Bill Summary
The "Lebanon TPS Act of 2023" is a bill that has been introduced to the Senate and House of Representatives in the United States. It seeks to designate Lebanon under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow nationals of Lebanon to be eligible for temporary protected status (TPS). This designation is due to the multiple crises that Lebanon has been facing, including a devastating explosion, the COVID-19 pandemic, economic collapse, political turmoil, and public health crises. The bill cites various statistics and reports to highlight the dire situation in Lebanon and the need for international support. It also explains that the designation for TPS would be for a period of 18 months and would make Lebanese nationals eligible for temporary protected status if they meet certain requirements. This would allow them to remain in the United States and work legally. The bill also addresses consent for travel and budgetary implications.
Possible Impacts
1. The legislation would allow nationals of Lebanon who are currently in the United States to apply for temporary protected status, providing them with a legal status and protection from deportation. This could greatly benefit individuals who may have been living in the U.S. without legal status and facing the risk of deportation.
2. The legislation would provide economic relief to eligible individuals by allowing them to work legally in the U.S. and contribute to the economy. This could improve their financial stability and alleviate some of the financial strain caused by the economic crisis in Lebanon.
3. The legislation could potentially reunite families who have been separated due to the crisis in Lebanon. Eligible individuals may be able to sponsor their family members for TPS, allowing them to join them in the U.S. and provide them with a safe and stable environment.
[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2913 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2913
To designate Lebanon under section 244 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act to permit nationals of Lebanon to be eligible for
temporary protected status under such section, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 26, 2023
Ms. Tlaib (for herself and Mrs. Dingell) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition
to the Committee on the Budget, for a period to be subsequently
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To designate Lebanon under section 244 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act to permit nationals of Lebanon to be eligible for
temporary protected status under such section, 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 ``Lebanon TPS Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) On August 4, 2020, one of the most powerful explosions
ever to impact an urban population ripped through the Lebanese
capital of Beirut. The blast--linked to 2,750 metric tons of
ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse--killed at least 220
people, wounded approximately 7,000, left an estimated 300,000
people homeless, and caused approximately $15,000,000,000 in
property damage.
(2) The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on
Lebanon, which has recorded over 1,235,000 cases and 10,800
deaths since the pandemic began. Lebanon's public health
system, already weakened by the Beirut disaster and political
upheaval, has struggled to cope in the face of the pandemic.
(3) Lebanon lacked a fully formed government for much of
the COVID-19 pandemic and the political establishment remains
highly polarized and divided. The political crisis has become
so severe that on April 18, 2023 Lebanon's parliament voted to
extend the terms of municipal councils and other local
officials to avoid further paralysis. The current government is
acting in a caretaker capacity and the presidency has been
empty since President Aoun's term expired in October 2022.
(4) Lebanon has been experiencing one of the worst economic
crises in its history at the same time as the COVID-19
pandemic, Beirut Port explosion, and political crisis.
(5) According to the United Nations, over 3,500,000
Lebanese people are estimated to live in poverty and around
three-quarters are now income vulnerable. Before the value of
the Lebanese pound started spiraling in late 2019, the
country's monthly minimum wage was 675,000 pounds--about $450--
but today it is worth less than $7.
(6) Per the United Nations, 36 percent of the Lebanese
population (1,380,000 people) is experiencing extreme poverty.
(7) Since October 2019, the Lebanese pound has lost more
than 95 percent of its value, placing Lebanon amongst the top 5
economic crises globally according to the World Bank.
(8) Food prices have skyrocketed throughout the crisis,
increasing 400 percent in 2020 alone.
(9) In July 2021, the United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF) warned that Lebanon's water system is on the verge of
collapse, with more than 70 percent of the country facing
critical water shortages. In January 2019, 1,000 Lebanese
pounds bought 4 liters of water. By August 2021, it only bought
half a liter.
(10) In October 2022, Lebanon reported its first cholera
cases in 30 years, with 5,819 suspected and confirmed cases and
23 deaths reported by December 31, 2022.
(11) Dire fuel shortages plague Lebanon, leading the
American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut's top
hospital and one of the leading medical centers in the region,
to issue a warning in August 2021 that hundreds of patients
would die if they failed to secure enough fuel to keep their
generators running.
(12) The United Nations has reported that, as of December
2022, the mass exodus of public health workers from Lebanon has
continued with devastating effect, with approximately 40
percent of doctors, 15 percent of specialized neonatal
intensive care unit nurses, and 30 percent of midwives leaving
the country over the course of the crisis. This has resulted in
critical gaps in the quality, availability, and accessibility
of health care for the population.
(13) The combined crises have strained many of Lebanon's
public institutions to the breaking point, including the
Lebanese Army, whose budget and soldiers' salaries have been
devastated by the devaluation of the Lebanese pound.
(14) On October 14, 2021, gunmen fired on a crowd of
protestors gathered near the Beirut Justice Palace sparking
heavy armed clashes in nearby neighborhoods. The ensuing
fighting killed at least 7 individuals and wounded more than 30
others.
(15) Numerous residents of Beirut living in the vicinity of
the clashes have been quoted by domestic and international
media comparing the October 14th clashes and ongoing tensions
to the devastating 1975-1990 Lebanese civil war, reflecting
well-founded fears of the potential for a return to significant
sectarian violence.
(16) The United States has long stood with the Lebanese
people in times of need and standing with them now is both
morally right and in line with our national interests.
(17) In the aftermath of the Beirut Port explosion,
President Biden's pledge of an additional $98,000,000 in aid to
Lebanon on the first anniversary of the disaster was a good
first step in supporting the Lebanese people. Designating
Lebanon for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is the logical
next step given the circumstances.
(18) Lebanon needs significant continued international
support to prevent the worsening of its economic, social,
political, and public health crises and to rebuild from this
period of extraordinary difficulty for the Lebanese people.
(19) A report from FWD.us published in February 2023
estimated that 12,000 individuals in the United States would be
eligible for TPS if Lebanon was designated, of which 64 percent
are members of the workforce with an annual economic
contribution of approximately $420,000,000.
(20) A country is designated for TPS when it is determined
by the United States Government that it is unsafe for its
citizens to return to due to ``ongoing armed conflict'',
``environmental disaster'', or ``extraordinary and temporary
conditions in the foreign state that prevent aliens who are
nationals of the state from returning to the state in safety''.
(21) As of April 2023, the Department of State's Lebanon
Travel Advisory specifically directs individuals to
``Reconsider travel to Lebanon due to crime, terrorism, armed
conflict, civil unrest, kidnapping'', and goes on to
specifically advise that individuals do not travel to ``the
border with Syria due to terrorism and armed conflict'', ``the
border with Israel due to the potential for armed conflict'',
and ``refugee settlements due to the potential for armed
clashes''.
(22) The beginning of April 2023 witnessed the heaviest and
most significant cross border confrontation on the Israeli/
Lebanese border since the 2006 war, raising fears of a broader
armed confrontation.
(23) The combined crises facing Lebanon amount to
extraordinary and temporary conditions that prevent Lebanese
nationals from safely returning to Lebanon. Any returned
individual would have to contend without access to clean water,
adequate health care, and affordable basic necessities--all in
the face of the very real threat of significant political
violence and armed conflict. After years of uncertainty, these
individuals deserve stability and temporary relief in the
United States.
SEC. 3. DESIGNATION FOR PURPOSES OF GRANTING TEMPORARY PROTECTED
STATUS.
(a) Designation.--
(1) In general.--For purposes of section 244 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a), Lebanon shall
be treated as if it had been designated under subsection
(b)(1)(A) of that section, subject to the provisions of this
section.
(2) Period of designation.--The initial period of the
designation referred to in paragraph (1) shall be for the 18-
month period beginning on the date of the enactment of this
Act.
(b) Aliens Eligible.--As a result of the designation made under
subsection (a), an alien who is a national of Lebanon is deemed to
satisfy the requirements under paragraph (1) of section 244(c) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a(c)), subject to
paragraph (3) of such section, if the alien--
(1) has been continuously physically present in the United
States since the date of the enactment of this Act;
(2) is admissible as an immigrant, except as otherwise
provided in paragraph (2)(A) of such section, and is not
ineligible for temporary protected status under paragraph
(2)(B) of such section; and
(3) registers for temporary protected status in a manner
established by the Secretary of Homeland Security.
(c) Consent To Travel Abroad.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
give prior consent to travel abroad, in accordance with section
244(f)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1254a(f)(3)), to an alien who is granted temporary protected
status pursuant to the designation made under subsection (a) if
the alien establishes to the satisfaction of the Secretary of
Homeland Security that emergency and extenuating circumstances
beyond the control of the alien require the alien to depart for
a brief, temporary trip abroad.
(2) Treatment upon return.--An alien returning to the
United States in accordance with an authorization described in
paragraph (1) shall be treated as any other returning alien
provided temporary protected status under section 244 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a).
SEC. 4. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.
The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying
with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by
reference to the latest statement titled ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO
Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional
Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that
such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.
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