House Panel Holds Hearing on Immigration Legislation

On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims held a hearing on immigration legislation pending before the panel. Among the legislation considered was a measure introduced by Rep. Brian Bilbray (San Diego), H.R. 7, which would deny citizenship at birth to children born in the U.S. to parents who are not citizens or permanent resident aliens. The legislation is prospective in nature and would not change the citizenship status of children already born. Automatic citizenship, under Bilbray's proposal, would be granted only to children whose parents are married, when at least one of the parents is a citizen, national, or permanent resident. If the child is born out of wedlock, the mother must meet the above requirements for the child to gain citizenship automatically. Bilbray argued that the current law creates an undesirable incentive for illegal immigrant women to come to the U.S. in order to secure social service benefits. A Justice Department witness argued that the bill is "unconstitutional on its face" and that the changes proposed in the bill would require a Constitutional amendment.

In addition, the panel heard testimony on H.R. 1428, a measure introduced by Rep. Steve Horn (Long Beach) aimed at limiting voter fraud. The bill would allow local election officials to contact the Social Security Administration and the Immigration and Naturalization Service to verify the citizenship of an individual submitting a voter registration application. The bill does not require that election officials use the verification process, and contains restrictions aimed at preventing discrimination and privacy violations. In his remarks before the panel, Rep. Horn noted that "the only turnout this bill will hurt is the turnout of fraudulent votes. The legislation strikes a vitally needed balance between protecting our elections from fraud and the right of every citizen to vote."

Volume 4, Bulletin 22, June 26, 1997