[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1263 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
115th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1263
To exclude from the application of Executive Order 13796 certain Iraqi
and Afghani special immigrants and refugees, to render certain Afghanis
eligible for Priority 2 processing under the refugee resettlement
priority system, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 28, 2017
Mr. Welch introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To exclude from the application of Executive Order 13796 certain Iraqi
and Afghani special immigrants and refugees, to render certain Afghanis
eligible for Priority 2 processing under the refugee resettlement
priority system, 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 ``Protecting Allies from Visa
Exclusion (PAVE) Act''.
SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON ENTRY INAPPLICABLE TO CERTAIN SPECIAL
IMMIGRANTS.
(a) Iraqi Special Immigrants.--Section 3(c) of Executive Order
13769, entitled ``Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry
into the United States'' (January 27, 2017), or any other provision of
an Executive order, regulation, informal rule of guidance, or
memorandum issued by the President or any other official in the
executive branch precluding issuance of visas to, revoking visas issued
to, or precluding entry or admission of, a class or classes of aliens,
shall not apply to an alien who is a national of Iraq or Afghanistan
and has been granted special immigrant status under section 101(a)(27)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)) pursuant
to--
(1) section 1244 of the National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1157 note);
(2) section 1059 of the National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2006 (8 U.S.C. 1101 note); or
(3) section 602 of the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009
(8 U.S.C. 1101 note).
(b) Refugees.--Section 5 of Executive Order 13769, or any other
provision of an Executive order, regulation, informal rule of guidance,
or memorandum issued by the President or any other official in the
executive branch precluding issuance of visas to, revoking visas issued
to, or precluding entry or admission of, a class or classes of aliens,
shall not apply to an alien who has been granted refugee status, has
been approved for refugee admission, or is a refugee applicant in the
United States Refugee Admissions Program under a Priority 2 designation
pursuant to section 1243 of National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1157 note) or section 3 of this Act.
(c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect as if enacted
concurrent with Executive Order 13769.
SEC. 3. UNITED STATES REFUGEE PROGRAM PROCESSING PRIORITIES FOR
AFGHANIS.
(a) In General.--Refugees of special humanitarian concern eligible
for Priority 2 processing under the refugee resettlement priority
system who may apply directly to the United States Admission Program
shall include--
(1) Afghanis who were or are employed by the United States
Government in Afghanistan;
(2) Afghanis who establish to the satisfaction of the
Secretary of State that they are or were employed in
Afghanistan by--
(A) a media or nongovernmental organization
headquartered in the United States; or
(B) an organization or entity closely associated
with the United States mission in Afghanistan that has
received United States Government funding through an
official and documented contract, award, grant, or
cooperative agreement;
(3) spouses, children, and parents whether or not
accompanying or following to join, and sons, daughters, and
siblings of aliens described in paragraph (1) or paragraph (2);
(4) spouses, children, and parents whether or not
accompanying or following to join, and sons, daughters, and
siblings of Afghanis granted the status of a special immigrant
under section 101(a)(27) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)) based on faithful and valuable service
to the United States Government; and
(5) Afghanis who are members of a religious or minority
community, have been identified by the Secretary of State, or
the designee of the Secretary, as a persecuted group, and have
close family members (as described in section 201(b)(2)(A)(i)
or 203(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1151(b)(2)(A)(i) and 1153(a))) in the United States.
(b) Identification of Other Persecuted Groups.--The Secretary of
State, or the designee of the Secretary, is authorized to identify
other Priority 2 groups of Afghanis, including vulnerable populations.
(c) Ineligible Organizations and Entities.--Organizations and
entities described in subsection (a)(2) shall not include any that
appear on the Department of the Treasury's list of Specially Designated
Nationals or any entity specifically excluded by the Secretary of
Homeland Security, after consultation with the Secretary of State and
the heads of relevant elements of the intelligence community (as
defined in section 3(4) of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C.
401a(4))).
(d) Applicability of Other Requirements.--Aliens under this section
who qualify for Priority 2 processing under the refugee resettlement
priority system shall satisfy the requirements of section 207 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157) for admission to the
United States.
(e) Numerical Limitations.--In determining the number of Afghani
refugees who should be resettled in the United States under paragraphs
(2), (3), and (4) of subsection (a) and subsection (b) of section 207
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157), the President
shall consult with the heads of nongovernmental organizations that have
a presence in Afghanistan or experience in assessing the problems faced
by Afghani refugees.
(f) Eligibility for Admission as Refugee.--No alien shall be denied
the opportunity to apply for admission under this section solely
because such alien qualifies as an immediate relative or is eligible
for any other immigrant classification.
<all>