Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 248 / Monday, December 29, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 67563

6For the purposes of this table, 1 cubic foot of natural gas has an energy equivalence of 1,027 Btu.

7For the purposes of this table, 1 gallon of No. 2 heating oil has an energy equivalence of 138,690 Btu.

8For the purposes of this table, 1 gallon of liquid propane has an energy equivalence of 91,333 Btu.

9For the purposes of this table, 1 gallon of kerosene has an energy equivalence of 135,000 Btu.

* * * * *

Donald S. Clark,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–33686 Filed 12–24–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6750–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Bureau of Consular Affairs

22 CFR Part 40

[Public Notice 2674]

VISAS: Public Charge

AGENCY: Department of State, Bureau of

Consular Affairs.

ACTION: Interim rule with request for

comments.

SUMMARY: This rule amends Department

of State regulations by establishing

uniform procedures for the acceptance

of affidavits of support by consular

posts abroad as required by the

Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

This rule is necessary to ensure proper

adjudication of immigrant visas under

the INA.

DATES: Effective Date: This interim rule

is effective on December 19, 1997.

Comment Date: Submit comments on or

before February 27, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Please submit written

comments to the Chief, Legislation and

Regulations Division, Visa Office, Room

L603-C, SA–1, Washington, D.C. 20520–

0106. Comments will be made available

for public inspection at the Department

of State’s Public Reading Room, 2201 C

Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20520.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron

Acker, Visa Regulations Coordinator,

Legislation and Regulations Division,

Visa Office, Room L603-C, SA–1,

Washington, DC, 20520–0106

(ackerrl@SA1WPOA.us-state.gov).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

September 30, 1996, the President

signed the Illegal Immigration Reform

and Immigrant Responsibility Act of

1996 (IIRIRA), Pub. L. 104 208, which,

among numerous other changes,

amended section 212(a)(4) of the

Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)

to provide that an alien is excludable or

inadmissible to the United States based

upon the likelihood of becoming a

public charge if the alien is seeking an

immigrant visa, admission as an

immigrant, or adjustment of status as:

(a) An immediate relative, (b) a familybased immigrant, or (c) an employmentbased immigrant (if a sponsoring

relative is the petitioning employer or

owns a significant ownership interest in

the entity that is the petitioning

employer) unless the alien is the

beneficiary of an affidavit of support

filed under INA section 213A. INA

213A specifies the conditions that must

be met in order for an affidavit of

support to be acceptable for use by a

visa applicant to establish eligibility

under INA 212(a)(4)(C).

Under the provisions of IIRIRA (Title

V, Subtitle C, Section 551(c)), the

Attorney General is responsible for

promulgating the standard forms to be

used in connection with the filing of

affidavits of support and in establishing

the effective date upon which such

forms are required. The Immigration

and Naturalization Service (INS)

published an interim rule on October

20, 1997 (Federal Register, Vol. 62, No.

202, pp. 54346–54356) describing the

new ‘‘Affidavit of Support’’ (Form I–

864), and two ancillary forms, the

‘‘Contract Between Sponsor and

Household Member’’ (Form I–864A),

and the ‘‘Sponsor’s Notice of Change of

Address’’ (Form I–865). INS’s rule

included procedural instructions for

filling out the forms, and established

December 19, 1997 as the effective date

on which these forms would be required

for submission to immigration and

consular officers.

The net effect of the new affidavit of

support is that it is must be fully

executed in compliance with the

provisions of INA 213A in order for an

alien (as described above) to meet the

requirements of INA 212(a)(4)(C). An

affidavit of support that has been

appropriately executed and submitted

does not, however, necessarily establish

that an alien is not within the purview

of the public charge provisions of

212(a)(4)(A). That decision remains

vested with the reviewing immigration

or consular officer, who must be

satisfied that the alien is otherwise not

likely to become a public charge upon

entering the United States.

Accordingly, the Department is (1)

adding new regulations at 22 CFR

40.41(b) and (c), (2) amending

regulations at 22 CFR 40.41(a), (b), and

(d) to reflect the new affidavit of support

requirements, and (3), redesignating 22

CFR 40.41(b), (c), and (d) as 40.41(d),

(e), and (f), respectively. In addition, the

current description of the poverty line

contained in new 40.41(f), formerly (d),

is being eliminated and replaced with a

reference to new section, INA 213A(h),

which contains the definition of the

poverty line to be used for 213A

purposes. Since both the old and the

new description refer to the same

poverty line established by the

Department of Health and Human

Services, this change will simply make

uniform all references to the poverty

line for purposes of 212(a)(4) in

accordance with the latest description.

The new (f) is also retitled to reflect the

revised language.

Interim Rule

This rule modifies 22 CFR,

Subchapter E, Subpart E to reflect

changes made by IIRIRA. Title V,

Subtitle C, of IIRIRA, which is

implemented by this rule became

effective December 19, 1997. The

issuance of this rule as an interim rule,

with provisions for post-promulgation

public comments, is based upon the

‘‘good cause’’ exception found at 5

U.S.C. 553(b)(B) and 553(d)(3) because it

implements statutory provisions and an

effective date set under statutory

authority.

Pursuant to § 605(b) of the Regulatory

Flexibility Act, the Department has

assessed the potential impact of this

rule and it has been determined, and the

Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs

hereby certifies, that it will not have a

significant economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

The rule has no economic effect beyond

that of the statutory requirements

already in effect which it implements.

As required by 5 U.S.C. chapter 8, the

Department has screened this rule and

determined that it is not a major rule, as

defined in 5 U.S.C. 80412.

This rule imposes no reporting or

record-keeping action on the public

requiring the approval of the Office of

Management and Budget under the

Paperwork Reduction Act.

This rule has been reviewed as

required by E.O. 12988 and determined

to meet the applicable regulatory

standards it describes. Although

exempted from E.O. 12866, this rule has

been reviewed to ensure consistency

with it.

List of Subjects in 22 CFR Part 40

Aliens, Immigrants, Immigration,

Nonimmigrants, Passports and visas.

In view of the foregoing, 22 CFR is

amended as follows:
67564 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 248 / Monday, December 29, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

PART 40—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for Part 40 is

revised to read:

Authority: 8 U.S.C. 1104; Pub.L. 104–208,

110 Stat. 3009; 22 U.S.C. 2651a.

2. Section 40.41 is revised as follows:

§ 40.41 Public charge.

(a) Basis for Determination of

Ineligibility. Any determination that an

alien is ineligible under INA 212(a)(4)

must be predicated upon circumstances

indicating that, notwithstanding any

affidavit of support that may have been

filed on the alien’s behalf, the alien is

likely to become a public charge after

admission, or, if applicable, that the

alien has failed to fulfill the affidavit of

support requirement of INA

212(a)(4)(C).

(b) Affidavit of Support. Any alien

seeking an immigrant visa under INA

201(b)(2), 203(a), or 203(b), based upon

a petition filed by a relative of the alien

(or in the case of a petition filed under

INA 203(b) by an entity in which a

relative has a significant ownership

interest), shall be required to present to

the consular officer an affidavit of

support on a form that complies with

terms and conditions established by the

Attorney General.

(c) Joint Sponsors. Submission of one

or more additional affidavits of support

by a joint sponsor/sponsors is required

whenever the relative sponsor’s

household income and significant

assets, and the immigrant’s assets, do

not meet the Federal poverty line

requirements of INA 213A.

(d) Posting of Bond. A consular officer

may issue a visa to an alien who is

within the purview of INA 212(a)(4)

(subject to the affidavit of support

requirement and attribution of sponsor’s

income and resources under section

213A), upon receipt of a notice from INS

of the giving of a bond or undertaking

in accordance with INA 213 and INA

221(g), and provided further that the

officer is satisfied that the giving of such

bond or undertaking removes the

likelihood that the alien will become a

public charge within the meaning of this

section of the law and that the alien is

otherwise eligible in all respects.

(e) Prearranged Employment. An

immigrant visa applicant relying on an

offer of prearranged employment to

establish eligibility under INA 212(a)(4),

other than an offer of employment

certified by the Department of Labor

pursuant to INA 212(a)(5)(A), must

provide written confirmation of the

relevant information sworn and

subscribed to before a notary public by

the employer or an authorized employee

or agent of the employer. The signer’s

printed name and position or other

relationship with the employer must

accompany the signature.

(f) Use of Federal Poverty Line Where

INA 213A Not Applicable. An

immigrant visa applicant, not subject to

the requirements of INA 213A, and

relying solely on personal income to

establish eligibility under INA 212(a)(4),

who does not demonstrate an annual

income above the Federal poverty line,

as defined in INA 213A (h), and who is

without other adequate financial

resources, shall be presumed ineligible

under INA 212(a)(4).

Dated: December 19, 1997.

Mary A. Ryan,

Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs.

[FR Doc. 97–33691 Filed 12–24–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4710–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Bureau of Consular Affairs

22 CFR Part 40

[Public Notice 2666]

Visas: Grounds of Ineligibility

AGENCY: Bureau of Consular Affairs,

Department of State.

ACTION: Interim rule with request for

comments.

SUMMARY: This rule implements the

Illegal Immigration Reform and

Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996

(IIRIRA). The act adds new grounds of

inadmissibility to the United States for:

certain aliens who have not been

inoculated against infectious diseases

designated by statute or by the Advisory

Committee for Immunization Practices

(ACIP); aliens who have been subject to

certain civil penalties; alien student visa

abusers; aliens present in the United

States without admission or parole;

aliens who fail to attend removal

proceedings; unlawful alien voters; and

former citizens who renounced United

States citizenship in order to avoid

paying taxes. Some of the sections cited

above also provide for waivers of a

number of grounds of inadmissibility.

The rule also incorporates into the

Department’s regulations a delegation of

authority from the Immigration and

Naturalization Service pertaining to

waivers of inadmissibility under

§ 212(a)(1)(A)(ii) of the Immigration and

Nationality Act (INA), as amended.

Finally, this rule makes a few

miscellaneous technical corrections.

DATES: Effective Dates:

§ 40.11 September 30, 1996

§ 40.22 September 30, 1997.

§ 40.52 September 30, 1996

§ 40.61 April 1, 1997

§ 40.62 April 1, 1997

§ 40.66 September 30, 1996

§ 40.67 November 30, 1996

§ 40.91 April 1, 1997

§ 40.92 April 1, 1997

§ 40.93 April 1, 1997

§ 40.104 September 30, 1996

§ 40.105 September 30, 1996

Comment Date: Written comments

must be submitted on or before February

27, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be

addressed to the Chief, Legislation and

Regulations Division, Visa Office, Room

L603–C, SA–1, Washington, D.C.

20520–0106.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: H.

Edward Odom, Chief, Legislation and

Regulations Division, (202) 663–1204.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Some of

the provisions of IIRIRA implemented

by this rule became effective on the date

of enactment, September 30, 1996.

Others became effective on November

30, 1996. Still others became effective

on April 1, 1997. Therefore, in order to

coincide with the effective dates

mandated by Congress, the effective

dates are listed in the DATES section of

this document. Division ‘‘C’’ of the

Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations

Act, 1997 (the Illegal Immigration

Reform and Alien Responsibility Act of

1996 (IIRIRA)), made substantial

changes and additions to the INA

affecting numerous regulations at 22

CFR, Subchapter E. On November 21,

1996, the Department published a final

rule [61 FR 59182] to restructure the

numbering of 22 CFR Part 40 in light of

these additions. This rule incorporates

changes to those sections of Part 40

shown in the table below.

22 CFR Part Affected Heading IIRIRA Section No.

§ 40.11 ............... Medical Grounds of Ineligibility .............................................................. § 341

§ 40.22(b) ........... Suspended Sentences ........................................................................... § 322

§ 40.52 ............... Unqualified Physicians ........................................................................... N/A (typographic correction)

§ 40.61 ............... Aliens Present Without Admission or Parole ......................................... § 301