Title: Kerrie Orozco First Responders Family Support Act
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Kerrie Orozco First Responders Family Support Act
This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to waive the naturalization requirements of residence and physical presence for an alien who is the surviving spouse, child, or parent of a U.S. citizen who dies from an injury or disease incurred in or aggravated by employment as a first responder. (A surviving spouse must have been living in marital union with the citizen spouse at the time of death.)
The bill defines U.S. citizen and citizen spouse to include persons granted posthumous citizenship under this bill.
The Department of Homeland Security shall, upon approval of a request for posthumous citizenship filed by the next-of-kin or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, provide such citizenship as of the time of death to an alien or noncitizen national who was employed as a first responder and died as a result of injury or disease incurred in or aggravated by such employment.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6580 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6580

 To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for expedited 
naturalization processes for the alien spouses of first responders who 
      die as a result of their employment, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 26, 2018

  Mr. Bacon introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for expedited 
naturalization processes for the alien spouses of first responders who 
      die as a result of their employment, 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 ``Kerrie Orozco First Responders 
Family Support Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPEDITED NATURALIZATION FOR SPOUSES OF FIRST RESPONDERS.

    Section 319 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1430) 
is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(f) Spouses of First Responders.--
            ``(1) In general.--Any person not described in section 
        212(a)(9)(B)(ii) who is the surviving spouse, child, or parent 
        of a United States citizen, whose citizen spouse, parent, or 
        child dies as a result of injury or disease incurred in or 
        aggravated by employment as a first responder, and who, in the 
        case of a surviving spouse, was living in marital union with 
        the citizen spouse at the time of his death, may be naturalized 
        upon compliance with all the requirements of this title except 
        that no prior residence or specified physical presence within 
        the United States shall be required.
            ``(2) Definition.--For purposes of this subsection--
                    ``(A) the term `first responder' means Federal, 
                State, and local governmental and nongovernmental 
                emergency public safety, fire, law enforcement, 
                emergency response, and emergency medical (including 
                hospital emergency facilities) personnel; and
                    ``(B) the terms `United States citizen' and 
                `citizen spouse' include a person granted posthumous 
                citizenship under section 329B.''.

SEC. 3. POSTHUMOUS CITIZENSHIP THROUGH DEATH WHILE SERVING AS A FIRST 
              RESPONDER.

    (a) In General.--Title III of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1401 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 329A the 
following:

``SEC. 329B. POSTHUMOUS CITIZENSHIP THROUGH DEATH WHILE SERVING AS A 
              FIRST RESPONDER.

    ``(a) Permitting Granting of Posthumous Citizenship.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, the Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall provide, in accordance with this section, for 
the granting of posthumous citizenship at the time of death to a person 
described in subsection (b) if the Secretary of Homeland Security 
approves an application for that posthumous citizenship under 
subsection (c).
    ``(b) Noncitizens Eligible for Posthumous Citizenship.--A person 
referred to in subsection (a) is a person not described in section 
212(a)(9)(B)(ii) who, while an alien or a noncitizen national of the 
United States--
            ``(1) was employed as a first responder (as such term is 
        defined in section 319(f)); and
            ``(2) died as a result of injury or disease incurred in or 
        aggravated by that employment.
The chief officer of the entity that employed the person shall 
determine whether the person satisfied the requirements of paragraphs 
(1) and (2).
    ``(c) Requests for Posthumous Citizenship.--
            ``(1) In general.--A request for the granting of posthumous 
        citizenship to a person described in subsection (b) may be 
        filed on behalf of that person--
                    ``(A) upon locating the next-of-kin, and if so 
                requested by the next-of-kin, by the Director of United 
                States Citizenship and Immigration Services immediately 
                upon the death of that person; or
                    ``(B) by the next-of-kin.
            ``(2) Approval.--The Director of United States Citizenship 
        and Immigration Services shall approve a request for posthumous 
        citizenship filed by the next-of-kin in accordance with 
        paragraph (1)(B) if--
                    ``(A) the request is filed not later than 2 years 
                after--
                            ``(i) the date of enactment of this 
                        section; or
                            ``(ii) the date of the person's death; 
                        whichever date is later; and
                    ``(B) the request is accompanied by a duly 
                authenticated certificate from the chief officer of the 
                entity that employed the person which states that the 
                person satisfied the requirements of paragraphs (1) and 
                (2) of subsection (b).
    ``(d) Documentation of Posthumous Citizenship.--If the Director of 
the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services approves the request 
referred to in subsection (c), the Director shall send to the next-of-
kin of the person who is granted citizenship, a suitable document which 
states that the United States considers the person to have been a 
citizen of the United States at the time of the person's death.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to section 329A the following:

``329B. Posthumous citizenship through death while serving as a first 
                            responder.''.
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