[House Report 112-621]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
112th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 112-621
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FOR THE RELIEF OF CORINA DE CHALUP TURCINOVIC
_______
July 24, 2012.--Referred to the Private Calendar and ordered to be
printed
_______
Mr. Smith of Texas, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 357]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the
bill (H.R. 357) for the relief of Corina de Chalup Turcinovic,
having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
Purpose and Summary.............................................. 1
Background and Need for the Legislation.......................... 1
Hearings......................................................... 3
Committee Consideration.......................................... 3
Committee Votes.................................................. 3
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 3
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................ 3
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 3
Performance Goals and Objectives................................. 4
Advisory on Earmarks............................................. 4
Section-by-Section Analysis...................................... 4
Purpose and Summary
The bill grants permanent resident status to Corina de
Chalup Turcinovic.
Background and Need for the Legislation
Corina Turcinovic was born in France in 1964. She entered
the United States through the visa waiver program in 1990 after
receiving news that her then-fiance, Marin Turcinovic, had been
struck in New Jersey by a car driven by a drunk driver. Marin's
spinal cord was severely damaged in the accident. He was left
with total quadriplegia when his doctors failed to correctly
diagnose the extent of his injuries, including broken vertebrae
in his neck. Marin would later win a large settlement in a
medical malpractice suit. His injuries left him completely
dependent on Corina for care. He was dependent on a ventilator
to breathe and he required 24-hour medical care.
Two months after her entry into the country, Corina filed
an application for an extension of her temporary stay. INS
denied the application because extensions of stay were not
allowed under the visa waiver program. However, INS granted her
a stay of deportation on humanitarian grounds to allow Corina
to stay in the U.S. to care for Marin in their home. Such stays
of deportation were renewed on an annual basis for the next 10
years.
In 1996, Marin and Corina were married. In 1998, Marin
became a lawful permanent resident. He then filed a petition
for permanent residence for Corina. It was approved and she was
placed on the waiting list for green cards for spouses of
permanent residents.
In 2003, Marin filed for naturalization (which, once
granted, would allow Corina as the spouse of a citizen to
immediately apply for adjustment of status to conditional
permanent residence). While a medical certification of
disability made clear that Marin could not physically appear at
the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (``USCIS'')
office, Marin nonetheless received a fingerprint appointment
notice about 2 weeks later. Marin's attorney contacted USCIS
and the agency responded that an officer would visit Marin at
his home to further process his application. However, Marin
then received notice that his naturalization application had
been denied due to abandonment because of his failure to appear
for fingerprinting. Marin's attorney again contacted USCIS and
filed a motion to reopen Marin's application. The motion was
granted on March 8, 2004. However, Marin received another
fingerprint appointment notice and died shortly later.
H.R. 357 grants Ms. Turcinovic permanent residence.
The case certainly seems unique in that an alien who had
come to the U.S. legally was allowed by the Federal Government
to stay here for many years to care for her legal immigrant
spouse. While that care is no longer needed following the death
of Marin, Corina would suffer hardship in having to return to
France after all these years in the U.S.
In a broader sense, there is precedent for the private
bill. First, Corina would have already been a conditional
permanent resident by the time of her husband's death if not
for USCIS error. Congress has enacted private bills in cases of
aliens who would have received permanent residence but for a
mistake by the Federal immigration agency.\1\ Second, Congress
has enacted private bills when alien spouses of American
citizens lost the right to receive permanent residence because
of the death of the American citizens before the approval of
the petitions for conditional permanent residence (usually, but
not always, when there was a U.S. citizen child involved).\2\
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\1\See, e.g., Priv. L. No. 106-4 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-364) & Priv. L.
No. 106-12 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-892).
\2\See, e.g., Priv. L No. 107-5 (H.R. Rep. No. 107-579), Priv. L.
No. 106-3 (H.R. Rep. No. 106-178), Priv. L. No. 106-23 (H.R. Rep. No.
106-965), Priv. L. No. 105-7 (H.R. Rep. No. 105-689) & Priv. L. No.105-
8 (H.R. Rep. No. 105-690).
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In the 110th Congress, the Immigration Subcommittee
requested an ICE report on Ms. Turcinovic, and ICE provided the
Subcommittee with a report which contained no derogatory
information. On February 13, 2008, the Subcommittee ordered
H.R. 5030 (providing relief to Ms. Turcinovic) favorably
reported by voice vote. On May 14, 2008, the Committee ordered
the bill favorably reported by voice vote. On September 16,
2008, the bill passed the House by a voice vote. In the 111th
Congress, the Subcommittee requested an ICE report and ICE
provided a report which contained no derogatory information. On
March 10, 2011, the Subcommittee again voted to request a
report. On January 31, 2012, ICE provided the report. It
revealed no derogatory information.
Hearings
The Committee on the Judiciary held no hearings on H.R.
357.
Committee Consideration
On June 28, 2012, the Committee met in open session and
ordered the bill H.R. 357 favorably reported without amendment,
by voice vote, a quorum being present.
Committee Votes
In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that there
were no recorded votes during the Committee's consideration of
H.R. 357.
Committee Oversight Findings
In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the
findings and recommendations of the Committee, based on
oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the
descriptive portions of this report.
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures
Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives is inapplicable because this legislation does
not provide new budgetary authority or increased tax
expenditures.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth, with
respect to the bill, H.R. 357, the following estimate and
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, July 5, 2012.
Hon. Lamar Smith, Chairman,
Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
reviewed the following legislation ordered reported by the
House Committee on the Judiciary on June 28, 2012:
LH.R. 823, a bill for the relief of Maria
Carmen Castro Ramirez and J. Refugio Carreno Rojas;
LH.R. 824, a bill for the relief of Daniel
Wachira;
LH.R. 316, a bill for the relief of Esther
Karinge;
LH.R. 794, a bill for the relief of Allan
Bolor Kelley;
LH.R. 357, a bill for the relief of Corina de
Chalup Turcinovic; and
LH.R. 1857, a bill for the relief of Bartosz
Kumor.
Those bills would make certain individuals eligible for
permanent U.S. residence and could have a very small effect on
fees collected by the Department of Homeland Security and thus
would affect direct spending. Therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures apply. CBO estimates, however, that enacting those
pieces of legislation would not have a significant impact on
the federal budget.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark
Grabowicz, who can be reached at 226-2860.
Sincerely,
Douglas W. Elmendorf,
Director.
Enclosure
cc:
Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
Ranking Member
Performance Goals and Objectives
The Committee states that pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, H.R.
357 grants permanent resident status to Corina de Chalup
Turcinovic.
Advisory on Earmarks
In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, H.R. 357 does not contain any
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of Rule XXI.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Sec. 1. Permanent Resident Status for Corina de Chalup Turcinovic.
Subsection (a) provides that Corina de Chalup Turcinovic
shall be eligible for issuance of an immigrant visa or for
adjustment of status to that of an alien lawfully admitted for
permanent residence upon filing an application for issuance of
an immigrant visa under section 204 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA) or for adjustment of status to lawful
permanent resident.
Subsection (b) provides that if Corina de Chalup Turcinovic
enters the United States before the filing deadline specified
in subsection (c), she shall be considered to have entered and
remained lawfully and shall, if otherwise eligible, be eligible
for adjustment of status under section 245 of the INA.
Subsection (c) provides that subsections (a) and (b) shall
apply only if the application for issuance of an immigrant visa
or the application for adjustment of status is filed with
appropriate fees within 2 years after the date of the enactment
of this Act.
Subsection (d) provides that upon the granting of an
immigrant visa or permanent residence to Corina de Chalup
Turcinovic, the Secretary of State shall instruct the proper
officer to reduce by 1, during the current or next following
fiscal year, the total number of immigrant visas that are made
available to natives of the country of her birth under section
203(a) of the INA or, if applicable, the total number of
immigrant visas that are made available to natives of the
country of her birth under section 202(e) of the INA.
Subsection (e) provides that the natural parents, brothers,
and sisters of Corina de Chalup Turcinovic shall not, by virtue
of such relationship, be accorded any right, privilege, or
status under the INA.