,i #aagth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hibb ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,september #bj1 #bjbb,mr4 ,lowenthal 7for himself1 ,ms4 ,lofgren1 ,ms4 ,jayapal1 ,ms4 ,chu1 ,ms4 ,pressley1 ,mr4 ,evans1 ,ms4 ,mc,collum1 ,ms4 ,norton1 ,mr4 ,mc,govern1 ,ms4 ,tlaib1 ,ms4 ,meng1 ,mr4 ,torres of ,new ,york1 ,ms4 ,schakowsky1 ,ms4 ,ocasio-,cortez1 ,mr4 ,smith of ,washington1 ,mrs4 ,napolitano1 ,ms4 ,omar1 ,mr4 ,vargas1 and ,ms4 ,lee of ,california7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to halt removal of certain nationals of ,vietnam1 ,cambodia1 and ,laos1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,southeast ,asian ,deportation ,relief ,act of #bjbb4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds as follows3 7#a7 ,millions of ,southeast ,asian ,americans live in the ,united ,states1 including #b1ahb1gce ,vietnamese ,americans1 #cch1fcg ,cambodian ,americans1 #bed1cjd ,laotian ,americans1 and #cbf1hdc ,hmong ,americans1 according to the #bjai ,american ,community ,survey4 ,many of these communities arrived as refugees beginning over #dj years ago from ,vietnam1 ,cambodia1 and ,laos1 in the aftermath of the wars in ,southeast ,asia 7more commonly known as the ,vietnam ,war74 7#b7 ,the ,united ,states intervened in ,cambodia1 ,laos1 and ,vietnam between #aied and #aige1 to prevent the spread of communism in ,southeast ,asia through direct military interventions and covert and clandestine operations4 7#c7 ,south ,vietnam allied with the ,united ,states in opposition to the expansion of ,north ,vietnam until the ,fall of ,saigon on ,april #cj1 #aige4 ,as a result of this service1 many ,vietnamese ,americans to this day still suffer lasting trauma from the war1 including post-traumatic stress disorder and exposure to ,agent ,orange4 ,the ,central ,intelligence ,agency 7,,cia7 and various agencies enlisted over #cj1jjj soldiers from ,hmong1 ,lao1 and ,laotian ethnic groups in ,laos as allies to aid ,united ,states forces in ,southeast ,asia1 waging a #ac-year covert operation called the ,secret ,war against the ,pathet ,lao1 ,viet ,cong1 and ,northern ,vietnamese ,army4 7#d7 ,the ,united ,states heavily bombed ,laos1 making it the most heavily bombed country in the world1 with over #ehj1jjj bombing missions between #aifd and #aigc4 ,today1 an estimated #hj1jjj1jjj bombs remain unexploded1 with #bj1jjj people who have been injured or killed since the bombings stopped4 7#e7 ,between #aifi to #aigc1 the ,united ,states dropped #edj1jjj tons of bombs into ,cambodia against ,viet ,cong forces1 destabilizing the country's already fragile government4 ,this mass bombing of ,cambodia's countryside helping to fuel the rise of the ,khmer ,rouge1 which subsequently carried out the destruction of ,cambodian society and the genocide of an estimated #b1jjj1jjj ,cambodians4 7#f7 ,over #c1jjj1jjj individuals were displaced by war1 conflict1 and genocide from ,vietnam1 ,cambodia1 and ,laos4 ,between #aige to #bjjh1 the ,united ,states ,government resettled over #a1bjj1jjj ,southeast ,asian refugees in this country1 as part of the largest refugee resettlement effort in the history of the ,united ,states4 ,southeast ,asian refugees included survivors of the war in ,vietnam and ,laos1 the genocide in ,cambodia1 ,hmong soldiers and their families who received refugee status in exchange for their service in the ,secret ,war1 and other ethnic minority groups persecuted in the aftermath of the war4 7#g7 ,many ,southeast ,asian refugees face significant physical and mental health issues1 such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression1 stemming from their experiences escaping war1 genocide1 torture1 and mass starvation4 ,additionally1 many ,southeast ,asian refugees were resettled in communities that were heavily disinvested and lacked long-term resettlement support1 causing many ,southeast ,asians also suffer from systemic poverty1 discrimination1 and linguistic barriers4 7#h7 ,immigrant communities face significant challenges assimilating as a result of the trauma of war4 ,a #bjah study published by ,rashmi ,gangamma and ,daran ,shipman in the ,journal of ,marital and ,family ,therapy noted that the traumatic nature of 7immigrant's7 forced displacement flight1 and resettlement can increase vulnerability to mental distress4 ,first generation immigrants are especially vulnerable to gang violence within communities in which their parents cannot guide them with cultural or political familiarity4 7#i7 ,key policies during the #aiijs including the period's ,war on ,drugs1 passage of the ,violent ,crime ,control and ,law ,enforcement ,act1 expansion of the carceral system1 and over-policing of low-income communities of color entangled a significant number of ,southeast ,asian ,americans1 especially ,southeast ,asian youth1 within the criminal justice system4 ,during this period1 ,southeast ,asian youth were incarcerated at twice the rate of ,white youth for similar offenses4 7#aj7 ,additional immigration policies during the #aiijs reinforced this emerging prison to deportation pipeline4 ,the ,illegal ,immigration ,reform and ,immigrant ,responsibility ,act of #aiif 7,,iirira7 and the ,antiterrorism and ,effective ,death ,penalty ,act 7,,aedpa7 expanded the category of crimes that could lead to deportation and limited due process protections for noncitizens4 ,,iirira also applied these changes retroactively without proper consideration of an individual's lived circumstances4 7#aa7 ,approximately #ae1jjj long-term residents of ,southeast ,asian descent1 many of whom initially arrived as child refugees1 live in the ,united ,states with a final order of removal4 ,these individuals often do not speak the native language of that country1 lack familial connections there1 and are at risk of being targeted for human rights abuses as a result of historic support for ,united ,states anti-communist policies4 7#ab7 ,the ,united ,states accepted thousands of ,vietnamese refugees through the ,orderly ,departure ,program1 ,humanitarian ,resettlement program1 and ,mc,cain ,amendment through #bjji1 including survivors of re-education centers1 former employees of the ,united ,states ,government and ,united ,states companies or organizations1 and immediate family members4 7#ac7 ,in #bjjb1 the ,united ,states and ,cambodia signed a bilateral repatriation agreement1 hereafter known as the #bjjb ,u4,s4-,cambodia ,repatriation ,agreement4 ,deportations of ,cambodian ,americans to ,cambodia increased by #cff percent the following year4 ,over #a1jjj ,cambodian ,americans have been deported to ,cambodia since then4 7#ad7 ,in #bjjh1 the ,united ,states and ,vietnam signed a bilateral repatriation agreement1 hereafter known as the #bjjh ,u4,s4-,vietnam ,memorandum of ,understanding 7,,mou74 ,according to section #b1 article #b of the #bjjh ,vietnam-,u4,s4 ,,mou1 ,vietnamese citizens are not subject to return to ,vietnam under this ,agreement if they arrived in the ,united ,states before ,july #ab1 #aiie1 the date on which diplomatic relations were re-established between the ,u4,s4 ,government and the ,vietnamese ,government4 ,president ,george ,w4 ,bush and ,president ,barack ,obama both recognized the #bjjh ,united ,states-,vietnam ,,mou's removal protections for pre-#aiie refugees4 7#ae7 ,in #bjbj1 ,president ,trump's administration entered into a new memorandum of understanding with ,vietnam1 expanding the categories of immigrants it could deport to include pre-#ie ,vietnamese refugees who were previously protected from removal by the #bjjh ,,mou4 #c4 ,limitation on the detention and removal of nationals of ,vietnam1 ,cambodia1 and ,laos 7a7 ,limitation on detention and removal ,an alien who is subject to a final order or removal may not be detained or removed from the ,united ,states on or after the date of enactment of this ,act if the alien-- 7#a7 is a national of ,vietnam1 ,cambodia1 or ,laos2 7#b7 entered the ,united ,states on or before ,january #a1 #bjjh1 and has continuously resided in the ,united ,states since such entry2 and 7#c7 is subject to a final order of removal4 7b7 ,employment authorization ,the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security shall authorize an alien described in subsection 7a7 to permanently engage in employment in the ,united ,states and provide such alien with an employment authorized endorsement or other appropriate work permit1 which shall be valid for a period of #e years1 and may be renewed any number of times4 7c7 ,limitation on periodic identification ,upon application to the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security1 an alien described in subsection 7a7 who is subject to an order of supervision under section #bda7;a77#c7 of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #abca7;a77#c77 shall not be required to appear in-person before an immigration officer for periodic identification pursuant to such order of supervision4 ,the ,secretary shall1 in lieu of such periodic identification1 require such an alien to appear virtually before an immigration officer not more frequently than once every #e years4 #d4 ,notice for certain ,nationals of ,vietnam1 ,cambodia1 and ,laos with removal orders 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 described in section #c7;a74 7b7 ,contents of notice ,the notice described in subsection 7a7 shall include information explaining the requirements and instructions for filing a motion to reopen removal proceedings under section #bdj7;c77#g7 of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #abbi;a7c77#g774 #e4 ,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