II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1592

To amend the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act

to provide to certain nationals of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras,

and Haiti an opportunity to apply for adjustment of status under that

Act, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 15, 1999

Mr. DURBIN (for himself and Mr. KENNEDY) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To amend the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American

Relief Act to provide to certain nationals of El Salvador,

Guatemala, Honduras, and Haiti an opportunity to apply

for adjustment of status under that Act, 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 ‘‘Central American and

5 Haitian Parity Act of 1999’’.
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1 SEC. 2. ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS FOR CERTAIN NATIONALS

2 FROM EL SALVADOR, GUATEMALA, HON3 DURAS, AND HAITI.

4 Section 202 of the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Cen5 tral American Relief Act is amended—

6 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘NICA7 RAGUANS AND CUBANS’’ and inserting ‘‘NICA8 RAGUANS, CUBANS, SALVADORANS, GUATEMALANS,

9 HONDURANS, AND HAITIANS’’;

10 (2) in subsection (a)(1)(A), by striking ‘‘2000’’

11 and inserting ‘‘2003’’;

12 (3) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘Nicaragua

13 or Cuba’’ and inserting ‘‘Nicaragua, Cuba, El Sal14 vador, Guatemala, Honduras, or Haiti’’; and

15 (4) in subsection (d)—

16 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking

17 ‘‘Nicaragua or Cuba’’ and inserting ‘‘Nica18 ragua, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatamala, Hon19 duras, or Haiti; and

20 (B) in subparagraph (E), by striking

21 ‘‘2000’’ and inserting ‘‘2003’’.
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1 SEC. 3. APPLICATIONS PENDING UNDER AMENDMENTS

2 MADE BY SECTION 203 OF THE NICARAGUAN

3 ADJUSTMENT AND CENTRAL AMERICAN RE4 LIEF ACT.

5 An application for relief properly filed by a national

6 of Guatemala or El Salvador under the amendments made

7 by section 203 of the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central

8 American Relief Act which was filed on or before the date

9 of enactment of this Act, and on which a final administra10 tive determination has not been made, shall, at the election

11 of the applicant, be considered to be an application for

12 adjustment of status under the provisions of section 202

13 of the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Re14 lief Act, as amended by section 2 of this Act, upon the

15 payment of any fees, and in accordance with procedures,

16 that the Attorney General shall prescribe by regulation.

17 The Attorney General may not refund any fees paid in

18 connection with an application filed by a national of Gua19 temala or El Salvador under the amendments made by

20 section 203 of that Act.

21 SEC. 4. APPLICATIONS PENDING UNDER THE HAITIAN REF22 UGEE IMMIGRATION FAIRNESS ACT OF 1998.

23 An application for adjustment of status properly filed

24 by a national of Haiti under the Haitian Refugee Immi25 gration Fairness Act of 1998 which was filed on or before

26 the date of enactment of this Act, and on which a final
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1 administrative determination has not been made, may be

2 considered by the Attorney General, in the unreviewable

3 discretion of the Attorney General, to also constitute an

4 application for adjustment of status under the provisions

5 of section 202 of the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central

6 American Relief Act, as amended by section 2 of this Act.

7 SEC. 5. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS TO THE NICARAGUAN

8 ADJUSTMENT AND CENTRAL AMERICAN RE9 LIEF ACT.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 202 of the Nicaraguan

11 Adjustment and Central American Relief Act is

12 amended—

13 (1) in subsection (a)—

14 (A) by inserting before the period at the

15 end of paragraph (1)(B) the following: ‘‘, and

16 the Attorney General may, in the unreviewable

17 discretion of the Attorney General, waive the

18 grounds of inadmissibility specified in section

19 212(a)(1) (A)(i) and (6)(C) of such Act for hu20 manitarian purposes, to assure family unity, or

21 when it is otherwise in the public interest’’;

22 (B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as

23 paragraph (3);

24 (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the

25 following:
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1 ‘‘(2) INAPPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVI2 SIONS.—In determining the eligibility of an alien de3 scribed in subsection (b) or (d) for either adjustment

4 of status under this section or other relief necessary

5 to establish eligibility for such adjustment, the provi6 sions of section 241(a)(5) of the Immigration and

7 Nationality Act shall not apply. In addition, an alien

8 who would otherwise be inadmissible pursuant to

9 section 212(a)(9) (A) or (C) of such Act may apply

10 for the Attorney General’s consent to reapply for ad11 mission without regard to the requirement that the

12 consent be granted prior to the date of the alien’s

13 reembarkation at a place outside the United States

14 or attempt to be admitted from foreign contiguous

15 territory, in order to qualify for the exception to

16 those grounds of inadmissibility set forth in section

17 212(a)(9) (A)(iii) and (C)(ii) of such Act.’’; and

18 (D) by amending paragraph (3) (as redes19 ignated by subparagraph (B)) to read as fol20 lows:

21 ‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP OF APPLICATION TO CER22 TAIN ORDERS.—An alien present in the United

23 States who has been ordered excluded, deported, or

24 removed, or ordered to depart voluntarily from the

25 United States under any provision of the Immigra-
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1 tion and Nationality Act may, notwithstanding such

2 order, apply for adjustment of status under para3 graph (1). Such an alien may not be required, as a

4 condition of submitting or granting such application,

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

6 vacate such order. Such an alien may be required to

7 seek a stay of such an order in accordance with sub8 section (c) to prevent the execution of that order

9 pending the adjudication of the application for ad10 justment of status. If the Attorney General denies a

11 stay of a final order of exclusion, deportation, or re12 moval, or if the Attorney General renders a final ad13 ministrative determination to deny the application

14 for adjustment of status, the order shall be effective

15 and enforceable to the same extent as if the applica16 tion had not been made. If the Attorney General

17 grants the application for adjustment of status, the

18 Attorney General shall cancel the order.’’;

19 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by adding at the end

20 the following: ‘‘Subsection (a) shall not apply to an

21 alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, un22 less the alien is applying for relief under that sub23 section in deportation or removal proceedings.’’;

24 (3) in subsection (c)(1), by adding at the end

25 the following: ‘‘Nothing in this Act requires the At-
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1 torney General to stay the removal of an alien who

2 is ineligible for adjustment of status under this

3 Act.’’;

4 (4) in subsection (d)—

5 (A) by amending the subsection heading to

6 read as follows: ‘‘SPOUSES, CHILDREN, AND

7 UNMARRIED SONS AND DAUGHTERS.—’’;

8 (B) by amending the heading of paragraph

9 (1) to read as follows: ‘‘ADJUSTMENT OF STA10 TUS.—’’;

11 (C) by amending paragraph (1)(A) to read

12 as follows:

13 ‘‘(A) the alien entered the United States

14 on or before the date of enactment of the Cen15 tral American and Haitian Parity Act of

16 1999;’’;

17 (D) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘ex18 cept that in the case of’’ and inserting the fol19 lowing: ‘‘except that—

20 ‘‘(i) in the case of such a spouse, step21 child, or unmarried stepson or step22 daughter, the qualifying marriage was en23 tered into before the date of enactment of

24 the Central American and Haitian Parity

25 Act of 1999; and
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1 ‘‘(ii) in the case of’’; and

2 (E) by adding at the end the following new

3 paragraph:

4 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY OF CERTAIN SPOUSES AND

5 CHILDREN FOR ISSUANCE OF IMMIGRANT VISAS.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with

7 regulations to be promulgated by the Attorney

8 General and the Secretary of State, upon ap9 proval of an application for adjustment of sta10 tus to that of an alien lawfully admitted for

11 permanent residence under subsection (a), an

12 alien who is the spouse or child of the alien

13 being granted such status may be issued a visa

14 for admission to the United States as an immi15 grant following to join the principal applicant,

16 if the spouse or child—

17 ‘‘(i) meets the requirements in para18 graphs (1) (B) and (1) (D); and

19 ‘‘(ii) applies for such a visa within a

20 time period to be established by such regu21 lations.

22 ‘‘(B) RETENTION OF FEES FOR PROC23 ESSING APPLICATIONS.—The Secretary of State

24 may retain fees to recover the cost of immi25 grant visa application processing and issuance
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1 for certain spouses and children of aliens whose

2 applications for adjustment of status under sub3 section (a) have been approved. Such fees—

4 ‘‘(i) shall be deposited as an offsetting

5 collection to any Department of State ap6 propriation to recover the cost of such

7 processing and issuance; and

8 ‘‘(ii) shall be available until expended

9 for the same purposes of such appropria10 tion to support consular activities.’’;

11 (5) in subsection (g), by inserting ‘‘, or an im12 migrant classification,’’ after ‘‘for permanent resi13 dence’’; and

14 (6) by adding at the end the following new sub15 section:

16 ‘‘(i) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this

17 section authorizes any alien to apply for admission to, be

18 admitted to, be paroled into, or otherwise lawfully return

19 to the United States, to apply for, or to pursue an applica20 tion for adjustment of status under this section without

21 the express authorization of the Attorney General.’’.

22 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

23 paragraphs (1)(D), (2), and (6) shall be effective as if in24 cluded in the enactment of the Nicaraguan and Central

25 American Relief Act. The amendments made by para-
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1 graphs (1) (A)–(C), (3), (4), and (5) shall take effect on

2 the date of enactment of this Act.

3 SEC. 6. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS TO THE HAITIAN REF4 UGEE IMMIGRATION FAIRNESS ACT OF 1998.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 902 of the Haitian Ref6 ugee Immigration Fairness Act of 1998 is amended—

7 (1) in subsection (a)—

8 (A) by inserting before the period at the

9 end of paragraph (1)(B) the following: ‘‘, and

10 the Attorney General may, in the unreviewable

11 discretion of the Attorney General, waive the

12 grounds of inadmissibility specified in section

13 212(a) (1)(A)(i) and (6)(C) of such Act for hu14 manitarian purposes, to assure family unity, or

15 when it is otherwise in the public interest’’;

16 (B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as

17 paragraph (3);

18 (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the

19 following:

20 ‘‘(2) INAPPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVI21 SIONS.—In determining the eligibility of an alien de22 scribed in subsection (b) or (d) for either adjustment

23 of status under this section or other relief necessary

24 to establish eligibility for such adjustment, or for

25 permission to reapply for admission to the United
11

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1 States for the purpose of adjustment of status under

2 this section, the provisions of section 241(a)(5) of

3 the Immigration and Nationality Act shall not apply.

4 In addition, an alien who would otherwise be inad5 missible pursuant to section 212(a)(9) (A) or (C) of

6 such Act may apply for the Attorney General’s con7 sent to reapply for admission without regard to the

8 requirement that the consent be granted prior to the

9 date of the alien’s reembarkation at a place outside

10 the United States or attempt to be admitted from

11 foreign contiguous territory, in order to qualify for

12 the exception to those grounds of inadmissibility set

13 forth in section 212(a)(9) (A)(iii) and (C)(ii) of such

14 Act.’’; and

15 (D) by amending paragraph (3) (as redes16 ignated by subparagraph (B)) to read as fol17 lows:

18 ‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP OF APPLICATION TO CER19 TAIN ORDERS.—An alien present in the United

20 States who has been ordered excluded, deported, re21 moved, or ordered to depart voluntarily from the

22 United States under any provision of the Immigra23 tion and Nationality Act may, notwithstanding such

24 order, apply for adjustment of status under para25 graph (1). Such an alien may not be required, as a
12

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1 condition of submitting or granting such application,

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

3 vacate such order. Such an alien may be required to

4 seek a stay of such an order in accordance with sub5 section (c) to prevent the execution of that order

6 pending the adjudication of the application for ad7 justment of status. If the Attorney General denies a

8 stay of a final order of exclusion, deportation, or re9 moval, or if the Attorney General renders a final ad10 ministrative determination to deny the application

11 for adjustment of status, the order shall be effective

12 and enforceable to the same extent as if the applica13 tion had not been made. If the Attorney General

14 grants the application for adjustment of status, the

15 Attorney General shall cancel the order.’’;

16 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by adding at the end

17 the following: ‘‘Subsection (a) shall not apply to an

18 alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, un19 less the alien is applying for such relief under that

20 subsection in deportation or removal proceedings.’’;

21 (3) in subsection (c)(1), by adding at the end

22 the following: ‘‘Nothing in this Act shall require the

23 Attorney General to stay the removal of an alien

24 who is ineligible for adjustment of status under this

25 Act.’’;
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1 (4) in subsection (d)—

2 (A) by amending the subsection heading to

3 read as follows: ‘‘SPOUSES, CHILDREN, AND

4 UNMARRIED SONS AND DAUGHTERS.—’’;

5 (B) by amending the heading of paragraph

6 (1) to read as follows: ‘‘ADJUSTMENT OF STA7 TUS.—’’;

8 (C) by amending paragraph (1)(A), to read

9 as follows:

10 ‘‘(A) the alien entered the United States

11 on or before the date of enactment of the Cen12 tral American and Haitian Parity Act of

13 1999;’’;

14 (D) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘ex15 cept that in the case of’’ and inserting the fol16 lowing: ‘‘except that—

17 ‘‘(i) in the case of such a spouse, step18 child, or unmarried stepson or step19 daughter, the qualifying marriage was en20 tered into before the date of enactment of

21 the Central American and Haitian Parity

22 Act of 1999; and

23 ‘‘(ii) in the case of’’;

24 (E) by adding at the end of paragraph (1)

25 the following new subparagraph:
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1 ‘‘(E) the alien applies for such adjustment

2 before April 3, 2003.’’; and

3 (F) by adding at the end the following new

4 paragraph:

5 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY OF CERTAIN SPOUSES AND

6 CHILDREN FOR ISSUANCE OF IMMIGRANT VISAS.—

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with

8 regulations to be promulgated by the Attorney

9 General and the Secretary of State, upon ap10 proval of an application for adjustment of sta11 tus to that of an alien lawfully admitted for

12 permanent residence under subsection (a), an

13 alien who is the spouse or child of the alien

14 being granted such status may be issued a visa

15 for admission to the United States as an immi16 grant following to join the principal applicant,

17 if the spouse or child—

18 ‘‘(i) meets the requirements in para19 graphs (1)(B) and (1)(D); and

20 ‘‘(ii) applies for such a visa within a

21 time period to be established by such regu22 lations.

23 ‘‘(B) RETENTION OF FEES FOR PROC24 ESSING APPLICATIONS.—The Secretary of State

25 may retain fees to recover the cost of immi-
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1 grant visa application processing and issuance

2 for certain spouses and children of aliens whose

3 applications for adjustment of status under sub4 section (a) have been approved. Such fees—

5 ‘‘(i) shall be deposited as an offsetting

6 collection to any Department of State ap7 propriation to recover the cost of such

8 processing and issuance; and

9 ‘‘(ii) shall be available until expended

10 for the same purposes of such appropria11 tion to support consular activities.’’;

12 (5) in subsection (g), by inserting ‘‘, or an im13 migrant classification,’’ after ‘‘for permanent resi14 dence’’;

15 (6) by redesignating subsections (i), (j), and (k)

16 as subsections (j), (k), and (l), respectively; and

17 (7) by inserting after subsection (h) the fol18 lowing new subsection:

19 ‘‘(i) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this

20 section authorizes any alien to apply for admission to, be

21 admitted to, be paroled into, or otherwise lawfully return

22 to the United States, to apply for, or to pursue an applica23 tion for adjustment of status under this section without

24 the express authorization of the Attorney General.’’.
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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

2 paragraphs (1)(D), (2), and (6) shall be effective as if in3 cluded in the enactment of the Haitian Refugee Immigra4 tion Fairness Act of 1998. The amendments made by

5 paragraphs (1) (A)–(C), (3), (4), and (5) shall take effect

6 on the date of enactment of this Act.

7 SEC. 7. MOTIONS TO REOPEN.

8 (a) NATIONALS OF HAITI.—Notwithstanding any

9 time and number limitations imposed by law on motions

10 to reopen, a national of Haiti who, on the date of enact11 ment of this Act, has a final administrative denial of an

12 application for adjustment of status under the Haitian

13 Refugee Immigration Fairness Act of 1998, and is made

14 eligible for adjustment of status under that Act by the

15 amendments made by this Act, may file one motion to re16 open an exclusion, deportation, or removal proceeding to

17 have the application reconsidered. Any such motion shall

18 be filed within 180 days of the date of enactment of this

19 Act. The scope of any proceeding reopened on this basis

20 shall be limited to a determination of the alien’s eligibility

21 for adjustment of status under the Haitian Refugee Immi22 gration Fairness Act of 1998.

23 (b) NATIONALS OF CUBA.—Notwithstanding any

24 time and number limitations imposed by law on motions

25 to reopen, a national of Cuba or Nicaragua who, on the
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1 date of enactment of the Act, has a final administrative

2 denial of an application for adjustment of status under

3 the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief

4 Act, and who is made eligible for adjustment of status

5 under that Act by the amendments made by this Act, may

6 file one motion to reopen an exclusion, deportation, or re7 moval proceeding to have the application reconsidered.

8 Any such motion shall be filed within 180 days of the date

9 of enactment of this Act. The scope of any proceeding re10 opened on this basis shall be limited to a determination

11 of the alien’s eligibility for adjustment of status under the

12 Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act.

Æ