U.S. Citizenship Act
Latest action · Apr 28, 2021 Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.
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.
- IntroducedFeb 18, 2021
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
U.S. Citizenship Act
This bill establishes a path to citizenship for certain undocumented individuals. The bill also replaces the term alien with noncitizen in the immigration statutes and addresses other related issues.
Specifically, the bill establishes a new status of lawful prospective immigrant. This status shall be available to an applying noncitizen who meets certain requirements, including being continually present in the United States from January 1, 2021, and passing background checks. After at least five years with this status, an eligible noncitizen may apply for and receive permanent resident status.
The bill also provides permanent resident status to certain applying noncitizens, specifically for eligible noncitizens who (1) entered the United States as a minor, (2) were eligible for temporary protected status or deferred enforced departure on January 1, 2017, or (3) worked a certain amount of agricultural labor in the five years prior to applying.
Among other things, the bill also
- redefines for immigration purposes the term conviction to exclude convictions that have been expunged or vacated,
- requires the Department of State to implement a strategy to advance reforms in Central America and address key factors contributing to migration from the region to the United States,
- requires the State Department to establish refugee processing centers in Central America,
- requires Customs and Border Patrol sectors and stations to have a certain number of employees with certain qualifications such as paramedic training,
- generally prohibits religious discrimination in granting or denying immigration benefits, and
- establishes grant programs for providing training and services to immigrants.
Cosponsors 153
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Feb 18, 2021 to Aug 2, 2022, with 80 there on the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-CA | Adam B. Schiff | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-NY | Adriano Espaillat | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-TX | Al Green | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-NJ | Albio Sires | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-MD | Anthony G. Brown | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-MN | Betty McCollum | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-NJ | Bonnie Watson Coleman | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-IL | Bradley Scott Schneider | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-MI | Brenda L. Lawrence | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-NY | Carolyn B. Maloney | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-IL | Danny K. Davis | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-FL | Darren Soto | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-MD | David J. Trone | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-RI | David N. Cicilline | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
| D-FL | Debbie Wasserman Schultz | Original | Feb 18, 2021 |
Actions 6
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Apr 28, 2021Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.
- Feb 19, 2021Referred to the Subcommittee on Border Security, Facilitation, and Operations.
- Feb 19, 2021Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
- Feb 18, 2021Introduced in House
- Feb 18, 2021Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, Armed Services, Education and Labor, House Administration, Financial Services, Natural Resources, Oversight and Reform, Foreign Affairs, Homeland Security, Intelligence (Permanent Select), and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Related bills 6
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 348 | U.S. Citizenship Act | Identical bill | Feb 22, 2021 |
| S 1514 | Border Transportation Efficiency Act | Related bill | Apr 29, 2021 |
| S 1515 | REMOTE Act | Related bill | Apr 29, 2021 |
| S 2954 | Fair Adjudications for Immigrants Act | Related bill | Oct 7, 2021 |
| HR 3493 | Family Reunification Act of 2021 | Related bill | Nov 1, 2022 |
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.
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Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Feb 18, 2021Introduced 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.