S 2516
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2516
To assist members of the Armed Forces in obtaining United States
citizenship, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 18, 2007
Ms. MIKULSKI (for herself and Mr. KENNEDY) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To assist members of the Armed Forces in obtaining United States
citizenship, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Kendell Frederick Citizenship Assistance
Act'.
SEC. 2. FINGERPRINTS FOR MEMBERS OF ARMED FORCES.
(a) In General- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, including
section 552a of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as
the `Privacy Act of 1974'), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall
use the fingerprints provided by an individual at the time the individual
enlisted in the Armed Forces to satisfy any requirement for fingerprints
in connection with an application for naturalization if--
(1) the individual may be naturalized pursuant to section 328 or 329
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1439 and 1440);
(2) the individual was fingerprinted in accordance with the requirements
of the Department of Defense at the time the individual enlisted in
the Armed Forces;
(3) the individual submits an application for naturalization not later
than 24 months after the date on which the individual enlisted in
the Armed Forces; and
(4) the Secretary of Homeland Security determines that the fingerprints
are sufficient to adjudicate the applicant's naturalization application.
(b) More Timely and Effective Adjudication- Nothing in this section
precludes an individual described in subsection (a) from submitting
a new set of fingerprints to the Secretary of Homeland Security. If
the Secretary of Homeland Security determines that submitting a new
set of fingerprints would result in more timely and effective adjudication
of the individual's naturalization application, the Secretary shall--
(1) inform the individual of such determination; and
(2) provide the individual with a description of how to submit such
fingerprints.
(c) Cooperation- The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation
with the Secretary of Defense, shall determine the format of fingerprints
acceptable for usage under subsection (a). The Secretary of Defense,
or any other official having custody of the fingerprints referred to
in subsection (a), shall--
(1) make such prints available, without charge, to the Secretary of
Homeland Security for the purpose described in subsection (a); and
(2) otherwise cooperate with the Secretary of Homeland Security to
facilitate the processing of applications for naturalization under
subsection (a).
SEC. 3. PROVISION OF INFORMATION ON MILITARY NATURALIZATION.
(a) In General- Not later than 30 days after the effective date of any
modification to a regulation related to naturalization under section
328 or 329 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1439 and
1440), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall make appropriate updates
to the Internet sites maintained by the Secretary to reflect such modification.
(b) Sense of Congress- It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary
of Homeland Security, not later than 180 days after each effective date
described in subsection (a), should make necessary updates to the appropriate
application forms of the Department of Homeland Security.
SEC. 4. REPORTS.
(a) Adjudication Process-
(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit
a report to the appropriate congressional committees on the entire
process for the adjudication of an application for naturalization
filed pursuant to section 328 or 329 of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1439 and 1440), including the process that--
(A) begins at the time the application is mailed to, or received
by, the Secretary of Homeland Security, regardless of whether the
Secretary determines that such application is complete; and
(B) ends on the date of the final disposition of such application.
(2) CONTENTS- The report submitted under paragraph (1) shall include
a description of--
(A) the methods used by the Secretary of Homeland Security and the
Secretary of Defense to prepare, handle, and adjudicate such applications;
(B) the effectiveness of the chain of authority, supervision, and
training of employees of the Federal Government or of other entities,
including contract employees, who have any role in such process
or adjudication; and
(C) the ability of the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary
of Defense to use technology to facilitate or accomplish any aspect
of such process or adjudication.
(1) STUDY- The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct
a study on the implementation of this Act by the Secretary of Homeland
Security and the Secretary of Defense, including studying any technology
that may be used to improve the efficiency of the naturalization process
for members of the Armed Forces.
(2) REPORT- Not later than 180 days after the date on which the Comptroller
General submits the report required under subsection (a), the Comptroller
General shall submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees
on the study required by paragraph (1) that includes recommendations
for improving the implementation of this Act.
(c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined- In this section, the
term `appropriate congressional committees' means--
(1) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate;
(2) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
(3) the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives;
and
(4) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives.
END
