I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 893
To allow certain individuals of Japanese ancestry who were brought forcibly 
to the United States from countries in Latin America during World 
War II and were interned in the United States to be provided restitution 
under the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 17, 2005
Mr. BECERRA (for himself, Mr. CASE, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. 
MORAN of Virginia, Ms. SOLIS, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, 
Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. DAVIS of 
Tennessee, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. LEE, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. HONDA, 
and Ms. BORDALLO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To allow certain individuals of Japanese ancestry who were 
brought forcibly to the United States from countries 
in Latin America during World War II and were interned 
in the United States to be provided restitution under 
the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wartime Parity and 
Justice Act of 2005’’.
SEC. 2. ELIGIBILITY OF CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS UNDER 
CIVIL LIBERTIES ACT OF 1988. 
(a) ELIGIBILITY.—For purposes of the Civil Liberties 
Act of 1988 (50 U.S.C. App. 1989 et seq.), the following 
individuals shall be deemed to be eligible individuals: 
(1) An individual who—
(A) is of Japanese ancestry, or is the 
spouse or parent of an individual of Japanese 
ancestry; 
(B) was brought forcibly to the United 
States from a country in Central America or 
South America during the evacuation, reloca-
tion, and internment period; 
(C) was living on August 10, 1988; 
(D) otherwise meets the requirements of 
subparagraph (B)(i) of section 108(2) of the 
Civil Liberties Act of 1988 (50 U.S.C. App. 
1989b–7(2)(B)(i)); and 
(E) subject to section 4(f) of this Act, has 
not otherwise received payment under the Civil 
Liberties Act of 1988. 
(2) An individual who was an eligible individual 
under the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 before the en-
actment of this Act and who was eligible for, but did 
not receive, payment under that Act prior to the ter-
mination of the Civil Liberties Public Education 
Fund under section 104(d) of that Act. 
(3) An individual who—
(A) was born to an eligible individual 
under the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 during 
the period beginning on January 20, 1945, and 
ending on February 29, 1948, at a place in 
which the eligible individual was confined, held 
in custody, relocated, or otherwise located dur-
ing the evacuation, relocation, or internment pe-
riod; and 
(B) was living on August 10, 1988. 
(4)(A) An individual of Japanese ancestry who, 
during the evacuation, relocation, or internment pe-
riod—
(i) was a United States citizen or a perma-
nent resident alien; 
(ii) whose employment with a railroad or 
mining company was terminated on account of 
the individual’s Japanese ancestry; and 
(iii) was living on August 10, 1988. 
(B) An individual who—
(i) during the evacuation, relocation, or in-
ternment period, was a dependent child of an 
individual described in subparagraph (A); and
(ii) was living on August 10, 1988. 
(5) An individual of Japanese ancestry who—
(A) meets the requirements of paragraph 
(2) of section 108(2) of the Civil Liberties Act 
of 1988, other than subparagraph (A) of that 
paragraph; and 
(B) was legally in the United States during 
the evacuation, relocation, or internment period 
but was made ineligible for United States citi-
zenship or permanent residence status by law 
enacted prior thereto, on account of the individ-
ual’s Japanese ancestry. 
(b) PRISONER EXCHANGES.—An individual shall not 
be precluded from being an eligible individual under sub-
section (a) if that individual was sent by the United States 
to Japan or territories occupied by Japan at any time dur-
ing the period beginning on December 7, 1941, and ending 
on September 2, 1945, in exchange for prisoners held by 
Japan. 
SEC. 3. APOLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES. 
The United States apologizes to those individuals de-
scribed in section 2(a) for the fundamental violations of 
their basic civil liberties and constitutional rights com-
mitted during the evacuation, relocation, or internment 
period. The President should transmit to each such indi-
vidual a personal letter of apology on behalf of the United 
States. 
SEC. 4. PROCEDURES. 
(a) APPLICABILITY OF PROVISIONS OF THE CIVIL 
LIBERTIES ACT.—Except as otherwise provided in this 
section, the provisions of section 105 of the Civil Liberties 
Act of 1988 shall apply with respect to eligible individuals 
under section 2 of this Act. 
(b) RESPONSIBILITIES
OF
THE ATTORNEY GEN-
ERAL.—The Attorney General shall have the responsibility 
to identify and locate, without requiring any application 
for payment and using records already in possession of 
the United States Government, eligible individuals under 
section 2, within 12 months after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act. Failure to be identified and located with-
in that 12-month period shall not preclude an eligible indi-
vidual under section 2 from receiving payment under the 
Civil Liberties Act of 1988. 
(c) NOTIFICATION BY ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.—Any 
eligible individual under section 2 may notify the Attorney 
General that the individual is an eligible individual, and 
may provide documentation therefor, within 6 years after 
the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(d) DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY.—The Attor-
ney General shall make a final determination of eligibility
of individuals under section 2 not later than 1 year after 
locating the individual pursuant to subsection (b) or re-
ceiving notification from an individual pursuant to sub-
section (c), as the case may be. 
(e) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—An individual seeking pay-
ment of compensation under the Civil Liberties Act of 
1988 as an eligible individual under section 2 may seek 
judicial review of a denial of compensation in an appro-
priate district court of the United States or the United 
States Court of Federal Claims within 6 years after the 
date of the denial. 
(f) PAYMENTS
FROM
COURT
CASES.—Notwith-
standing section 2(a)(1)(E) of this Act and paragraph (7) 
of section 105(a) of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, an 
individual described in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of 
section 2(a)(1) of this Act, or any surviving spouse, child, 
or parent of such individual to whom section 105(a)(8) 
of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 applies, who has accept-
ed payment, before the enactment of this Act, pursuant 
to an award of a final judgment or a settlement on a claim 
against the United States for acts described in section 
108(2)(B) of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 or section 
2(a)(1)(B) of this Act, may receive payment under the 
Civil Liberties Act of 1988, except that any amount pay-
able to such individual, spouse, child, or parent under sec-
tion 105(a)(1) of that Act shall be reduced by the amount 
of any payment received pursuant to such final judgment 
or settlement. 
SEC. 5. CORRECTION OF IMMIGRATION STATUS. 
Those individuals described in paragraph (1) of sec-
tion 2(a) shall not be considered to have been present in 
the United States unlawfully during the evacuation, relo-
cation, or internment period. Each department or agency 
of the United States shall take the necessary steps to cor-
rect any records over which that department or agency 
has jurisdiction that indicate that such individuals were 
in the United States unlawfully during such period. 
SEC. 6. FULL DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION. 
(a) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE
OF INFORMATION.—The 
appropriate departments and agencies of the United 
States shall disclose to the public all information (other 
than information which may not be disclosed under other 
provisions of law) relating to the forcible removal of indi-
viduals from Central and South America during the evacu-
ation, relocation, or internment period and the internment 
of those individuals in the United States during that pe-
riod, including information on individuals whose location 
is unknown. 
(b) SHARING OF INFORMATION WITH OTHER COUN-
TRIES.—The President shall take the necessary steps to
share information described in subsection (a) with other 
countries and encourage those countries to make that in-
formation available to people in those countries. 
SEC. 7. TRUST FUND. 
(a) REESTABLISHMENT OF FUND.—The Civil Lib-
erties Public Education Fund (in this Act referred to as 
the ‘‘Fund’’) is reestablished in the Treasury of the United 
States, and shall be administered by the Secretary of the 
Treasury. 
(b) INVESTMENT
OF AMOUNTS
IN
THE FUND.—
Amounts in the Fund shall be invested in accordance with 
section 9702 of title 31, United States Code. 
(c) USES OF THE FUND.—Amounts in the Fund shall 
be available only—
(1) for disbursement of payments by the Attor-
ney General, under section 105 of the Civil Liberties 
Act of 1988 and this Act, to eligible individuals 
under section 2 of this Act; and 
(2) for disbursement by the Board of Directors 
of the Fund under section 8 of this Act. 
(d) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to the Fund—
(1) such sums as may be necessary to carry out 
paragraph (1) of subsection (b); and
(2) $45,000,000 for disbursements by the 
Board of Directors of the Fund under section 8. 
SEC. 8. BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE FUND. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Civil 
Liberties Public Education Fund Board of Directors, 
which shall be responsible for making disbursements from 
the Fund in the manner provided in this section. 
(b) USES OF THE FUND.—The Board may make dis-
bursements from the Fund only—
(1) to sponsor research and public education ac-
tivities so that events surrounding the evacuation, 
relocation, and internment of individuals of Japa-
nese ancestry will be remembered, and so that the 
causes and circumstances of this and similar events 
may be illuminated and understood; and 
(2) for reasonable administrative expenses of 
the Board, including compensation and expenses of 
the members and staff of the Board and payment 
for administrative support services. 
(c) MEMBERSHIP, STAFF, ETC.—The provisions of 
subsections (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g) of section 106 of the 
Civil Liberties Act of 1988 (50 U.S.C. App. 1989b–5 (c), 
(d), (e), (f), and (g)) shall apply to the Board of the Fund 
to the same extent as they applied to the Board estab-
lished under that section.
SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act, the terms ‘‘evacuation, relocation, or in-
ternment period’’ and ‘‘permanent resident alien’’ have the 
meanings given those terms in section 108 of the Civil Lib-
erties Act of 1988 (50 U.S.C. App. 1989b–7).
Æ