,i #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #fjcd ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,february #bh1 #bjbj,ms4 ,mc,collum 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,phillips1 ,mr4 ,kind1 ,mr4 ,costa1 ,ms4 ,moore1 ,mr4 ,lowenthal1 ,ms4 ,scanlon1 ,mr4 ,levin of ,michigan1 ,ms4 ,jackson ,lee1 ,mr4 ,pocan1 and ,ms4 ,lofgren7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to defer the removal of individuals to the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic for a #gb-month period1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,hmong and ,lao ,refugee ,deportation ,prohibition ,act of #bjbj4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,since #aige1 nearly #bjj1jjj refugees from the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic 7,lao ,p4,d4,r71 including persons of ,hmong1 ,lao1 ,khmu1 and ,mien or ,yao descent1 have resettled in the ,u4,s4 as permanent residents or become citizens4 7#b7 ,beginning in the #aiejs in ,laos1 ,hmong soldiers fought the ,communist ,pathet ,lao movement1 and many ,hmong and ,lao later assisted ,u4,s4 forces during the ,vietnam ,war4 7#c7 ,the ,house ,judiciary ,committee reported in #bjjj1 ,at great personal peril and loss of life1 the ,hmong fought with ,american forces and performed critical roles in dangerous missions44 7#d7 ,a former ,,cia officer stated to the ,subcommittee on ,immigration and ,claims that1 throughout the war1 ,,cia's paramilitary forces collected intelligence1 used it in combat operations to tie down some #ej1jjj ,north ,vietnamese forces in ,laos1 rescued downed ,american pilots and protected sensitive ,american installations at remote mountain tops '''4 7#e7 ,public ,law #ajf-bjg1 the ,hmong ,veterans ,naturalization ,act of #bjjj1 provided thousands of ,hmong refugees resettled to the ,u4,s4 who served with a special guerrilla unit1 or irregular forces1 operating from a base in ,laos in support of the ,united ,states military at any time during the period beginning ,february #bh1 #aifa1 and ending ,september #ah1 #aigh1 with exemptions from certain provisions of the ,immigration and ,naturalization ,act4 7#f7 ,in #bjjj1 it was reported by the ,house ,judiciary ,committee in ,report #ajf-efc that many ,hmong refugees have found it difficult to naturalize because of a difficulty learning ,english4 ,this is due to the facts that they came from a tribal society without a written language until recent decades and that many ,hmong were recruited to be guerrillas at the age of #ab-ad and hence did not attend school44 7#g7 ,scholars argue that the ,u4,s4 insufficiently resettled refugees from ,laos leaving many ill-prepared for immediate work1 unacculturated1 and suffering psychosocial trauma resulting in cycles of poverty4 ,in #bjaf1 #cg4h percent of ,hmong and #ah4e percent of ,lao in the ,u4,s4 were living in poverty4 7#h7 ,there are currently over #d1gjj long-time ,u4,s4 residents of ,hmong1 ,lao1 ,khmu1 and ,mien or ,yao descent with ,final ,orders for ,removal who were born in the ,lao ,p4,d4,r41 fled persecution in ,laos1 were resettled in the ,u4,s4 as refugees1 and now face deportation to ,laos due to past criminal convictions4 7#i7 ,individuals with ,final ,orders for ,removal who could be deported to the ,lao ,p4,d4,r4 often do not speak the ,lao language1 lack familial connections1 and are at risk of being a target for human rights abuses as a result of historic support for ,u4,s4 anti-communist policies4 7#aj7 ,a #bjah ,department of ,state ,laos ,human ,rights ,report acknowledges the long record of human rights abuses in the ,lao ,p4,d4,r4 ,the report states1 ,the government neither prosecuted nor punished officials who committed abuses1 and police and security forces committed human rights abuses with impunity44 7#aa7 ,the ,lao ,p4,d4,r4 is a communist state that does not currently have an official deportation agreement with the ,u4,s4 and there is no extradition treaty between ,laos and the ,u4,s4 7#ab7 ,many of the over #d1gjj persons with ,final ,orders of ,removal who are at risk of deportation to the ,lao ,p4,d4,r4 have not been able to seek adequate immigration relief based on the complexity of the required legal filings and the backlogs in immigration courts4 ,it can take several years for an individual to seek to reopen their immigration case and have their eligibility for immigration relief decided on the merits4 #c4 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of the ,congress that-- 7#a7 individuals of ,hmong1 ,lao1 ,khmu1 and ,mien or ,yao descent who arrived in the ,u4,s4 as refugees fleeing persecution in the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic shall not be deported to ,laos for a period of #gb months2 and 7#b7 the ,trump administration's efforts to deport more than #d1gjj individuals of ,hmong1 ,lao1 ,khmu1 and ,mien or ,yao descent residing in the ,u4,s4 to the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic puts these individuals at grave risk1 is unnecessary to ensure public safety1 and cruelly inflicts trauma and harm on ,hmong-,american and ,lao-,american families and communities that are making significant contributions to the strength and success of the ,u4,s4 #d4 ,deferral of removal to the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic for individuals with removal orders 7a7 ,deferral of removal ,an alien may not be removed for the #gb-month period beginning on the date of enactment of this ,act if the alien-- 7#a7 is an individual born in the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic or colonial ,french administration of the present-day ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic2 7#b7 has been ordered removed to ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic at any time before the date of enactment of this ,act2 and 7#c7 resided in the ,united ,states on or before ,january #a1 #bjaa4 7b7 ,employment authorization ,upon application to the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security1 an alien whose removal is deferred pursuant to this ,act-- 7#a7 shall be authorized to engage in employment during the #gb-month period described in subsection 7a72 and 7#b7 shall be issued an employment authorization document that remains valid for #bd months subject to renewal4 7c7 ,implementation ,the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security shall take the necessary steps to implement-- 7#a7 the deferral of removal authorized under this section2 and 7#b7 the authorization of employment described in subsection 7b74 #e4 ,notice for certain aliens with removal orders to the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #fj days after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security shall provide notice of the provisions of this ,act to each alien who-- 7#a7 is an individual born in the ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic or colonial ,french administration of the present-day ,lao ,people's ,democratic ,republic2 and 7#b7 has a final order of removal4 7b7 ,contents of notice ,the notice required under subsection 7a7 shall include clear instructions explaining the requirements for an alien to file a motion to reopen a proceeding under section #bdj of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #abbi;a7 based on changed country conditions4 #f4 ,prohibition on detention ,the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security may not detain an alien whose removal is deferred pursuant to this ,act on the basis of the alien's immigration status in the ,united ,states or as a result of a motion filed by the alien to reopen a proceeding under section #bdj of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #abbi;a74 #g4 ,judicial review 7a7 ,review ,notwithstanding any other provision of law1 an individual or entity who has been harmed by a violation of this ,act may file an action in an appropriate district court of the ,united ,states to seek declaratory or injunctive relief4 7b7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in this ,act may be construed to preclude an action filed pursuant to subsection 7a7 from proceeding as a class action 7as such term is defined in section #agaa of title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code74