Honor Our Commitment Act of 2022
Bill: H.R.7708 | Sponsor: Rep. Lowenthal, Alan S. (D-CA)
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Honor Our Commitment Act of 2022
This bill limits the detention or removal of qualified Vietnamese nationals from the United States and contains other related provisions.
A national of Vietnam may not be detained or removed if that individual (1) is subject to a final order of removal, and (2) has continuously resided in the United States since July 12, 1995, or an earlier date. An otherwise qualifying alien may not receive such protections if (1) the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) determines that the alien is directly responsible for harming U.S. national security, or (2) the alien is subject to extradition.
A qualified Vietnamese national shall receive authorization to work in the United States.
DHS must notify each qualified Vietnamese national about the provisions of this bill.

To halt removal of certain nationals of Vietnam, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Honor Our Commitment Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds as follows:
            (1) From April to September 1975, the United States 
        conducted Operation New Arrival to relocate 130,000 Vietnamese 
        refugees to the United States following the end of the Vietnam 
        War. During this time, more than 50,000 Vietnamese refugees 
        were processed through Camp Pendleton for resettlement in 
        southern California.
            (2) In the 4 decades since they fled Vietnam as refugees, 
        Vietnamese Americans have woven their stories into the American 
        fabric.
            (3) The largest concentrations of Vietnamese Americans can 
        be found in Orange County, California, followed by San Jose 
        (California), Houston (Texas), Seattle (Washington), Northern 
        Virginia, and New Orleans (Louisiana).
            (4) According to the American Community Survey, 1.4 million 
        Americans speak Vietnamese at home, the fourth-most-common 
        language other than English.
            (5) Immigrants may find it difficult to assimilate into 
        their new communities as a result of the trauma of war. A 2018 
        study published by Rashmi Gangamma and Daran Shipman in the 
        Journal of Marital and Family Therapy noted that ``the 
        traumatic nature of (an immigrant's) forced displacement 
        flight, and resettlement can increase vulnerability to mental 
        distress.'' First generation immigrant children are especially 
        vulnerable to gang violence when their parents find it 
        difficult to navigate their new communities culturally and 
        politically.
            (6) In 2008, the United States and Vietnam signed a 
        bilateral repatriation agreement, hereinafter known as the 2008 
        Vietnam-U.S. Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
            (7) According to Section 2, Article 2 of the 2008 Vietnam-
        U.S. MOU, ``Vietnamese citizens are not subject to return to 
        Vietnam under this Agreement if they arrived in the United 
        States before July 12, 1995, the date on which diplomatic 
        relations were re-established between the U.S. Government and 
        the Vietnamese Government. The U.S. Government and the 
        Vietnamese Government maintain their respective legal positions 
        relative to Vietnamese citizens who departed Vietnam for the 
        United States prior to that date.''.
            (8) Under President George Bush and President Barack Obama, 
        the United States recognized the 2008 Vietnam-U.S. MOU's 
        protections and refrained from deporting pre-1995 Vietnamese 
        refugees.
            (9) In November 2020, President Donald Trump's 
        Administration signed a new agreement with Vietnam which allows 
        for the deportation of Vietnamese refugees who arrived in the 
        United States prior to July 12, 1995. This includes lawful 
        permanent residents who have committed certain minor crimes and 
        others who came to the United States as children after the 
        Vietnam War.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON THE DETENTION AND REMOVAL OF NATIONALS OF 
              VIETNAM.

    (a) Limitation on Detention and Removal.--Except as provided in 
subsection (b), an alien may not be detained or removed from the United 
States on or after the date of enactment of this Act if the alien--
            (1) is a national of Vietnam;
            (2) entered the United States on or before July 12, 1995 
        and has continuously resided in the United States since such 
        entry; and
            (3) is subject to a final order of removal.
    (b) Exception.--Subsection (a) shall not apply to an alien if--
            (1) the Secretary of Homeland Security determines, based on 
        credible facts, that the alien is directly responsible for 
        harming the security of the United States; or
            (2) the alien is subject to extradition.
    (c) Employment Authorization.--The Secretary of Homeland Security 
shall authorize an alien described in subsection (a) to engage in 
employment in the United States and provide such alien with an 
``employment authorized'' endorsement or other appropriate work permit.

SEC. 4. NOTICE FOR CERTAIN VIETNAMESE NATIONALS WITH REMOVAL ORDERS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide notice of 
the provisions of this Act to each alien described in section 3(a).
    (b) Contents of Notice.--The notice described in subsection (a) 
shall include information explaining the requirements and instructions 
for filing a motion to reopen removal proceedings under section 
240(c)(7) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1229a(c)(7)).

SEC. 5. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

    (a) Review.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an 
individual or entity who has been harmed by a violation of this Act may 
file an action in an appropriate district court of the United States to 
seek declaratory or injunctive relief.
    (b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act may be construed to 
preclude an action filed pursuant to subsection (a) from proceeding as 
a class action (as such term is defined in section 1711 of title 28, 
United States Code).
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