[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2392 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2392
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow the Secretary of
State to make available to the public certain records pertaining to the
refusal of a visa or permit based on an alien's involvement in
corruption, transnational repression, or human rights abuse, and for
other purposes.
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IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 20, 2021
Mr. Cardin (for himself and Mr. Rubio) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
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A BILL
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow the Secretary of
State to make available to the public certain records pertaining to the
refusal of a visa or permit based on an alien's involvement in
corruption, transnational repression, or human rights abuse, 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 ``Revealing and Explaining Visa
Exclusions for Accountability and Legitimacy Act'' or the ``REVEAL
Act''.
SEC. 2. LIMITING CONFIDENTIALITY OF RECORDS.
(a) In General.--Section 222(f) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1202(f)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking the period at the end and
inserting a semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking the period at the end
and inserting the following: ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(3) the Secretary of State may make available to the
public the identity of an individual alien determined to be
inadmissible the United States pursuant to subparagraph (C) of
section 212(a)(3), and the justification for the determination
to refuse a visa or permit.''.
(b) Application.--This Act and the amendments made by this Act
shall apply with respect to any determination under section
212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1182(a)(3)(C)) made before, on, or after the date of enactment of this
Act.
(c) Consideration of Certain Information in Revealing Bans.--In
determining whether to waive confidentiality under section 222(f)(3) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act, as added by subsection (a), the
Secretary of State shall consider--
(1) information provided by the chairperson and ranking
member of any of the appropriate congressional committees; and
(2) credible information obtained by other countries and
nongovernmental organizations that monitor corruption,
transnational repression, and human rights abuse.
SEC. 3. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the President shall
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that
includes, for the previous year, a list of each individual that the
Secretary of State determined was ineligible for an immigrant or
nonimmigrant visa pursuant to subparagraph (C) of section 212(a)(3) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)), and the
justification for the determination of ineligibility.
(b) Form of Report.--
(1) In general.--Each report required by subsection (a)
shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a
classified annex.
(2) Exception.--The name of an alien to be included in the
list required by subsection (a)(1) may be submitted in the
classified annex authorized by paragraph (1) only if the
President--
(A) determines that it is vital for the national
security interests of the United States to do so;
(B) uses the annex in a manner consistent with
congressional intent and the purposes of this Act; and
(C) not later than 15 days before submitting the
name in a classified annex, provides to the appropriate
congressional committees notice of, and a justification
for, including the name in the classified annex.
(c) Public Availability.--
(1) In general.--The unclassified portion of the report
required by subsection (a) shall be made available to the
public, including through publication in the Federal Register.
(2) Nonapplicability of confidentiality requirement with
respect to visa records.--The President shall publish the list
required by subsection (a)(1) without regard to the
requirements of section 222(f) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1202(f)) with respect to
confidentiality of records pertaining to the issuance or
refusal of visas or permits to enter the United States.
(d) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this section,
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(1) the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on
Foreign Relations of the Senate; and
(2) the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on
Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
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