[Congressional Record: October 15, 2002 (House)]
[Page H7908-H7910]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr15oc02-53]
BORDER COMMUTER STUDENT ACT OF 2002
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass
the bill (H.R. 4967) to establish new nonimmigrant classes for border
commuter students.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 4967
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 ``Border Commuter Student Act
of 2002''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF BORDER COMMUTER NONIMMIGRANT CLASS.
(a) Class for Academic or Language Studies.--Section
101(a)(15)(F) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(F)) is amended by striking ``and (ii)''
and all that follows through the end of subparagraph (F) and
inserting the following: ``(ii) the alien spouse and minor
children of any alien described in clause (i) if accompanying
or following to join such an alien, and (iii) an alien who is
a national of Canada or Mexico, who maintains actual
residence and place of abode in the country of nationality,
who is described in clause (i) except that the alien's
qualifications for and actual course of study may be full or
part-time, and who commutes to the United States institution
or place of study from Canada or Mexico;''.
(b) Class for Vocational or Nonacademic Studies.--Section
101(a)(15)(M) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(M)) is amended by striking ``and (ii)''
and all that follows through the end of subparagraph (M) and
inserting the following: ``(ii) the alien spouse and minor
children of any alien described in clause (i) if accompanying
or following to join such an alien, and (iii) an alien who is
a national of Canada or Mexico, who maintains actual
residence and place of abode in the country of nationality,
who is described in clause (i) except that the alien's course
of study may be full or part-time, and who commutes to the
United States institution or place of study from Canada or
Mexico;''.
(c) Limitation.--Section 214(m) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(m); as redesignated by section
107(e)(2)(A) of P.L. 106-386) is amended by striking
``section 101(a)(15)(F)(i)'' both places it appears and
inserting ``clause (i) or (iii) of section 101(a)(15)(F)''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner) and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms.
Jackson-Lee) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr.
Sensenbrenner).
General Leave
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend
their remarks on H.R. 4967, the bill currently under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Wisconsin?
There was no objection.
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, the Immigration and Nationality Act permits foreign
students to study in the United States on nonimmigrant student visas.
Aliens must be full-time students to be eligible for F visas, which is
academic or language studies, or M visas, which are vocational or non-
academic studies, nonimmigrant student visas. However, some INS
districts have paroled commuter students from Canada and Mexico into
the United States as visitors to bypass this statutory requirement
because no visa category exists for part-time commuter students.
Since September 11, 2001, the INS has issued memoranda regarding its
intent to end this practice of accommodating part-time commuter
students but permits its continuance through the end of this year for
students already enrolled in border schools. On August 27, 2002, the
INS issued an interim rule to expand the F and M student visa
categories to permit Mexican and Canadian commuter students to obtain
student visas.
However, such a rule is open to differing interpretations across
administrations. By passing H.R. 4967, this bill would make Congress'
intent clearer that the Canadian and Mexican students should be able to
obtain student visas and attend U.S. schools along our borders.
The bill amends the F and M student categories of the Immigration and
Nationality Act to expand student visa authorization only for nationals
of Canada or Mexico who maintain actual residence and place of abode in
the country of nationality, whose course of study may either be full-
or part-time, and who commute to the U.S. institution or place of study
from Canada or Mexico. These part-time students will be tracked in the
Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, or SEVIS; and I would
point out that if this bill is not passed, and they continue to be
paroled in as visitors, they will not be tracked under SEVIS because
they do not have student visas.
In practice, the INS has been allowing the students in for years but
without proper authority to do so. This bill gives the INS that proper
authority, and I urge my colleagues to vote for it.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
might consume.
(Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise
and extend her remarks.)
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my
colleagues in support of making part-time commuter students who are
nationals of either Canada or Mexico and attend school in the United
States eligible for special student visas. I especially congratulate
the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Kolbe) for his untiring efforts to move
this legislation forward.
Thousands of Canadian and Mexican nationals commute to attend schools
part-time in the United States. According to the Institute of
International Education, 25,769 Canadian students and 10,679 Mexican
students are enrolled at U.S. colleges on a full-time basis. There are
thousands of additional students that are part-time students.
Texas has a significant portion of students who commute to schools in
Texas. For years now, border points like El Paso and Laredo have made
exceptions for part-time Mexican students who enter on a daily visitor
and travel visa. Schools in Texas, such as Texas A&M International,
will benefit from this legislation. Texas A&M International University
has approximately 50 to 60 students that benefit from this legislation.
At the University of Texas Pan-American in Edinburgh, Texas, 14 of the
425 international students are part-time.
According to university officials at both institutions, many more
students would attend if they could be able to cross the border easily.
Unfortunately, current law does not establish an appropriate visa for
those part-time commuter students who, in fact, are coming to learn and
then returning home to contribute to their communities.
Under the Immigration and Naturalization Act, aliens who reside in a
foreign country and are pursuing a full course of study from a
recognized vocational institution or an established college, university
or other academic institution in the United States are eligible for
student visas. For the purpose of granting student visas, the INS
defines ``full course of study'' as 12 credits or more. So, therefore,
part-time commuter students, those who might only be taking a class or
two, are not currently eligible for student visas.
However, some INS district offices have permitted part-time commuter
students to enter the United States as visitors to pursue their
studies. I am encouraged by the INS' recent reversal of a May 2002
decision to eliminate this practice and enforce the full-time 12-hour
credit requirement.
We do know that we live in different times since the horrific acts of
9-11. We do know our responsibilities for border security; and of
course, as I have mentioned earlier, my commitment to such in
cosponsorship of several bills, recognizing the balance, a balance in
the previous bill to add a study on racial profiling, this bill is a
balance. It recognizes that these students are coming to learn, to
contribute, and to make a difference not only in their lives but in
their communities.
It also recognizes the economic aspect of it, and these students will
be contributing to the economy of the regions of which they participate
in those academic institutions.
Fortunately, the agency recently postponed enforcement of the policy
[[Page H7909]]
until August 15, 2002, while administrative and legislative remedies
are considered. I consider that a balanced perspective on the part of
the INS.
The legislation we are introducing today appropriately addresses the
problem facing part-time commuter students without hoping for a new
avenue for illegal immigration. Of course, this bill is on the floor of
the House today and would amend 18 U.S.C. 1101 to make certain part-
time commuter students eligible for student visas. The bill would allow
nationals of Canada or Mexico who both maintain a residence and a place
of abode in their country of nationality and who commute to school to
enroll part-time in schools in the United States, and part-time
commuter student visas are restricted to nationals of Canada or Mexico.
The bill would not make political asylees, residents or others, who are
nationals of third countries, who simply live in Canada or Mexico
eligible for the visas; and I think that is an important point to make.
Again, I believe that we have an enormous responsibility to ensure
the security of our communities, but I think this is a balanced and
forthright legislative initiative to help all.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry
Reform Act, passed by the Senate in April and signed into law by the
President on May 14, 2002, leads the way for full implementation of
participation in services mandatory by January 30, 2003. However, SEVIS
only tracks nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors. Aliens
admitted with visitor visas are not tracked through the system. This
bill for the first time will ensure that part-time commuter students
from Canada and Mexico are also tracked through the student tracking
process, again in response to the new concerns we have after September
11.
I ask my colleagues to support this balanced initiative and support
this legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues in support of making
part-time commuter students who are nationals of either Canada or
Mexico and attend school in the United States eligible for special
student visas. I especially congratulate Mr. Kolbe for moving this
legislation forward.
Thousands of Canadian and Mexican nationals commute to attend schools
part time in the United States. According to the Institute of
International Education, 25,769 Canadian students and 10,679 Mexican
students are enrolled at U.S. Colleges on a full time basis. There are
thousands of additional students that are part-time students. Texas has
a significant portion of students who commute to schools in Texas. For
years now Border points like El Paso and Laredo Texas have made
exceptions for part-time Mexican students who entered on a daily
visitor and travel visas. Schools in Texas such as Texas A&M
International will benefit from this legislation. Texas A&M
International University has approximately 50 to 60 students that would
benefit from this legislation. At the University of Texas Pan American
in Edinburg, Texas, 14 of the 425 international students are part-time
students. According to university officials at both institutions many
more students would attend if they could cross the border easily.
Unfortunately, current law does not establish an appropriate visa for
these part-time commuter students.
Under the Immigration and Naturalization Act, aliens who reside in a
foreign country and are pursuing a full course of study from a
recognized vocational institution or an established college,
university, or other academic institution in the United States are
eligible for student visas. For purposes of granting student visas, the
INS defines ``full course of study'' as 12 credits or more. Part-time
commuter students, those who might be only taking a class or two, are
not currently eligible for student visas.
However, some INS district offices have permitted part-time commuter
students to enter the United States as visitors to pursue their
studies. I am encouraged by the INS recent reversal of a may 2002
decision to eliminate this practice and enforce the full time, 12
credit hour requirement.
Fortunately, the agency recently postponed enforcement of the policy
until August 15, 2002, while administrative and legislative remedies
are considered.
The legislation we are introducing today appropriately addresses the
problem facing part-time commuter students without opening new avenues
for illegal immigration. This bill would amend 18 U.S.C. 1101 to make
certain part-time commuter students eligible for student visas. The
bill would allow nationals of Canada or Mexico who both maintain a
residence and a place of abode in their country or nationality and who
commute to school to enroll part time in schools in the United States.
Part-time commuter student visas are restricted to nationals of Canada
or Mexico. The bill would not make political asylees, residents, or
others who are nationals of third countries but simply live in Canada
or Mexico eligible for the visas.
This legislation is also consistent with the current INS interim rule
in that it ensures that part-time commuter students are tracked through
the Student Exchange Visitor Information System. As we discussed in our
Subcommittee hearing a few weeks ago on SEVIS, this system was set up
to ensure that the Federal Government is aware of changes in a foreign
student's status that could affect their eligibility to remain in the
United States. The Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act,
passed by the Senate in April and signed into law by the President on
May 14, 2002, leads the way for full implementation of SEVIS.
Participation in SEVIS is mandatory by January 30, 2003; however, SEVIS
only tracks nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors. Aliens
admitted with visitor visas are not tracked through the system. This
bill will, for the first time, ensure that part-time commuter students
from Canada and Mexico are tracked through SEVIS.
While I acknowledge new security concerns in the aftermath of
September 11, I feel that we can meet those concerns without
prohibiting all part-time commuter students from attending classes at
schools in the United States. This legislation represents a bipartisan
compromise that will allow us to meet these needs in a reasonable,
thoughtful manner. This legislation represents the best type of
legislation that results when members on opposing sides can put aside
partisan differences and work for viable solutions. I am pleased to
support this measure and I will work to see its passage in the 107th
Congress.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume
to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Kolbe), the principal author of this
bill.
Mr. KOLBE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me the
time, and I want to thank the chairman of the full committee and the
ranking member, the distinguished gentlewoman from Texas, the ranking
member of the Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims, for their
courtesies shown to me and my staff in the preparation of this bill and
the consideration of it in the committee.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4967 will end years of frustration for colleges and
universities, frustration made worse by the terrorist attacks of
September 11.
The Border Commuter Student Act is simple in its purpose. It is to
allow U.S. border colleges to teach Mexican and Canadian citizens who
live near the border. It creates a new nonimmigrant classification for
Mexicans and Canadians who want to commute each day to U.S. college or
school. The study can be full-time or part-time.
The people of Mexico and Canada who live and work in their home
country but who want to attend a night class, such as business English
for Mexicans, in the United States should be allowed to do this. Every
day citizens of Mexico and Canada cross back and forth to shop, to do
business, to visit relatives. They should also be able to further their
education. On that, I think most of us agree.
Current law provides for two student nonimmigration categories. The
F1 category is for academic studies and the M1 category is for
nonacademic or vocational studies. These categories by law require that
a student be enrolled full-time; but here is the loophole, or I should
say the gaping hole, for commuting students.
A person can enter the United States only to study full-time; and if
they enter for business or for pleasure, the law explicitly states that
they cannot be enrolled in a study.
For decades, it has been the policy of the INS that these border
commuter students were required to attend class full-time; however, it
was loosely enforced prior to September 11, 2001. The INS recently
pushed this law to its limit by allowing border commuter students to
enter the United States to study on a reduced course load as long as
they are a ``qualified full-time student.''
I commend the INS for expanding the number of students that can enter
the U.S. as full-time students to include these quasi-full-time
students. Although the INS did what they could
[[Page H7910]]
under the law that limits students entering the country to full-time
status, this simply is not enough.
We need to clarify the law so that there is no misunderstanding, no
room for misinterpretation, and no room for further changes by future
administrations to this policy. We need to give these colleges and
students the confidence that a future INS commissioner is not going to
change policy midstream in someone's studies.
The Border Commuter Student Act creates a new classification for
Mexicans and Canadians to enter the United States. In other words, it
provides additional options for the citizens of our neighboring
countries to enter the U.S. It does not allow foreign children to
attend public elementary or high schools; and it ensures national
security by continuing the requirement that all foreign students be
entered into the student tracking system; and that, Mr. Speaker, is
very important.
It is in the interest of the United States to allow our neighbors to
take courses in English and history and mathematics and philosophy or
business or nursing or any other kind of vocation or profession at our
Nation's colleges and schools along the border. In addition, it is in
the interest of Mexico and Canada to allow their citizens access to an
expanded area of educational opportunities.
I am very proud today that the House of Representatives is doing its
part to help these schools and these students. I believe our neighbors
to the south and the north deserve special treatment and the Border
Commuter Student Act adds another option to enter the United States for
Canadians and Mexicans who live along the border.
The bipartisan bill was voted out of the Committee on the Judiciary
unanimously. It is supported by the administration, by the Mexican
Government, the Canadian Government, the U.S.-Mexico Counties
Coalition, the Arizona-Mexico Commission, the American Association of
State Colleges and Universities, the National Association of State
Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, the Career College Association,
the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, the University
of Phoenix system, University of Texas system, and Texas Tech.
Mr. Speaker, this is, as the gentlewoman said earlier, good
legislation. It is balanced legislation. It corrects a flaw we have had
in our immigration law for some time, and I urge my colleagues to
support this bill.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Let me just conclude by simply saying what we want in this
legislation is to help our commuter students from Canada and Mexico
come in, be trained, and contribute to their communities and societies.
This is a balanced legislative initiative, and I ask my colleagues to
support it.
Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 4967,
the Border Commuter Student Act. I applaud my colleague, Mr. Kolbe, for
his hard work at addressing in issue that is critical along the U.S.-
Mexico and Canada borders.
As you know, the situation on the U.S.-Mexico and Canada borders is
unique in regard to foreign students who reside in their homelands and
who cross at our Ports-of-Entries (POEs) to use American colleges and
universities. Many of these students attend classes on a part-time
basis. In the past, the interpretation of the meaning of part-time
student varied from POE to POE resulting in inconsistent policy.
Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) District Directors used
their discretion in allowing part-time students to cross at many POEs.
Recently, the INS began to enforce laws by stating that ``aliens who
seek to enter the United States regularly but primarily to pursue less
than a full course of study are neither visitors nor students and are
ineligible for student visa or visitor status.'' INS Commissioner
Ziglar further clarified policy by stating that ``the POEs are not to
admit visitors for business or pleasure whose purpose for entering the
United States is to pursue a part-time course of study at a college or
university.''
As we continue with our efforts to secure our homeland, I will be the
first to admit that priority must be placed on improving the ability of
the INS to enforce our laws and deploy technology necessary to secure
our nation's borders. Having worked for many years in the U.S. Border
Patrol, I understand the importance of increasing security at our
nation's POEs and I also understand the need to carefully monitor
student visas.
However, as you can imagine Mr. Speaker, this situation would have
created a great deal of confusion in my district and in many other
districts along the U.S.-Mexico and Canadian borders and would have
penalized law-abiding people who were taking steps to educate and
improve themselves. In fact, there are over 2,000 studends in my
district alone who would have been adversely impacted by the
implementation of this policy. Some of these students included
professionals who work full-time in Mexico border cities and who cross
regularly to attend colleges and universities part-time in pursuit of
graduate degrees. Such individuals include skilled workers in
maquiladoras, educators, and engineers. Many of these individuals
contribute to the improvement and quality of life for sister cities
along our borders.
The Border Commuter Student Act, of which I am an original cosponsor,
creates two new non-immigrant student visa categories for Canadian and
Mexican students who study part-time in the United States but who live
in their home country. This legislation only applies to schools located
within 75 miles of the border. Mr. Speaker, this is good, common-sense
legislation that closes a loophole and allows students from the U.S.-
Mexico and Canada borders to attend classes in the United States on a
part-time basis. I urge my colleagues to support it.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my
time.
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4967.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________
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