I
107TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4575
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to change the requirements
for naturalization to citizenship through service in the Armed Forces
of the United States.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 24, 2002
Mr. FROST (for himself, Mr. REYES, Mr. SKELTON, Mr. MENENDEZ, and Mr.
ORTIZ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary
A BILL
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to change
the requirements for naturalization to citizenship through
service in the Armed Forces of the United States.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. REQUIREMENTS FOR NATURALIZATION TO
CITIZENSHIP THROUGH SERVICE IN THE
ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES.
(a) PERIOD OF REQUIRED SERVICE REDUCED TO 2
YEARS.—Section 328(a) of the Immigration and Nation-
ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1439(a)) is amended by striking
‘‘three’’ and inserting ‘‘two’’.
(b) PROHIBITION ON IMPOSITION OF FEES RELAT-
ING TO NATURALIZATION.—Section 328(b) of the Immi-
gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1439(b)) is
amended—
(1) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(2) by adding after paragraph (3) the following:
‘‘(4) notwithstanding any other provision of
law, no fee shall be charged or collected from the ap-
plicant for filing a petition for naturalization or
issuing a certificate of naturalization upon his ad-
mission to citizenship, and no clerk of any State
court shall charge or collect any fee for such services
unless the laws of the State require such charge to
be made, in which case nothing more than the por-
tion of the fee required to be paid to the State shall
be charged or collected.’’.
(c) NATURALIZATION THROUGH ENLISTMENT
IN
THE ARMED FORCES AND SERVICE WITH AN ELIGIBILITY
FOR ACCESS TO CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—The Immi-
gration and Nationality Act is amended by adding after
section 328 the following new section:
‘‘NATURALIZATION
THROUGH
ENLISTMENT
IN
THE
ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES AND SERV-
ICE WITH AN ELIGIBILITY FOR ACCESS TO CLASSI-
FIED INFORMATION’’
‘‘SEC. 328A. (a) A person who has served honorably
at any time in the Armed Forces of the United States,
who enlisted for such service and was not inducted to serv-
ice, whose eligibility for access to classified information
has been certified to the Service by the relevant military
department, and who, if separated from such service, was
never separated except under honorable conditions, may
be naturalized without having resided, continuously imme-
diately preceding the date of filing such person’s applica-
tion, in the United States for at least five years, and in
the State or district of the Service in the United States
in which the application for naturalization is filed for at
least three months, and without having been physically
present in the United States for any specified period, if
such application is filed while the applicant is still in the
service or within six months after the termination of such
service.
‘‘(b) A person filing a application under subsection
(a) of this section shall comply in all other respects with
the requirements of this title, except that—
‘‘(1) no residence within a State or district of
the Service in the United States shall be required;
‘‘(2) notwithstanding section 318 insofar as it
relates to deportability, such applicant may be natu-
ralized immediately if the applicant be then actually
in the Armed Forces of the United States, and if
prior to the filing of the application, the applicant
shall have appeared before and been examined by a
representative of the Service;
‘‘(3) the applicant shall furnish to the Attorney
General, prior to any final hearing upon his applica-
tion a certified statement from the proper executive
department for each period of his service upon which
he relies for the benefits of this section—
‘‘(A) clearly showing that such service was
honorable and that no discharges from service,
including periods of service not relied upon by
him for the benefits of this section, were other
than honorable;
‘‘(B) clearly showing that the applicant en-
tered the Service through enlistment and not
induction; and
‘‘(C) clearly showing that the applicant
was eligible for access to classified information;
and
‘‘(4) notwithstanding any other provision of
law, no fee shall be charged or collected from the ap-
plicant for filing a petition for naturalization or
issuing a certificate of naturalization upon his ad-
mission to citizenship, and no clerk of any State
court shall charge or collect any fee for such services
unless the laws of the State require such charge to
be made, in which case nothing more than the por-
tion of the fee required to be paid to the State shall
be charged or collected.’’.
‘‘The certificate or certificates herein provided for shall
be conclusive evidence of such service and discharge.
‘‘(c) In the case such applicant’s service was not con-
tinuous, the applicant’s residence in the United States and
State or district of the Service in the United States, good
moral character, attachment to the principles of the Con-
stitution of the United States, and favorable disposition
toward the good order and happiness of the United States,
during any period within five years immediately preceding
the date of filing such application between the periods of
applicant’s service in the Armed Forces, shall be alleged
in the application filed under the provisions of subsection
(a) of this section, and proved at any hearing thereon.
Such allegation and proof shall also be made as to any
period between the termination of applicant’s service and
the filing of the application for naturalization.
‘‘(d) The applicant shall comply with the require-
ments of section 316(a) of this title, if the termination
of such service has been more than six months preceding
the date of filing the application for naturalization, except
that such service within five years immediately preceding
the date of filing such application shall be considered as
residence and physical presence within the United
States.’’.
‘‘(e) Any such period or periods of service under hon-
orable conditions, and good moral character, attachment
to the principles of the Constitution of the United States,
and favorable disposition toward the good order and hap-
piness of the United States, during such service, shall be
proved by duly authenticated copies of the records of the
executive departments having custody of the records of
such service, and such authenticated copies of records
shall be accepted in lieu of compliance with the provisions
of section 316(a).’’.
(d) CONDUCT OF NATURALIZATION PROCEEDINGS
OVERSEAS FOR MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES OF
THE UNITED STATES.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of law, the Attorney General, the Secretary of State,
and the Secretary of Defense, shall ensure that any appli-