106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2045

AN ACT

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect

to H–1B nonimmigrant aliens.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 TITLE I—AMERICAN COMPETI2 TIVENESS IN THE TWENTY3 FIRST CENTURY

4 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘American Competitive6 ness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000’’.

7 SEC. 102. TEMPORARY INCREASE IN VISA ALLOTMENTS.

8 (a) FISCAL YEARS 2001–2003.—Section

9 214(g)(1)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8

10 U.S.C. 1184(g)(1)(A)) is amended—

11 (1) by redesignating clause (v) as clause (vii);

12 and

13 (2) by striking clause (iv) and inserting the fol14 lowing:

15 ‘‘(iv) 195,000 in fiscal year 2001;

16 ‘‘(v) 195,000 in fiscal year 2002;

17 ‘‘(vi) 195,000 in fiscal year 2003;

18 and’’.

19 (b) ADDITIONAL VISAS FOR FISCAL YEARS 1999 AND

20 2000.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—(A) Notwithstanding section

22 214(g)(1)(A)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality

23 Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)(1)(A)(ii)), the total number

24 of aliens who may be issued visas or otherwise pro25 vided nonimmigrant status under section
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1 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of such Act in fiscal year 1999

2 is increased by a number equal to the number of

3 aliens who are issued such a visa or provided such

4 status during the period beginning on the date on

5 which the limitation in such section 214(g)(1)(A)(ii)

6 is reached and ending on September 30, 1999.

7 (B) In the case of any alien on behalf of whom

8 a petition for status under section

9 101(a)(15)(H)(I)(b) is filed before September 1,

10 2000, and is subsequently approved, that alien shall

11 be counted toward the numerical ceiling for fiscal

12 year 2000 notwithstanding the date of the approval

13 of the petition. Notwithstanding section

14 214(g)(1)(A)(iii) of the Immigration and Nationality

15 Act, the total number of aliens who may be issued

16 visas or otherwise provided nonimmigrant status

17 under section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of such Act in fis18 cal year 2000 is increased by a number equal to the

19 number of aliens who may be issued visas or other20 wise provided nonimmigrant status who filed a peti21 tion during the period beginning on the date on

22 which the limitation in such section 214(g)(1)(A)(iii)

23 is reached and ending on August 31, 2000.

24 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Paragraph (1) shall

25 take effect as if included in the enactment of section
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1 411 of the American Competitiveness and Workforce

2 Improvement Act of 1998 (as contained in title IV

3 of division C of the Omnibus Consolidated and

4 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999;

5 Public Law 105–277).

6 SEC. 103. SPECIAL RULE FOR UNIVERSITIES, RESEARCH

7 FACILITIES, AND GRADUATE DEGREE RECIPI8 ENTS; COUNTING RULES.

9 Section 214(g) of the Immigration and Nationality

10 Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)) is amended by adding at the end

11 the following new paragraphs:

12 ‘‘(5) The numerical limitations contained in para13 graph (1)(A) shall not apply to any nonimmigrant alien

14 issued a visa or otherwise provided status under section

15 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) who is employed (or has received an

16 offer of employment) at—

17 ‘‘(A) an institution of higher education (as de18 fined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act

19 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a))), or a related or affili20 ated nonprofit entity; or

21 ‘‘(B) a nonprofit research organization or a

22 governmental research organization.

23 ‘‘(6) Any alien who ceases to be employed by an em24 ployer described in paragraph (5)(A) shall, if employed as

25 a nonimmigrant alien described in section
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1 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b), who has not previously been counted

2 toward the numerical limitations contained in paragraph

3 (1)(A), be counted toward those limitations the first time

4 the alien is employed by an employer other than one de5 scribed in paragraph (5).

6 ‘‘(7) Any alien who has already been counted, within

7 the 6 years prior to the approval of a petition described

8 in subsection (c), toward the numerical limitations of

9 paragraph (1)(A) shall not again be counted toward those

10 limitations unless the alien would be eligible for a full 6

11 years of authorized admission at the time the petition is

12 filed. Where multiple petitions are approved for 1 alien,

13 that alien shall be counted only once.’’.

14 SEC. 104. LIMITATION ON PER COUNTRY CEILING WITH RE15 SPECT TO EMPLOYMENT-BASED IMMI16 GRANTS.

17 (a) SPECIAL RULES.—Section 202(a) of the Immi18 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(a)) is amend19 ed by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

20 ‘‘(5) RULES FOR EMPLOYMENT-BASED IMMI21 GRANTS.—

22 ‘‘(A) EMPLOYMENT-BASED IMMIGRANTS

23 NOT SUBJECT TO PER COUNTRY LIMITATION IF

24 ADDITIONAL VISAS AVAILABLE.—If the total

25 number of visas available under paragraph (1),
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1 (2), (3), (4), or (5) of section 203(b) for a cal2 endar quarter exceeds the number of qualified

3 immigrants who may otherwise be issued such

4 visas, the visas made available under that para5 graph shall be issued without regard to the nu6 merical limitation under paragraph (2) of this

7 subsection during the remainder of the calendar

8 quarter.

9 ‘‘(B) LIMITING FALL ACROSS FOR CERTAIN

10 COUNTRIES SUBJECT TO SUBSECTION (E).—In

11 the case of a foreign state or dependent area to

12 which subsection (e) applies, if the total number

13 of visas issued under section 203(b) exceeds the

14 maximum number of visas that may be made

15 available to immigrants of the state or area

16 under section 203(b) consistent with subsection

17 (e) (determined without regard to this para18 graph), in applying subsection (e) all visas shall

19 be deemed to have been required for the classes

20 of aliens specified in section 203(b).’’.

21 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

22 (1) Section 202(a)(2) of the Immigration and

23 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(2)) is amended

24 by striking ‘‘paragraphs (3) and (4)’’ and inserting

25 ‘‘paragraphs (3), (4), and (5)’’.
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1 (2) Section 202(e)(3) of the Immigration and

2 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(e)(3)) is amended by

3 striking ‘‘the proportion of the visa numbers’’ and

4 inserting ‘‘except as provided in subsection (a)(5),

5 the proportion of the visa numbers’’.

6 (c) ONE-TIME PROTECTION UNDER PER COUNTRY

7 CEILING.—Notwithstanding section 214(g)(4) of the Im8 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)(4)), any

9 alien who—

10 (1) is the beneficiary of a petition filed under

11 section 204(a) of that Act for a preference status

12 under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of section 203(b) of

13 that Act; and

14 (2) is eligible to be granted that status but for

15 application of the per country limitations applicable

16 to immigrants under those paragraphs,

17 may apply for, and the Attorney General may grant, an

18 extension of such nonimmigrant status until the alien’s

19 application for adjustment of status has been processed

20 and a decision made thereon.

21 SEC. 105. INCREASED PORTABILITY OF H–1B STATUS.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 214 of the Immigration

23 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended by add24 ing at the end the following new subsection:
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1 ‘‘(m)(1) A nonimmigrant alien described in para2 graph (2) who was previously issued a visa or otherwise

3 provided nonimmigrant status under section

4 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) is authorized to accept new employ5 ment upon the filing by the prospective employer of a new

6 petition on behalf of such nonimmigrant as provided under

7 subsection (a). Employment authorization shall continue

8 for such alien until the new petition is adjudicated. If the

9 new petition is denied, such authorization shall cease.

10 ‘‘(2) A nonimmigrant alien described in this para11 graph is a nonimmigrant alien—

12 ‘‘(A) who has been lawfully admitted into the

13 United States;

14 ‘‘(B) on whose behalf an employer has filed a

15 nonfrivolous petition for new employment before the

16 date of expiration of the period of stay authorized by

17 the Attorney General; and

18 ‘‘(C) who, subsequent to such lawful admission,

19 has not been employed without authorization in the

20 United States before the filing of such petition.’’.

21 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by

22 subsection (a) shall apply to petitions filed before, on, or

23 after the date of enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 106. SPECIAL PROVISIONS IN CASES OF LENGTHY AD2 JUDICATIONS.

3 (a) EXEMPTION FROM LIMITATION.—The limitation

4 contained in section 214(g)(4) of the Immigration and Na5 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)(4)) with respect to the du6 ration of authorized stay shall not apply to any non7 immigrant alien previously issued a visa or otherwise pro8 vided nonimmigrant status under section

9 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of that Act on whose behalf a petition

10 under section 204(b) of that Act to accord the alien immi11 grant status under section 203(b) of that Act, or an appli12 cation for adjustment of status under section 245 of that

13 Act to accord the alien status under such section 203(b),

14 has been filed, if 365 days or more have elapsed since—

15 (1) the filing of a labor certification application

16 on the alien’s behalf (if such certification is required

17 for the alien to obtain status under such section

18 203(b)); or

19 (2) the filing of the petition under such section

20 204(b).

21 (b) EXTENSION OF H1–B WORKER STATUS.—The

22 Attorney General shall extend the stay of an alien who

23 qualifies for an exemption under subsection (a) in one-year

24 increments until such time as a final decision is made on

25 the alien’s lawful permanent residence.
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1 (c) INCREASED JOB FLEXIBILITY FOR LONG DE2 LAYED APPLICANTS FOR ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.—

3 (1) Section 204 of the Immigration and Nation4 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) is amended by adding at

5 the end the following new subsection:

6 ‘‘(j) JOB FLEXIBILITY FOR LONG DELAYED APPLI7 CANTS FOR ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS TO PERMANENT

8 RESIDENCE.—A petition under subsection (a)(1)(D) for

9 an individual whose application for adjustment of status

10 pursuant to section 245 has been filed and remained

11 unadjudicated for 180 days or more shall remain valid

12 with respect to a new job if the individual changes jobs

13 or employers if the new job is in the same or a similar

14 occupational classification as the job for which the petition

15 was filed.’’.

16 (2) Section 212(a)(5)(A) of the Immigration

17 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(5)(A)) is

18 amended by adding at the end the following new

19 clause:

20 ‘‘(iv) LONG DELAYED ADJUSTMENT

21 APPLICANTS.—A certification made under

22 clause (i) with respect to an individual

23 whose petition is covered by section 204(j)

24 shall remain valid with respect to a new

25 job accepted by the individual after the in-
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1 dividual changes jobs or employers if the

2 new job is in the same or a similar occupa3 tional classification as the job for which

4 the certification was issued.’’.

5 (d) RECAPTURE OF UNUSED EMPLOYMENT-BASED

6 IMMIGRANT VISAS.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other

8 provision of law, the number of employment-based

9 visas (as defined in paragraph (3)) made available

10 for a fiscal year (beginning with fiscal year 2001)

11 shall be increased by the number described in para12 graph (2). Visas made available under this sub13 section shall only be available in a fiscal year to em14 ployment-based immigrants under paragraph (1),

15 (2), or (3) of section 203(b) of the Immigration and

16 Nationality Act.

17 (2) NUMBER AVAILABLE.—

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara19 graph (B), the number described in this para20 graph is the difference between the number of

21 employment-based visas that were made avail22 able in fiscal year 1999 and 2000 and the num23 ber of such visas that were actually used in

24 such fiscal years.
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1 (B) REDUCTION.—The number described

2 in subparagraph (A) shall be reduced, for each

3 fiscal year after fiscal year 2001, by the cumu4 lative number of immigrant visas actually used

5 under paragraph (1) for previous fiscal years.

6 (C) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this

7 paragraph shall be construed as affecting the

8 application of section 201(c)(3)(C) of the Immi9 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.

10 1151(c)(3)(C)).

11 (3) EMPLOYMENT-BASED VISAS DEFINED.—For

12 purposes of this subsection, the term ‘‘employment13 based visa’’ means an immigrant visa which is issued

14 pursuant to the numerical limitation under section

15 203(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8

16 U.S.C. 1153(b)).

17 SEC. 107. EXTENSION OF CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS AND AU18 THORITIES THROUGH FISCAL YEAR 2002.

19 (a) ATTESTATION REQUIREMENTS.—Section

20 212(n)(1)(E)(ii)) of the Immigration and Nationality Act

21 (8 U.S.C. 1182(n)(1)(E)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘Oc22 tober 1, 2001’’ and inserting ‘‘October 1, 2003’’.

23 (b) DEPARTMENT OF LABOR INVESTIGATIVE AU24 THORITIES.—Section 413(e)(2) of the American Competi25 tiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (as con-
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1 tained in title IV of division C of Public Law 105–277)

2 is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 2001’’ and insert3 ing ‘‘September 30, 2003’’.

4 SEC. 108. RECOVERY OF VISAS USED FRAUDULENTLY.

5 Section 214(g)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality

6 Act (8 U.S.C. 1184 (g)(3)) is amended to read as follows:

7 ‘‘(3) Aliens who are subject to the numerical limita8 tions of paragraph (1) shall be issued visas (or otherwise

9 provided nonimmigrant status) in the order in which peti10 tions are filed for such visas or status. If an alien who

11 was issued a visa or otherwise provided nonimmigrant sta12 tus and counted against the numerical limitations of para13 graph (1) is found to have been issued such visa or other14 wise provided such status by fraud or willfully misrepre15 senting a material fact and such visa or nonimmigrant sta16 tus is revoked, then one number shall be restored to the

17 total number of aliens who may be issued visas or other18 wise provided such status under the numerical limitations

19 of paragraph (1) in the fiscal year in which the petition

20 is revoked, regardless of the fiscal year in which the peti21 tion was approved.’’.

22 SEC. 109. NSF STUDY AND REPORT ON THE ‘‘DIGITAL DI23 VIDE’’.

24 (a) STUDY.—The National Science Foundation shall

25 conduct a study of the divergence in access to high tech-
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1 nology (commonly referred to as the ‘‘digital divide’’) in

2 the United States.

3 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the

4 date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the National

5 Science Foundation shall submit a report to Congress set6 ting forth the findings of the study conducted under sub7 section (a).

8 SEC. 110. MODIFICATION OF NONIMMIGRANT PETITIONER

9 ACCOUNT PROVISIONS.

10 (a) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—Section 286(s) of the

11 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(s)) is

12 amended—

13 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘56.3 per14 cent’’ and inserting ‘‘55 percent’’;

15 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘28.2 per16 cent’’ and inserting ‘‘23.5 percent’’;

17 (3) by amending paragraph (4) to read as fol18 lows:

19 ‘‘(4) NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION COM20 PETITIVE GRANT PROGRAM FOR K–12 MATH,

21 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION.—

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—15 percent of the

23 amounts deposited into the H–1B Non24 immigrant Petitioner Account shall remain

25 available to the Director of the National Science
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1 Foundation until expended to carry out a direct

2 or matching grant program to support private3 public partnerships in K–12 education.

4 ‘‘(B) TYPES OF PROGRAMS COVERED.—

5 The Director shall award grants to such pro6 grams, including those which support the devel7 opment and implementation of standards-based

8 instructional materials models and related stu9 dent assessments that enable K–12 students to

10 acquire an understanding of science, mathe11 matics, and technology, as well as to develop

12 critical thinking skills; provide systemic im13 provement in training K–12 teachers and edu14 cation for students in science, mathematics, and

15 technology; support the professional develop16 ment of K–12 math and science teachers in the

17 use of technology in the classroom; stimulate

18 system-wide K–12 reform of science, mathe19 matics, and technology in rural, economically

20 disadvantaged regions of the United States;

21 provide externships and other opportunities for

22 students to increase their appreciation and un23 derstanding of science, mathematics, engineer24 ing, and technology (including summer insti25 tutes sponsored by an institution of higher edu-
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1 cation for students in grades 7–12 that provide

2 instruction in such fields); involve partnerships

3 of industry, educational institutions, and com4 munity organizations to address the educational

5 needs of disadvantaged communities; provide

6 college preparatory support to expose and pre7 pare students for careers in science, mathe8 matics, engineering, and technology; and pro9 vide for carrying out systemic reform activities

10 under section 3(a)(1) of the National Science

11 Foundation Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C.

12 1862(a)(1)).’’;

13 (4) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘6 percent’’

14 and inserting ‘‘5 percent’’; and

15 (5) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘3 percent’’

16 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘2.5 percent’’.

17 (b) LOW-INCOME SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.—Section

18 414(d)(3) of the American Competitiveness and Workforce

19 Improvement Act of 1998 (as contained in title IV of divi20 sion C of Public Law 105–277) is amended by striking

21 ‘‘$2,500 per year.’’ and inserting ‘‘$3,125 per year. The

22 Director may renew scholarships for up to 4 years.’’.

23 (c) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.—Section 414 of the

24 American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement

25 Act of 1998 (as contained in title IV of division C of Pub-
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1 lic Law 105–277) is amended by adding at the end the

2 following new subsection:

3 ‘‘(e) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary of

4 Labor and the Director of the National Science Founda5 tion shall—

6 ‘‘(1) track and monitor the performance of pro7 grams receiving H–1B Nonimmigrant Fee grant

8 money; and

9 ‘‘(2) not later than one year after the date of

10 enactment of this subsection, submit a report to the

11 Committees on the Judiciary of the House of Rep12 resentatives and the Senate—

13 ‘‘(A) the tracking system to monitor the

14 performance of programs receiving H–1B grant

15 funding; and

16 ‘‘(B) the number of individuals who have

17 completed training and have entered the high18 skill workforce through these programs.’’.

19 SEC. 111. DEMONSTRATION PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS TO

20 PROVIDE TECHNICAL SKILLS TRAINING FOR

21 WORKERS.

22 Section 414(c) of the American Competitiveness and

23 Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (as contained in title

24 IV of division C of Public Law 105–277; 112 Stat. 2681–

25 653) is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘(c) DEMONSTRATION PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS TO

2 PROVIDE TECHNICAL SKILLS TRAINING FOR WORK3 ERS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—

5 ‘‘(A) FUNDING.—The Secretary of Labor

6 shall use funds available under section

7 286(s)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality

8 Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(s)(2)) to establish dem9 onstration programs or projects to provide tech10 nical skills training for workers, including both

11 employed and unemployed workers.

12 ‘‘(B) TRAINING PROVIDED.—Training

13 funded by a program or project described in

14 subparagraph (A) shall be for persons who are

15 currently employed and who wish to obtain and

16 upgrade skills as well as for persons who are

17 unemployed. Such training is not limited to skill

18 levels commensurate with a four-year under19 graduate degree, but should include the prepa20 ration of workers for a broad range of positions

21 along a career ladder. Consideration shall be

22 given to the use of grant funds to demonstrate

23 a significant ability to expand a training pro24 gram or project through such means as training

25 more workers or offering more courses, and
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1 training programs or projects resulting from

2 collaborations, especially with more than one

3 small business or with a labor-management

4 training program or project. The need for the

5 training shall be justified through reliable re6 gional, State, or local data.

7 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.—

8 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBILITY.—To carry out the pro9 grams and projects described in paragraph

10 (1)(A), the Secretary of Labor shall, in con11 sultation with the Secretary of Commerce, sub12 ject to the availability of funds in the H–1B

13 Nonimmigrant Petitioner Account, award—

14 ‘‘(i) 75 percent of the grants to a

15 local workforce investment board estab16 lished under section 116(b) or section 117

17 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998

18 (29 U.S.C. 2832) or consortia of such

19 boards in a region. Each workforce invest20 ment board or consortia of boards receiv21 ing grant funds shall represent a local or

22 regional public-private partnership con23 sisting of at least—

24 ‘‘(I) one workforce investment

25 board;
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1 ‘‘(II) one community-based orga2 nization or higher education institu3 tion or labor union; and

4 ‘‘(III) one business or business5 related nonprofit organization such as

6 a trade association: Provided, That

7 the activities of such local or regional

8 public-private partnership described in

9 this subsection shall be conducted in

10 coordination with the activities of the

11 relevant local workforce investment

12 board or boards established under the

13 Workforce Investment Act of 1998

14 (29 U.S.C. 2832); and

15 ‘‘(ii) 25 percent of the grants under

16 the Secretary of Labor’s authority to

17 award grants for demonstration projects or

18 programs under section 171 of the Work19 force Investment Act (29 U.S.C. 2916) to

20 partnerships that shall consist of at least 2

21 businesses or a business-related nonprofit

22 organization that represents more than one

23 business, and that may include any edu24 cational, labor, community organization, or

25 workforce investment board, except that
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1 such grant funds may be used only to

2 carry out a strategy that would otherwise

3 not be eligible for funds provided under

4 clause (i), due to barriers in meeting those

5 partnership eligibility criteria, on a na6 tional, multistate, regional, or rural area

7 (such as rural telework programs) basis.

8 ‘‘(B) DESIGNATION OF RESPONSIBLE FIS9 CAL AGENTS.—Each partnership formed under

10 subparagraph (A) shall designate a responsible

11 fiscal agent to receive and disburse grant funds

12 under this subsection.

13 ‘‘(C) PARTNERSHIP CONSIDERATIONS.—

14 Consideration in the awarding of grants shall

15 be given to any partnership that involves and

16 directly benefits more than one small business

17 (each consisting of 100 employees or less).

18 ‘‘(D) ALLOCATION OF GRANTS.—In mak19 ing grants under this paragraph, the Secretary

20 shall make every effort to fairly distribute

21 grants across rural and urban areas, and across

22 the different geographic regions of the United

23 States. The total amount of grants awarded to

24 carry out programs and projects described in

25 paragraph (1)(A) shall be allocated as follows:
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1 ‘‘(i) At least 80 percent of the grants

2 shall be awarded to programs and projects

3 that train employed and unemployed work4 ers in skills in high technology, information

5 technology, and biotechnology, including

6 skills needed for software and communica7 tions services, telecommunications, systems

8 installation and integration, computers and

9 communications hardware, advanced man10 ufacturing, health care technology, bio11 technology and biomedical research and

12 manufacturing, and innovation services.

13 ‘‘(ii) No more than 20 percent of the

14 grants shall be available to programs and

15 projects that train employed and unem16 ployed workers for skills related to any sin17 gle specialty occupation, as defined in sec18 tion 214(i) of the Immigration and Nation19 ality Act.

20 ‘‘(3) START-UP FUNDS.—

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

22 subparagraph (B), not more than 5 percent of

23 any single grant, or not to exceed $75,000,

24 whichever is less, may be used toward the start-
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1 up costs of partnerships or new training pro2 grams and projects.

3 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—In the case of partner4 ships consisting primarily of small businesses,

5 not more than 10 percent of any single grant,

6 or $150,000, whichever is less, may be used to7 ward the start-up costs of partnerships or new

8 training programs and projects.

9 ‘‘(C) DURATION OF START-UP PERIOD.—

10 For purposes of this subsection, a start-up pe11 riod consists of a period of not more than 2

12 months after the grant period begins, at which

13 time training shall immediately begin and no

14 further Federal funds may be used for start-up

15 purposes.

16 ‘‘(4) TRAINING OUTCOMES.—

17 ‘‘(A) CONSIDERATION FOR CERTAIN PRO18 GRAMS AND PROJECTS.—Consideration in the

19 awarding of grants shall be given to applicants

20 that provide a specific, measurable commitment

21 upon successful completion of a training course,

22 to—

23 ‘‘(i) hire or effectuate the hiring of

24 unemployed trainees (where applicable);
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1 ‘‘(ii) increase the wages or salary of

2 incumbent workers (where applicable); and

3 ‘‘(iii) provide skill certifications to

4 trainees or link the training to industry-ac5 cepted occupational skill standards, certifi6 cates, or licensing requirements.

7 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS FOR GRANT APPLI8 CATIONS.—Applications for grants shall—

9 ‘‘(i) articulate the level of skills that

10 workers will be trained for and the manner

11 by which attainment of those skills will be

12 measured;

13 ‘‘(ii) include an agreement that the

14 program or project shall be subject to eval15 uation by the Secretary of Labor to meas16 ure its effectiveness; and

17 ‘‘(iii) in the case of an application for

18 a grant under subsection (c)(2)(A)(ii), ex19 plain what barriers prevent the strategy

20 from being implemented through a grant

21 made under subsection (c)(2)(A)(i).

22 ‘‘(5) MATCHING FUNDS.—Each application for

23 a grant to carry out a program or project described

24 in paragraph (1)(A) shall state the manner by which

25 the partnership will provide non-Federal matching
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1 resources (cash, or in-kind contributions, or both)

2 equal to at least 50 percent of the total grant

3 amount awarded under paragraph (2)(A)(i), and at

4 least 100 percent of the total grant amount awarded

5 under paragraph (2)(A)(ii). At least one-half of the

6 non-Federal matching funds shall be from the busi7 ness or businesses or business-related nonprofit or8 ganizations involved. Consideration in the award of

9 grants shall be given to applicants that provide a

10 specific commitment or commitments of resources

11 from other public or private sources, or both, so as

12 to demonstrate the long-term sustainability of the

13 training program or project after the grant expires.

14 ‘‘(6) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—An entity that

15 receives a grant to carry out a program or project

16 described in paragraph (1)(A) may not use more

17 than 10 percent of the amount of the grant to pay

18 for administrative costs associated with the program

19 or project.’’.

20 SEC. 112. KIDS 2000 CRIME PREVENTION AND COMPUTER

21 EDUCATION INITIATIVE.

22 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the

23 ‘‘Kids 2000 Act’’.

24 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find25 ings:
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1 (1) There is an increasing epidemic of juvenile

2 crime throughout the United States.

3 (2) It is well documented that the majority of

4 juvenile crimes take place during after-school hours.

5 (3) Knowledge of technology is becoming in6 creasingly necessary for children in school and out

7 of school.

8 (4) The Boys and Girls Clubs of America have

9 2,700 clubs throughout all 50 States, serving over

10 3,000,000 boys and girls primarily from at-risk com11 munities.

12 (5) The Boys and Girls Clubs of America have

13 the physical structures in place for immediate imple14 mentation of an after-school technology program.

15 (6) Building technology centers and providing

16 integrated content and full-time staffing at those

17 centers in the Boys and Girls Clubs of America na18 tionwide will help foster education, job training, and

19 an alternative to crime for at-risk youth.

20 (7) Partnerships between the public sector and

21 the private sector are an effective way of providing

22 after-school technology programs in the Boys and

23 Girls Clubs of America.

24 (8) PowerUp: Bridging the Digital Divide is an

25 entity comprised of more than a dozen nonprofit or-
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1 ganizations, major corporations, and Federal agen2 cies that have joined together to launch a major new

3 initiative to help ensure that America’s underserved

4 young people acquire the skills, experiences, and re5 sources they need to succeed in the digital age.

6 (9) Bringing PowerUp into the Boys and Girls

7 Clubs of America will be an effective way to ensure

8 that our youth have a safe, crime-free environment

9 in which to learn the technological skills they need

10 to close the divide between young people who have

11 access to computer-based information and tech12 nology-related skills and those who do not.

13 (c) AFTER-SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY GRANTS TO THE

14 BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA.—

15 (1) PURPOSES.—The Attorney General shall

16 make grants to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America

17 for the purpose of funding effective after-school

18 technology programs, such as PowerUp, in order to

19 provide—

20 (A) constructive technology-focused activi21 ties that are part of a comprehensive program

22 to provide access to technology and technology

23 training to youth during after-school hours,

24 weekends, and school vacations;
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1 (B) supervised activities in safe environ2 ments for youth; and

3 (C) full-time staffing with teachers, tutors,

4 and other qualified personnel.

5 (2) SUBAWARDS.—The Boys and Girls Clubs of

6 America shall make subawards to local boys and

7 girls clubs authorizing expenditures associated with

8 providing technology programs such as PowerUp, in9 cluding the hiring of teachers and other personnel,

10 procurement of goods and services, including com11 puter equipment, or such other purposes as are ap12 proved by the Attorney General.

13 (d) APPLICATIONS.—

14 (1) ELIGIBILITY.—In order to be eligible to re15 ceive a grant under this section, an applicant for a

16 subaward (specified in subsection (c)(2)) shall sub17 mit an application to the Boys and Girls Clubs of

18 America, in such form and containing such informa19 tion as the Attorney General may reasonably re20 quire.

21 (2) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Each appli22 cation submitted in accordance with paragraph (1)

23 shall include—

24 (A) a request for a subgrant to be used for

25 the purposes of this section;
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1 (B) a description of the communities to be

2 served by the grant, including the nature of ju3 venile crime, violence, and drug use in the com4 munities;

5 (C) written assurances that Federal funds

6 received under this section will be used to sup7 plement and not supplant, non-Federal funds

8 that would otherwise be available for activities

9 funded under this section;

10 (D) written assurances that all activities

11 funded under this section will be supervised by

12 qualified adults;

13 (E) a plan for assuring that program ac14 tivities will take place in a secure environment

15 that is free of crime and drugs;

16 (F) a plan outlining the utilization of con17 tent-based programs such as PowerUp, and the

18 provision of trained adult personnel to supervise

19 the after-school technology training; and

20 (G) any additional statistical or financial

21 information that the Boys and Girls Clubs of

22 America may reasonably require.

23 (e) GRANT AWARDS.—In awarding subgrants under

24 this section, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America shall

25 consider—
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1 (1) the ability of the applicant to provide the

2 intended services;

3 (2) the history and establishment of the appli4 cant in providing youth activities; and

5 (3) the extent to which services will be provided

6 in crime-prone areas and technologically underserved

7 populations, and efforts to achieve an equitable geo8 graphic distribution of the grant awards.

9 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be

11 appropriated $20,000,000 for each of the fiscal

12 years 2001 through 2006 to carry out this section.

13 (2) SOURCE OF FUNDS.—Funds to carry out

14 this section may be derived from the Violent Crime

15 Reduction Trust Fund.

16 (3) CONTINUED AVAILABILITY.—Amounts made

17 available under this subsection shall remain available

18 until expended.

19 SEC. 113. USE OF FEES FOR DUTIES RELATING TO PETI20 TIONS.

21 (a) Section 286(s)(5) of the Immigration and Nation22 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(s)(5)) is amended to read as fol23 lows: ‘‘4 percent of the amounts deposited into the H–

24 1B Nonimmigrant Petitioner Account shall remain avail25 able to the Attorney General until expended to carry out
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1 duties under paragraphs (1) and (9) of section 214(c) re2 lated to petitions made for nonimmigrants described in

3 section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b), under paragraph (1) (C) or

4 (D) of section 204 related to petitions for immigrants de5 scribed in section 203(b).’’.

6 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act,

7 the figure on page 14, line 16 is deemed to be ‘‘22 per8 cent’’; the figure on page 16, line 14 is deemed to be ‘‘4

9 percent’’; and the figure on page 16, line 16 is deemed

10 to be ‘‘2 percent’’.

11 SEC. 114. EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ‘‘J’’ NONIMMIGRANTS

12 FROM NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS APPLICA13 BLE TO ‘‘H-1B’’ NONIMMMIGRANTS.

14 The numerical limitations contained in section 102

15 of this title shall not apply to any nonimmigrant alien

16 granted a waiver that is subject to the limitation contained

17 in paragraph (1)(B) of the first section 214(l) of the Im18 migration and Nationality Act (relating to restrictions on

19 waivers).

20 SEC. 115. STUDY AND REPORT ON THE ‘‘DIGITAL DIVIDE’’.

21 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Commerce shall con22 duct a review of existing public and private high-tech

23 workforce training programs in the United States.

24 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the

25 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce
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1 shall submit a report to Congress setting forth the find2 ings of the study conducted under subsection (a).

3 SEC. 116. SEVERABILITY.

4 If any provision of this title (or any amendment made

5 by this title) or the application thereof to any person or

6 circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the title

7 (and the amendments made by this title) and the applica8 tion of such provision to any other person or circumstance

9 shall not be affected thereby. This section be enacted 2

10 days after effective date.

11 TITLE II—IMMIGRATION SERV12 ICES AND INFRASTRUCTURE

13 IMPROVEMENTS

14 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

15 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Immigration Services

16 and Infrastructure Improvements Act of 2000’’.

17 SEC. 202. PURPOSES.

18 (a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this title are to—

19 (1) provide the Immigration and Naturalization

20 Service with the mechanisms it needs to eliminate

21 the current backlog in the processing of immigration

22 benefit applications within 1 year after enactment of

23 this Act and to maintain the elimination of the back24 log in future years; and
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1 (2) provide for regular congressional oversight

2 of the performance of the Immigration and Natu3 ralization Service in eliminating the backlog and

4 processing delays in immigration benefits adjudica5 tions.

6 (b) POLICY.—It is the sense of Congress that the

7 processing of an immigration benefit application should be

8 completed not later than 180 days after the initial filing

9 of the application, except that a petition for a non10 immigrant visa under section 214(c) of the Immigration

11 and Nationality Act should be processed not later than

12 30 days after the filing of the petition.

13 SEC. 203. DEFINITIONS.

14 In this title:

15 (1) BACKLOG.—The term ‘‘backlog’’ means,

16 with respect to an immigration benefit application,

17 the period of time in excess of 180 days that such

18 application has been pending before the Immigration

19 and Naturalization Service.

20 (2) IMMIGRATION BENEFIT APPLICATION.—The

21 term ‘‘immigration benefit application’’ means any

22 application or petition to confer, certify, change, ad23 just, or extend any status granted under the Immi24 gration and Nationality Act.
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1 SEC. 204. IMMIGRATION SERVICES AND INFRASTRUCTURE

2 IMPROVEMENT ACCOUNT.

3 (a) AUTHORITY OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The

4 Attorney General shall take such measures as may be nec5 essary to—

6 (1) reduce the backlog in the processing of im7 migration benefit applications, with the objective of

8 the total elimination of the backlog not later than

9 one year after the date of enactment of this Act;

10 (2) make such other improvements in the proc11 essing of immigration benefit applications as may be

12 necessary to ensure that a backlog does not develop

13 after such date; and

14 (3) make such improvements in infrastructure

15 as may be necessary to effectively provide immigra16 tion services.

17 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be

19 appropriated to the Department of Justice from

20 time to time such sums as may be necessary for the

21 Attorney General to carry out subsection (a).

22 (2) DESIGNATION OF ACCOUNT IN TREAS23 URY.—Amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph

24 (1) may be referred to as the ‘‘Immigration Services

25 and Infrastructure Improvements Account’’.
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1 (3) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts appro2 priated pursuant to paragraph (1) are authorized to

3 remain available until expended.

4 (4) LIMITATION ON EXPENDITURES.—None of

5 the funds appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1)

6 may be expended until the report described in sec7 tion 205(a) has been submitted to Congress.

8 SEC. 205. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.

9 (a) BACKLOG ELIMINATION PLAN.—

10 (1) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 90

11 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the At12 torney General shall submit a report to the Commit13 tees on the Judiciary and Appropriations of the Sen14 ate and the House of Representatives concerning—

15 (A) the backlogs in immigration benefit ap16 plications in existence as of the date of enact17 ment of this title; and

18 (B) the Attorney General’s plan for elimi19 nating such backlogs.

20 (2) REPORT ELEMENTS.—The report shall

21 include—

22 (A) an assessment of the data systems

23 used in adjudicating and reporting on the sta24 tus of immigration benefit applications,

25 including—
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1 (i) a description of the adequacy of

2 existing computer hardware, computer

3 software, and other mechanisms to comply

4 with the adjudications and reporting re5 quirements of this title; and

6 (ii) a plan for implementing improve7 ments to existing data systems to accom8 plish the purpose of this title, as described

9 in section 202(a);

10 (B) a description of the quality controls to

11 be put into force to ensure timely, fair, accu12 rate, and complete processing and adjudication

13 of such applications;

14 (C) the elements specified in subsection

15 (b)(2);

16 (D) an estimate of the amount of appro17 priated funds that would be necessary in order

18 to eliminate the backlogs in each category of

19 immigration benefit applications described in

20 subsection (b)(2); and

21 (E) a detailed plan on how the Attorney

22 General will use any funds in the Immigration

23 Services and Infrastructure Improvements Ac24 count to comply with the purposes of this title.

25 (b) ANNUAL REPORTS.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 90 days after the

2 end of the first fiscal year for which any appropria3 tion authorized by section 204(b) is made, and 90

4 days after the end of each fiscal year thereafter, the

5 Attorney General shall submit a report to the Com6 mittees on the Judiciary and Appropriations of the

7 Senate and the House of Representatives concerning

8 the status of—

9 (A) the Immigration Services and Infra10 structure Improvements Account including any

11 unobligated balances of appropriations in the

12 Account; and

13 (B) the Attorney General’s efforts to elimi14 nate backlogs in any immigration benefit appli15 cation described in paragraph (2).

16 (2) REPORT ELEMENTS.—The report shall

17 include—

18 (A) State-by-State data on—

19 (i) the number of naturalization cases

20 adjudicated in each quarter of each fiscal

21 year;

22 (ii) the average processing time for

23 naturalization applications;

24 (iii) the number of naturalization ap25 plications pending for up to 6 months, 12
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1 months, 18 months, 24 months, 36

2 months, and 48 months or more;

3 (iv) estimated processing times adju4 dicating newly submitted naturalization ap5 plications;

6 (v) an analysis of the appropriate

7 processing times for naturalization applica8 tions; and

9 (vi) the additional resources and proc10 ess changes needed to eliminate the back11 log for naturalization adjudications;

12 (B) the status of applications or, where ap13 plicable, petitions described in subparagraph

14 (C), by Immigration and Naturalization Service

15 district, including—

16 (i) the number of cases adjudicated in

17 each quarter of each fiscal year;

18 (ii) the average processing time for

19 such applications or petitions;

20 (iii) the number of applications or pe21 titions pending for up to 6 months, 12

22 months, 18 months, 24 months, 36

23 months, and 48 months or more;
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1 (iv) the estimated processing times

2 adjudicating newly submitted applications

3 or petitions;

4 (v) an analysis of the appropriate

5 processing times for applications or peti6 tions; and

7 (vi) a description of the additional re8 sources and process changes needed to

9 eliminate the backlog for such processing

10 and adjudications; and

11 (C) a status report on—

12 (i) applications for adjustments of sta13 tus to that of an alien lawfully admitted

14 for permanent residence;

15 (ii) petitions for nonimmigrant visas

16 under section 214 of the Immigration and

17 Nationality Act;

18 (iii) petitions filed under section 204

19 of such Act to classify aliens as immediate

20 relatives or preference immigrants under

21 section 203 of such Act;

22 (iv) applications for asylum under sec23 tion 208 of such Act;
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1 (v) registrations for Temporary Pro2 tected Status under section 244 of such

3 Act; and

4 (vi) a description of the additional re5 sources and process changes needed to

6 eliminate the backlog for such processing

7 and adjudications.

8 (3) ABSENCE OF APPROPRIATED FUNDS.—In

9 the event that no funds are appropriated subject to

10 section 204(b) in the fiscal year in which this Act

11 is enacted, the Attorney General shall submit a re12 port to Congress not later than 90 days after the

13 end of such fiscal year, and each fiscal year there14 after, containing the elements described in para15 graph (2).

Passed the Senate October 3 (legislative day, September 22), 2000.

Attest:

Secretary.
106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2045

AN ACT

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act

with respect to H–1B nonimmigrant aliens.