Refugee Protection Act of 2016
Latest action · Jul 14, 2016 Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S5167-5168)
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJul 14, 2016
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Refugee Protection Act of 2016
This bill amends the Immigration and Naturalization Act to eliminate the one-year time limit for filing an asylum claim.
The bill revises: (1) the definition of "refugee," and (2) the criteria for granting asylum.
The bill makes certain currently required detention provisions regarding arriving aliens who request asylum discretionary.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall: (1) establish a secure alternatives to detention program, and (2) establish specified conditions of detention.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom may conduct a study to determine whether certain immigration officers are properly handling asylum and removal/detention authority.
The bill: (1) authorizes waiver of the continuous one-year presence requirement for permanent resident status adjustment for a qualifying refugee/asylee who worked for the U.S. government overseas; (2) exempts aliens under the age of 18 from certain restrictions on applying for asylum; and (3) sets forth protections for minors, refugees, aliens interdicted at sea, and stateless persons.
The President is authorized to designate refugee groups.
The bill authorizes refugee applicants to simultaneously pursue other forms of admission.
The spouse or child of a refugee or asylee may bring his or her accompanying or following child into the United States as a refugee or asylee.
If the President does not issue a refugee allocation determination before the beginning of a fiscal year, the number of refugees that may be admitted in each quarter shall be 25% of the number of refugees admissible during the previous fiscal year.
The bill amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006, with respect to naturalization of an Afghan or Iraqi translator who is a lawful permanent resident, to count a period of absence from the United States working as a translator for the United States or a U.S. contractor in Afghanistan or Iraq towards the accumulation of the required physical presence in the United States.
The bill revises: (1) the definition of "terrorist activity" for purposes of alien inadmissibility, including for aliens who were under 18 years of age when they committed certain actions under duress; and (2) the refugee grant and contract assistance allocation formula.
The Government Accountability Office shall conduct a study of the Office of Refugee Resettlement's domestic refugee resettlement programs.
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 is amended to extend the eligibility for supplemental security income (SSI) assistance to certain aliens (including asylees and refugees) and trafficking victims.
DHS shall grant employment authorization to qualifying T visa aliens (victims of trafficking in persons) and U visa aliens (children who have been granted special immigrant status as a victim of criminal activity).
The number of U visas is increased.
Cosponsors 4
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jul 14, 2016 to Nov 17, 2016, with 3 there on the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-MN | Al Franken | Original | Jul 14, 2016 |
| D-HI | Mazie K. Hirono | Original | Jul 14, 2016 |
| D-IL | Richard J. Durbin | Original | Jul 14, 2016 |
| D-MA | Edward J. Markey | Nov 17, 2016 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jul 14, 2016Introduced in Senate
- Jul 14, 2016Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S5167-5168)
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 5851 | Refugee Protection Act of 2016 | Related bill | Aug 17, 2016 |
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.
- Administrative remedies
- Border security and unlawful immigration
- Child health
- Child safety and welfare
- Citizenship and naturalization
- Congressional oversight
- Crime victims
- Department of Homeland Security
- Detention of persons
- Disability and paralysis
- Elementary and secondary education
- Evidence and witnesses
- Foreign labor
- Foreign language and bilingual programs
- Fraud offenses and financial crimes
- Government studies and investigations
- Human rights
- Immigration
- Immigration status and procedures
- Judicial procedure and administration
- Law enforcement officers
- Lawyers and legal services
- Mental health
- Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
- Protest and dissent
- Racial and ethnic relations
- Refugees, asylum, displaced persons
- Religion
- Right of privacy
- Terrorism
- Visas and passports
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jul 14, 2016Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov.