I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2592 

To designate Haiti under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality 

Act in order to render nationals of Haiti eligible for temporary protected 

status under such section. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 24, 2005 

Mr. HASTINGS of Florida (for himself, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. WEXLER, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. 

DELAHUNT, and Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To designate Haiti under section 244 of the Immigration 

and Nationality Act in order to render nationals of Haiti 

eligible for temporary protected status under such section. 

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 ‘‘Haiti Compassion 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 
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1 (1) Haiti remains severely devastated by the 

2 combined effects of ongoing political turmoil and the 

3 aftermath of the natural disasters of 2004, such as 

4 Tropical Storm Jeanne and Hurricane Ivan. 

5 (2) In Haiti, more than 2,500 people died as a 

6 result of Tropical Storm Jeanne in 2004. 

7 (3) The civil protection agency of Haiti stated 

8 that 250,000 people were homeless across the coun9 try and at least 4,000 homes were destroyed, with 

10 thousands more damaged, as a result of the storm. 

11 (4) When Tropical Storm Jeanne hit, Haiti was 

12 already struggling to deal with political instability 

13 and the aftermath of serious floods that occurred in 

14 May 2004. 

15 (5) More than a year after the abrupt depar16 ture of former President Aristide, the political, secu17 rity, and social-economic situation in Haiti remains 

18 in crisis, the transitional government is weak and 

19 fighting to maintain credibility, and there are no 

20 clear signs of either political reconciliation or eco21 nomic reconstruction. 

22 (6) On Wednesday March 9, 2005, the United 

23 Nations Security Council pressed Haiti’s government 

24 to crack down on human rights abuses and free po-
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1 litical prisoners to help heal the country ahead of 

2 November elections. 

3 (7) Political oppression and human rights viola4 tions are rife in Haiti while many supporters of the 

5 opposition are unjustly held in prison or experi6 encing persecution. 

7 (8) On March 11, 2005, the Department of 

8 State issued a travel warning to United States citi9 zens warning them of the ‘‘absence of an effective 

10 police force in much of Haiti; the potential for 

11 looting; the presence of intermittent roadblocks set 

12 by armed gangs or by the police; and the possibility 

13 of random violent crime, including kidnapping, 

14 carjacking, and assault.’’ 

15 (9) The Department of State’s Consular Infor16 mation Sheet states ‘‘there are no ‘safe areas’ in 

17 Haiti.’’ As a result, ‘‘United States citizens should 

18 avoid travel to Haiti at this time.’’ 

19 (10) While current United States policy is to 

20 advise its own citizens not to travel to Haiti, it is 

21 unjust to return Haitian nationals to this type of 

22 dangerous situation. 

23 (11) To return a national back to Haiti, where 

24 there is ongoing violence and a devastating environ-
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1 mental situation, would pose a serious threat to the 

2 personal safety of such individual. 

3 (12) The political, civil, and governmental crisis 

4 and extraordinary and temporary conditions caused 

5 by nature and resulting in floods, epidemics, and 

6 other environmental disasters in Haiti should make 

7 Haitian nationals eligible for temporary protected 

8 status. 

9 (13) There is a history of discrimination and 

10 mistreatment of Haitians in the immigration proc11 ess. 

12 (14) Temporary protected status allows aliens 

13 who do not legally qualify as refugees but are none14 theless fleeing or reluctant to return to potentially 

15 dangerous situations to temporarily remain in the 

16 United States. 

17 (15) Granting temporary protected status to 

18 nationals of Haiti is consistent with the interest of 

19 the United States and promotes the values and mor20 als that have made the United States strong. 

21 SEC. 3. DESIGNATION FOR PURPOSES OF GRANTING TEM22 PORARY PROTECTED STATUS TO HAITIANS. 

23 (a) DESIGNATION.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 244 

25 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
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1 1254a), Haiti shall be treated as if such country had 

2 been designated under subsection (b) of that section, 

3 subject to the provisions of this section. 

4 (2) PERIOD OF DESIGNATION.—The initial pe5 riod of such designation shall begin on the date of 

6 enactment of this Act and shall remain in effect for 

7 18 months. 

8 (b) ALIENS ELIGIBLE.—In applying section 244 of 

9 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a) 

10 pursuant to the designation made under this section, and 

11 subject to subsection (c)(3) of such section, an alien who 

12 is a national of Haiti is deemed to meet the requirements 

13 of subsection (c)(1) of such section only if the alien— 

14 (1) is admissible as an immigrant, except as 

15 otherwise provided under subsection (c)(2)(A) of 

16 such section, and is not ineligible for temporary pro17 tected status under subsection (c)(2)(B) of such sec18 tion; and 

19 (2) registers for temporary protected status in 

20 a manner that the Secretary of Homeland Security 

21 shall establish. 

22 (c) CONSENT TO TRAVEL ABROAD.—The Secretary 

23 of Homeland Security shall give the prior consent to travel 

24 abroad described in section 244(f)(3) of the Immigration 

25 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a(f)(3)) to an alien 
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1 who is granted temporary protected status pursuant to the 

2 designation made under this section, if the alien estab3 lishes to the satisfaction of the Secretary of Homeland Se4 curity that emergency and extenuating circumstances be5 yond the control of the alien require the alien to depart 

6 for a brief, temporary trip abroad. An alien returning to 

7 the United States in accordance with such an authoriza8 tion shall be treated the same as any other returning alien 

9 provided temporary protected status under section 244 of 

10 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a). 

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