Protecting Immigrants From Legal Exploitation Act of 2019
Latest action · May 20, 2019 Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland 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 1, 2019
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Protecting Immigrants From Legal Exploitation Act of 2019
This bill establishes that certain acts of immigration-related fraud shall be punished by fines, imprisonment, or both.
The bill provides for such punishment for a person who knowingly or recklessly executes a scheme or artifice in a matter arising under immigration law to (1) defraud any person; or (2) obtain anything of value from any person through false pretenses, representations, or promises.
A person who knowingly and falsely represents that such person is an attorney or accredited representative in any matter arising under immigration law shall be subject to such punishment.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) may seek civil injunctions to stop an immigration service provider from further engaging in fraudulent conduct or willfully misrepresenting the provider's authority to provide representation in immigration matters.
An alien who left the United States based on erroneous advice from a person engaged in immigration practitioner fraud or the unauthorized practice of law shall not be barred from reentering the country.
An alien may withdraw an application for immigration benefits that was prepared or submitted by an individual engaging in immigration practitioner fraud or the unauthorized practice of law, if the alien had no prior knowledge of the individual's fraudulent or unauthorized status. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of State, and DOJ shall develop procedures for allowing such an alien to submit corrected filings.
DHS and DOJ shall establish a program to provide grants to eligible nonprofit organizations to provide direct legal services to aliens.
Cosponsors 41
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from May 1, 2019 to May 20, 2019; 37 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-FL | Alcee L. Hastings | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Anna G. Eshoo | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-NJ | Bill Pascrell, Jr. | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-IL | Bobby L. Rush | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-LA | Cedric L. Richmond | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-NV | Dina Titus | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-OR | Earl Blumenauer | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CO | Ed Perlmutter | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-MD | Elijah E. Cummings | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-NJ | Frank Pallone, Jr. | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Gilbert Ray Cisneros, Jr. | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Grace F. Napolitano | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-NY | Grace Meng | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-NY | Gregory W. Meeks | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-WI | Gwen Moore | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-GA | Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-MN | Ilhan Omar | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-MA | James P. McGovern | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-IL | Janice D. Schakowsky | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-IL | Jesús G. "Chuy" García | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Juan Vargas | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Judy Chu | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Linda T. Sánchez | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Mark DeSaulnier | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Mark Takano | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-IL | Mike Quigley | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Pete Aguilar | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-VT | Peter Welch | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-WA | Pramila Jayapal | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-AZ | Raúl M. Grijalva | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Salud O. Carbajal | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-MA | Seth Moulton | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-TN | Steve Cohen | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-FL | Theodore E. Deutch | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-NJ | Tom Malinowski | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Tony Cárdenas | Original | May 1, 2019 |
| D-CA | Scott H. Peters | May 7, 2019 | |
| D-OR | Peter A. DeFazio | May 15, 2019 | |
| D-NM | Debra A. Haaland | May 20, 2019 | |
| D-MA | Joseph P. Kennedy III | May 20, 2019 |
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 1, 2019 |
| Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee | Referred May 20, 2019 | |
| Crime and Federal Government Surveillance Subcommittee | Referred May 20, 2019 |
Actions 4
Everything that happened, newest first.
- May 20, 2019Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.
- May 20, 2019Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
- May 1, 2019Introduced in House
- May 1, 2019Referred 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. 165, no. 71, May 1, 2019, page H3405.
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 912 | Protecting Immigrants From Legal Exploitation Act of 2017 | Reintroduction of | Mar 9, 2017 |
| HR 6222 | Protecting Immigrants From Legal Exploitation Act of 2021 | Reintroduced Bill | Nov 1, 2022 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To provide for punishments for immigration-related fraud, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Protecting Immigrants From Legal Exploitation Act of 2019
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.
- Administrative law and regulatory procedures
- Civil actions and liability
- Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
- Criminal procedure and sentencing
- Department of Homeland Security
- Department of Justice
- Fraud offenses and financial crimes
- Government information and archives
- Immigration
- Immigration status and procedures
- Lawyers and legal services
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- May 1, 2019Introduced 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.
