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 11:07 a.m., in Room

2141, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. F. James Sensenbrenner [Chairman of the Committee] presiding.

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Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The Committee will be in order. The

Chair would like to announce what our game plan is for today.

Mr. Conyers has got some back-to-back speeches at noon, so we

will go through the schedule in the order which it appears, with

one exception, until noon, and then we will recess for an hour and

a half for lunch, and I would ask the Members to be back promptly

at 1:30. The exception to the schedule, again, at Mr. Conyers’ request, is that we will move H.R. 1407, which is the airline antitrust

bill, up third on the agenda, ahead of the two patent bills. So we

will do the two private bills, the airline bill, the two patent bills,

the flag amendment and then the DOJ Authorization Act, and we

will stay here until we are done with this complete schedule.

So the Chair now recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania,

the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims, to

make a unanimous consent request on two private bills. And without objection, the unanimous consents will be considered en bloc.

Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Chairman, the Subcommittee on Immigration

and Claims reports favorably the bill S. 560, and moves its favorable recommendation to the full House.

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Would you make a unanimous consent request on the other one, too.

Mr. GEKAS. And on the similar request on H.R. 807, and ask

unanimous consent that they be considered together en bloc.

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Without objection, so ordered.

[S. 560 follows:]

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Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Generally, we have dealt with private bills by unanimous consent. Is there any objection, while we

do not have a reporting quorum present, without objection, the previous question is ordered on both bills pending the arrival of a reporting quorum.

Hearing none, so ordered.

The Chair now notes the presence of a reporting quorum. The

Committee now returns to the pending unfinished business, upon

which the previous question was ordered on H.R. 807 and S. 560,

which have been considered en bloc.

The previous question has already been ordered. All of those in

favor of reporting the bill favorably will signify by saying aye.

Those opposed, no.

The ayes appear to have it. The ayes have it, and the motion to

report favorably is agreed to. All Members will be entitled to place

statements in the record on the two private bills.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chairman?

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. For what purpose does the gentlewoman from Texas seek recognition?

Ms. JACKSON LEE. To strike the last word.

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. We have no pending question before

the Committee.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Well, parliamentary inquiry. I wanted to

comment——

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. State your inquiry.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. The inquiry is on bill S. 560. That is a private

bill and the bill that we just passed, which was another private

bill, and I am losing the number right now.

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. H.R. 807 is the number.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. 807, correct. When you called it up, I was delayed, and I want to make sure that the support, in addition to

one’s vote, can be acknowledged by submitting statements into the

record.

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The Chair just said that without objection all Members may insert statements in the record relative to

the two private bills just——

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Then I add my support for those bills and will

submit statements into the record.

[The prepared statement of Ms. Jackson Lee follows:]

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PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HONORABLE SHEILA JACKSON LEE, A REPRESENTATIVE

IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF TEXAS

Thank you Mr. Chairman. I support private bill S. 560 which will provide Rita

Mirembe Revell with lawful permanent resident status. The unique facts of this case

have clearly shown that the only way that Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan can assure

Rita remains a part of their family in the United States is through a private bill.

Rita Mirembe Revell is an orphan from Uganda currently in the United States.

Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan specifically began to financially support Rita when she

was three years old. Mr. Revell and Ms. Reagan intended to adopt Rita; however,

due to rigid adoption law in Uganda, they were unable to do so. Nonetheless, Rita

came to the United States on a temporary visa and has lived with Dennis Revell

and Maureen Reagan (daughter of Ronald Reagan) since the age of eight.

In February of 2000, the Ugandan government relaxed the process for adoption

of children. However, Ms. Reagan has been fighting malignant melanoma and cannot even fulfill the relaxed requirements now in place since she is unable to travel

to Uganda.

The combination of Uganda’s adoption restrictions early in their relationship with

Rita and Ms. Reagan’s subsequent cancer have made it virtually impossible for Rita

to be adopted under the adoption laws of Uganda and in accordance with US immigration law. The only way Mr. Revel and Ms. Reagan can assure that Rita remains

a part of their family in the United States is through this private bill.

Thank you Mr. Chairman. I yield back the balance of my time.

Thank you.

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