POWER Act
Latest action · Jul 24, 2018 Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.
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.
- IntroducedMay 22, 2018
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Protect Our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation Act or the POWER Act
This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to expand the nonimmigrant U-visa category (crime victims and their immediate family members) to include an alien who:
- has suffered substantial abuse or harm resulting from a workplace violation claim;
- is a victim of specified criminal activity or a workplace violation and would suffer extreme hardship upon removal;
- has been helpful in a workplace violation investigation; or
- has filed, is a material witness in, or is likely to be helpful in the investigation of, a workplace claim and reasonably fears, or has been the victim of, employer retaliation.
An alien who is a material witness in a workplace claim and who has been helpful in a related law enforcement action may remain and work temporarily in the United States.
In a Department of Homeland Security workplace enforcement action a detained alien: (1) who is necessary as a witness shall not be removed until the appropriate law enforcement agency is notified and has an opportunity to interview such individual, and (2) who is entitled to a stay or abeyance of removal shall not be removed.
An alien in removal proceedings who is a witness in a workplace claim or who has filed for U-visa status shall be entitled to a stay or abeyance of removal and permitted to work until the claim's disposition unless the alien has been convicted of a felony or filed a bad faith claim.
Cosponsors 17
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from May 22, 2018 to Sep 12, 2018; 6 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-NY | Adriano Espaillat | Original | May 22, 2018 |
| D-RI | David N. Cicilline | Original | May 22, 2018 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | May 22, 2018 |
| D-CA | Lucille Roybal-Allard | Original | May 22, 2018 |
| D-VA | Robert C. "Bobby" Scott | Original | May 22, 2018 |
| D-CA | Zoe Lofgren | Original | May 22, 2018 |
| D-IL | Luis V. Gutierrez | Jun 1, 2018 | |
| D-NV | Ruben J. Kihuen | Jun 1, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Yvette D. Clarke | Jun 1, 2018 | |
| D-MA | James P. McGovern | Jun 6, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Mark DeSaulnier | Jun 6, 2018 | |
| D-MD | Elijah E. Cummings | Jun 12, 2018 | |
| D-MD | Jamie Raskin | Jun 12, 2018 | |
| D-TN | Jim Cooper | Jun 12, 2018 | |
| D-MN | Keith Ellison | Jun 22, 2018 | |
| D-WA | Pramila Jayapal | Aug 7, 2018 | |
| D-AZ | Raúl M. Grijalva | Sep 12, 2018 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred May 22, 2018 |
| Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee | Referred Jul 24, 2018 |
Actions 3
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jul 24, 2018Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.
- May 22, 2018Introduced in House
- May 22, 2018Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 164, no. 84, May 22, 2018, page H4583.
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 2915 | POWER Act | Related bill | May 22, 2018 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To protect victims of crime or serious labor violations from removal during Department of Homeland Security enforcement actions, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- POWER Act
- Protect Our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- May 22, 2018Introduced in House
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; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
