[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7053 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7053
To defer removal of certain nationals of Vietnam for a 24-month period,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 28, 2020
Mr. Lowenthal (for himself, Ms. Norton, Mr. Correa, Mr. Khanna, Mr.
Rouda, Mr. Vargas, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, and
Mr. Connolly) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To defer removal of certain nationals of Vietnam for a 24-month period,
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 2020''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds as follows:
(1) From April-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.
(2) During this time, more than 50,000 Vietnamese refugees
were processed through Camp Pendleton for Southern California.
(3) In the 4 decades since refugees fled Vietnam,
Vietnamese Americans have weaved their stories into the
American fabric.
(4) The biggest concentration of Vietnamese American is in
Orange County, California, followed by San Jose (California),
Houston (Texas), Seattle (Washington), Northern Virginia, and
New Orleans (Louisiana).
(5) According to the 2010 census, Vietnamese is the 6th
most commonly spoken language in the United States.
(6) Immigrant communities face significant problems
assimilating 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 (immigrant's) forced displacement flight, and resettlement
can increase vulnerability to mental distress.''. First
generation immigrants are especially vulnerable to gang
violence within communities in which their parents cannot guide
with cultural or political comfortability.
(7) In 2008, the United States and Vietnam signed a
bilateral repatriation agreement, hereafter known as the 2008
Vietnam-U.S. Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
(8) 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''.
(9) The United States under President George Bush and
President Barack Obama recognized the 2008 Vietnam-U.S. MOU's
protection for pre-1995 refugees from deportation.
(10) In 2019, President Trump's Administration began to
renegotiate the 2008 Vietnam-U.S. MOU to expand the categories
of immigrants it could deport, including permanent residents
who have committed certain minor crimes and others who came to
the United States as children after the Vietnam War.
(11) In February 2018, Asian Americans Advancing Justice's
Asian Law Caucus in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Atlanta
filed a class action lawsuit in the name of Orange County
resident Hoang Trinh and six other refugees who all came to the
U.S. before the 1995 date and became legal permanent residents.
Due to criminal convictions, they all lost their green cards,
making them subject to deportation. Under the 2008 Vietnam-U.S.
MOU, they should be protected from deportation. The refugees
were held in prolonged detention in violation of a 2001 U.S.
Supreme Court decision restricting overlong detention.
(12) In August 2018, U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney
ruled that the plaintiffs in the class action presented a
plausible claim that the government is now not abiding by a
``longstanding practice of not removing pre-1995 Vietnamese
immigrants and by the 2008 diplomatic agreement.''.
SEC. 3. DEFERRAL OF REMOVAL FOR NATIONALS OF VIETNAM WITH REMOVAL
ORDERS.
(a) Deferral of Removal.--Except as provided in subsection (b), an
alien may not be removed for the 24-month period beginning on the date
of enactment of this Act if the alien--
(1) is a national of Vietnam;
(2) has been ordered removed to Vietnam at any time before
the date of enactment of this Act; and
(3) resided in the United States on or before July 12,
1995.
(b) Deferral Not Applicable to Certain Aliens.--Subsection (a)
shall not apply to an alien if--
(1) the Secretary of Homeland Security determines that the
alien's removal is necessary based upon credible facts that the
alien is directly responsible for specific and significant harm
to the security of the United States; or
(2) the alien is subject to extradition.
(c) Employment Authorization.--Upon application to the Secretary of
Homeland Security, an alien whose removal is deferred pursuant to this
Act--
(1) shall be authorized to engage in employment during the
24-month period described in subsection (a); and
(2) shall be issued an employment authorization document
that remains valid during such period.
(d) Implementation.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall take
the necessary steps to implement--
(1) the deferral of removal authorized under this section;
and
(2) the authorization of employment described in subsection
(c).
SEC. 4. NOTICE FOR CERTAIN ALIENS WITH REMOVAL ORDERS TO VIETNAM.
(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 who--
(1) is a national of Vietnam; and
(2) has a final order of removal.
(b) Contents of Notice.--The notice required under subsection (a)
shall include clear instructions explaining the requirements for an
alien to file a motion to reopen a proceeding under section 240 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a) based on changed
country conditions.
SEC. 5. PROHIBITION ON DETENTION.
The Secretary of Homeland Security may not detain an alien whose
removal is deferred pursuant to this Act on the basis of the alien's
immigration status in the United States or as a result of a motion
filed by the alien to reopen a proceeding under section 240 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a).
SEC. 6. 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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