I

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 5032

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act in regard to Caribbeanborn immigrants.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 27, 2000

Mr. ENGEL (for himself and Mr. OWENS) introduced the following bill; which

was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act in regard

to Caribbean-born immigrants.

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 ‘‘Caribbean Amnesty

5 and Relief Act’’.
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1 TITLE I—CLARIFICATION OF ELI2 GIBILITY FOR RELIEF FROM

3 REMOVAL AND DEPORTATION

4 FOR CERTAIN ALIENS

5 SEC. 101. ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS OF CERTAIN CARIB6 BEANS.

7 (a) ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section

9 245(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the

10 status of any alien described in subsection (b) shall

11 be adjusted by the Attorney General to that of an

12 alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, if

13 the alien—

14 (A) applies for such adjustment before

15 April 1, 2002; and

16 (B) is otherwise eligible to receive an im17 migrant visa and is otherwise admissible to the

18 United States for permanent residence, except

19 in determining such admissibility the grounds

20 for inadmissibility specified in paragraphs (4),

21 (5), (6)(A) and (7)(A) of section 212(a) of the

22 Immigration and Nationality Act shall not

23 apply.

24 (2) RELATIONSHIP OF APPLICATION TO CER25 TAIN ORDERS.—An alien present in the United
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1 States who has been ordered excluded, deported, re2 moved or ordered to depart voluntarily from the

3 United States under any provision of the Immigra4 tion and Nationality Act may, notwithstanding such

5 order, apply for adjustment of status under para6 graph (1). Such an alien may not be required, as a

7 condition of submitting or granting such application,

8 to file a separate motion to reopen, reconsider, or

9 vacate such an order. If the Attorney General grants

10 the application, the Attorney General shall cancel

11 the order. If the Attorney General renders a final

12 administrative decision to deny the application, the

13 order shall be effective and enforceable to the same

14 extent as if the application had not been made.

15 (b) ALIENS ELIGIBLE FOR ADJUSTMENT OF STA16 TUS.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The benefits provided by

18 subsection (a) shall apply to any alien who is a na19 tional of countries of the Caribbean and who has

20 been physically present in the United States for a

21 continuous period, beginning not later than Sep22 tember 30, 1996 and ending earlier than the date

23 the application for adjustment under such subsection

24 is filed, except an alien shall not be considered to

25 have failed to maintain continuous physical presence
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1 by reason of an absence, or absences, from the

2 United States for any periods in the aggregate not

3 exceeding 180 days.

4 (2) PROOF OF COMMENCEMENT OF CONTIN5 UOUS PRESENCE.—For purposes of establishing that

6 the period of continuous physical presence referred

7 to in paragraph (1) commenced not later than Sep8 tember 30, 1996, an alien—

9 (A) shall demonstrate that the alien, prior

10 to September 30, 1996 performed service, or

11 engaged in a trade or business, within the

12 United States; or

13 (B) shall make such other demonstration

14 of physical presence as the Attorney General

15 may provide for by regulation.

16 (c) STAY OF REMOVAL; WORK AUTHORIZATION.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall

18 provide by regulation for an alien subject to a final

19 order of deportation or removal to seek a stay of

20 such order based on the filing of an application

21 under subsection (a).

22 (2) DURING CERTAIN PROCEEDINGS.—Notwith23 standing any provision of the Immigration and Na24 tionality Act, the Attorney General shall not order

25 any alien to be removed from the United States, if
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1 the alien is in exclusion, deportation, or removal pro2 ceedings under any provision of such an Act and has

3 applied for adjustment of status under subsection

4 (a), except where the Attorney General has rendered

5 a final administrative determination to deny the ap6 plication.

7 (3) WORK AUTHORIZATION.—The Attorney

8 General may authorize an alien who has applied for

9 adjustment of status under subsection (a) to engage

10 in employment in the United States during the

11 pendency of such application and may provide the

12 alien with an ‘‘employment authorization’’ endorse13 ment or other appropriate document signifying au14 thorization of employment, except that if such appli15 cation is pending for a period exceeding 180 days,

16 and has not been denied, the Attorney General shall

17 authorize such employment.

18 (d) ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS FOR STATUS FOR

19 SPOUSES AND CHILDREN.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section

21 245(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the

22 status of an alien shall be adjusted by the Attorney

23 General to that of an alien lawfully admitted for per24 manent residence, if—
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1 (A) the alien is a national of a Caribbean

2 country;

3 (B) the spouse, child, or unmarried son or

4 daughter, of an alien whose status is adjusted

5 to that of an alien lawfully admitted for perma6 nent residence under subsection (a), except that

7 in the case of such an unmarried son or daugh8 ter, the son or daughter shall be required to es9 tablish that they have been physically present in

10 the United States for a continuous period, be11 ginning not later than December 1, 1995, and

12 ending not earlier than the date the application

13 for adjustment is filed;

14 (C) the alien applies for such adjustment

15 and is physically present in the United States

16 on the date the application is filed;

17 (D) the alien is otherwise eligible to receive

18 an immigrant visa and is otherwise admissible

19 to the United States for permanent residence,

20 except in determining such admissibility the

21 grounds for exclusion specified in paragraphs

22 (4), (5), (6)(A), and (7)(A) of section 212(a) of

23 the Immigration and Nationality Act shall not

24 apply; and
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1 (E) applies for such adjustment before

2 April 1, 2002.

3 (2) PROOF OF CONTINUOUS PRESENCE.—For

4 purposes of establishing the period of continuous

5 physical presence referred to in paragraph (1)(B),

6 an alien—

7 (A) shall demonstrate that such period

8 commenced not later than December 1, 1995,

9 in a manner consistent with subsection (b)(2);

10 and

11 (B) shall not be considered to have failed

12 to maintain continuous physical presence by

13 reason of an absence, or absences, from the

14 United States for any period in the aggregate

15 not exceeding 180 days.

16 (e) AVAILABILITY OF ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—

17 The Attorney General shall provide to applicants for ad18 justment of status under subsection (a) the same right to,

19 and procedures for, administrative review as are provided

20 to—

21 (1) applicants for adjustment of status under

22 section 245 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

23 or

24 (2) aliens subject to removal proceedings under

25 section 240 of such Act.
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1 (f) LIMITATION ON JUDICIAL REVIEW.—A deter2 mination by the Attorney General as to whether the status

3 of any alien should be adjusted under this section is final

4 and shall not be subject to review by any court.

5 (g) NO OFFSET IN NUMBER OF VISAS AVAILABLE.—

6 When an alien is granted the status of having been law7 fully admitted for permanent residence pursuant to this

8 section, the Secretary of the State shall not be required

9 to reduce the number of immigrant visas authorized to be

10 issued under any provision of the Immigration and Na11 tionality Act.

12 (h) APPLICATION OF IMMIGRATION AND NATION13 ALITY ACT PROVISIONS.—Except as otherwise specifically

14 provided in this section, the definitions contained in the

15 Immigration and Nationality Act shall apply in the admin16 istration of this section. Nothing contained in this section

17 shall be held to repeal, amend, alter, modify, affect, or

18 restrict the powers, duties, functions, or authority of the

19 Attorney General in the administration and enforcement

20 of such Act or any other law relating to immigration, na21 tionality, or naturalization. The fact that an alien may be

22 eligible to be granted the status of having been lawfully

23 admitted for permanent residence under this section shall

24 not preclude the alien from seeking such status under any

25 other provision of law for which the alien may be eligible.
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1 TITLE II—VISA FAIRNESS

2 COMMISSION

3 SEC. 201. ESTABLISHMENT.

4 There is established in the Immigration and Natu5 ralization Service a commission to be known as the Visa

6 Fairness Commission (hereafter in this title referred to

7 as the ‘‘Commission’’.)

8 SEC. 202. DUTIES.

9 (a) DATA COLLECTION.—The Commission, in con10 sultation with the Director of the Immigration and Natu11 ralization Service, shall gather empirical data on economic

12 and racial profiling by the Consular Affairs office in Amer13 ican embassies and by Customs and immigration inspec14 tors at US points of entry. In carrying out the preceding

15 sentence, the Commission and the Director shall, to the

16 extent practicable, avoid duplication of administration ef17 forts.

18 (b) IN GENERAL.—Section 376 of the Immigration

19 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1351) is amended by add20 ing in subsection (a) the following:

21 ‘‘(3) FEE WAIVER—The Secretary of State

22 shall waive the visa fee for those who can prove in

23 forma pauperis status.’’.
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1 SEC. 203. MEMBERSHIP.

2 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission

3 shall be composed of 15 members appointed by the Direc4 tor of the INS. Members on the Commission shall be

5 broadly representative of the ethnic, religious, majority

6 and minority groups comprising the United States.

7 (b) WAIVER OF LIMITATION ON EXECUTIVE SCHED8 ULE POSITIONS.—Appointments may be made under this

9 section without regard to section 5311(b) of title 5, United

10 States Code.

11 (c) POLITICAL AFFILIATION.—Not more than 8

12 members appointed maybe of the same political party.

13 (d) TERMS.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each member shall be ap15 pointed for a term of two years, except as provided.

16 (e) BASIC PAY.—

17 (1) RATES OF PAY.—Except as provided in

18 paragraph (2), member shall serve without pay.

19 (2) PROHIBITION OF COMPENSATION OF FED20 ERAL EMPLOYEES.—Members of the Commission

21 who are full-time officers or employees of the United

22 States may not receive additional pay, allowances, or

23 benefits by reason of their services on the Commis24 sion.

25 (f) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member shall receive

26 travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence,
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1 in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5,

2 United States Code.

3 (g) QUORUM.—Eight members of the Commission

4 shall constitute a quorum but a lesser number may hold

5 hearings.

6 (h) CHAIRMAN; VICE CHAIRMAN.—The Chairman

7 and Vice Chairman of the Commission shall be designated

8 by the Director of the INS at the time of the appointment.

9 (i) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the

10 call of the Chairman or a majority of its members.

11 SEC. 204. DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF COMMISSION; EXPERTS

12 AND CONSULTANTS.

13 (a) DIRECTOR.—The Commission shall, without re14 gard to section 5311(b) of title 5, United States Code,

15 have a Director who shall be appointed by the Commis16 sion. The Director shall be paid at a rate not to exceed

17 the rate of basic pay payable for level V of the Executive

18 Schedule.

19 (b) STAFF.—Subject to rules prescribed by the Com20 mission, and without regard to section 5311(b) of title 5,

21 United States Code, the Director may appoint additional

22 personnel as the Director considers appropriate.

23 (c) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERVICE

24 LAWS.—The Director and staff of the Commission shall

25 be appointed subject to the provisions of title 5, United
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1 State Code, governing appointments in the competitive

2 service, and shall be paid in accordance with the provisions

3 of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of that

4 title relating to classification and General Schedule pay

5 rates.

6 (d) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—Subject to rules

7 prescribed by the Commission, the Director may procure

8 temporary and intermittent services under section 3109(b)

9 of title 5, United States Code, but at rates for individuals

10 not to exceed the daily equivalent of the rate basic pay

11 payable for level V of the Executive Schedule.

12 (e) STAFF OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Upon request

13 of the Director, the head of any Federal department or

14 agency may detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of the

15 personnel of that department or agency to the Commission

16 to assist it in carrying out its duties under this Act.

17 SEC. 205. POWERS OF COMMISSION.

18 (a) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Commission

19 may, for the purpose of carrying out this Act, hold hear20 ings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and

21 receive evidence as the Commission considers appropriate.

22 The Commission may administer oaths or affirmations to

23 witnesses appearing before it.

24 (b) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem25 ber or agent of the Commission may, if authorized by the
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1 Commission take any action which the Commission is au2 thorized to take by this section.

3 (c) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—The Commission

4 may secure directly from any department or agency of the

5 United States information necessary to enable it to carry

6 out this Act. Upon request of the Chairman or Vice Chair7 man of the Commission, the head of the department or

8 agency shall furnish that information to the Commission,

9 the head of that department or agency shall furnish that

10 information to the Commission.

11 (d) GIFTS, BEQUESTS, AND DEVISES.—The Commis12 sion may accept, use, and dispose of gifts, bequests, or

13 devises of services or property, both real and personal, for

14 the purpose of aiding or facilitating the work of the Com15 mission. Gifts, bequests, or devises of money and proceeds

16 from sales of other property received as gifts, bequests,

17 or devises shall be deposited in the Treasury and shall be

18 available for disbursement upon order of the Chairman.

19 (e) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United

20 States mails in the same manner and under the same con21 ditions as other departments and agencies of the United

22 States.

23 (f) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—Upon the

24 request of the Commission, the Administrator of General

25 Services shall provide to the Commission, on a reimburs-
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1 able basis, the administrative support services necessary

2 for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities under

3 the Act.

4 (g) SUBPOENA POWER.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may issue

6 subpoenas requiring the attendance and testimony of

7 witnesses and the production of any evidence relat8 ing to any matter under investigation by the Com9 mission. The attendance of witnesses and the pro10 duction of evidence may be required from any place

11 within the United States at any designated place of

12 hearing within the United States.

13 (2) FAILURE TO OBEY A SUBPOENA.—If a per14 son refuses to obey a subpoena issued under para15 graph (1), the Commission may apply to a United

16 States district court for an order requiring that per17 son to appear before the Commission to give testi18 mony, produce evidence, or both, relating to the

19 matter under investigation. The application may be

20 made within the judicial district where the hearing

21 is conducted or where that person is found, resides,

22 or transacts business any failure to obey the order

23 of the court may be punished by the court as civil

24 contempt.
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1 (3) SERVICE OF SUBPOENAS.—The subpoenas

2 of the Commission shall be served in the manner

3 provided for subpoenas issued by a United States

4 district court under the Federal Rules of Civil Pro5 cedure for the United States district courts.

6 (4) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—All process of any

7 court to which application is be made under para8 graph (2) may be served in the judicial district in

9 which the person required to be served resides or

10 may be found.

11 (h) IMMUNITY.—Except as provided in this sub12 section, a person may not be excused from testifying or

13 from producing evidence pursuant to a subpoena on the

14 ground that the testimony or evidence required by the sub15 poena may tend to incriminate or subject that person to

16 criminal prosecution. A person, after having claimed the

17 privilege against self-incrimination, may not be criminally

18 prosecuted by reason of any transaction, matter, or thing

19 about which that person is compelled to testify or relating

20 to which that person is compelled to produce evidence, ex21 cept that the person may be prosecuted for perjury com22 mitted during the testimony or made in the evidence.

23 (i) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—The Commission may

24 contract with and compensate government and private

25 agencies or persons for property and services, without re-
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1 gard to section 3709 of the Revised Statutes (41 U.S.C.

2 5)

3 SEC. 206. ANNUAL REPORTS.

4 The Commission shall transmit an annual report to

5 the Director of the INS and the Congress not later than

6 December 31 of each year. Each such report shall contain

7 a detailed statement of activities of the Commission dur8 ing the fiscal year ending in the year in which such report

9 is required to be submitted.

10 SEC. 207. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

11 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

12 as may be necessary to complete the study.

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