BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AJR 22
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Date of Hearing: July 2, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY
Bob Wieckowski, Chair
AJR 22 (Gorell) - As Introduced: May 21, 2013
Proposed Consent
SUBJECT : THE FEDERAL AFGHAN ALLIES PROTECTION ACT OF 2009
KEY ISSUE : SHOULD THE LEGISLATURE URGE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
TO EXPEDITE THE VISA APPLICATION PROCESS FOR AFGHAN ALLIES AND
OFFER MORE VISAS TO OUR AFGHAN ALLIES?
FISCAL EFFECT : As currently in print this measure is keyed
non-fiscal.
SYNOPSIS
In this non-controversial resolution, the Legislature calls upon
Congress and the President to honor the United States'
commitments to our Afghan Allies by expediting actions at the
Department of State to process visa applications from Afghan
allies who have risked their lives assisting American troops
overseas. There is no known opposition to this resolution.
SUMMARY : Seeks to expedite and expand the visa application
process for Afghan nationals who provided potentially lifesaving
support to Americans during the war in Afghanistan.
Specifically, this measure :
1)Makes the following findings:
a) Thousands of Californians served in uniform in the War
in Afghanistan;
b) Countless local Afghan nationals provided trusted and
life-saving support to American troops and our allies
including over 8,000 serving as interpreters;
c) As recently pointed out in the New York Times, local
nationals who supported the American forces are being
targeted by the Taliban and other insurgent groups;
d) The United Nations reports a significant increase in
targeted killings of civilians by nongovernmental elements
from 2011 to 2012;
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e) The Afghan Allies Federal Protection Act of 2009
authorizes issuance of up to 1,500 special immigrant visas
(SIV) annually through 2013 to Afghan nationals who find
their lives in danger as a result of assisting U.S. forces;
f) Only about 1,000 of those SIVs have been issued while
there is a backlog of over 5,000 applicants;
g) SIV programs for Iraqi nationals who assist U.S. forces
are more generous, allowing for more visas for more allies
and more of their family members; and
h) The Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 is an
opportunity to save the lives of Afghans who have saved the
lives of Americans.
2)Resolves by the Assembly and Senate that the Legislature calls
upon Congress and the President to expedite actions in the
Department of State to process the visa applications under the
Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009.
3)Calls upon the Chief Clerk to transmit copies of this
resolution to the President, the Vice President, the Speaker
of the House, the House Leader, the Majority and Minority
Leaders in the U.S. Senate as well as Members of Congress
representing California.
EXISTING LAW provides under The Afghan Allies Protection Act of
2009, up to 1500 Afghan nationals who have provided faithful and
valuable service to the U.S. Government to receive special
immigrant visas (SIVs) annually through fiscal year (FY) 2013.
(8 USCA Section 1101.)
COMMENTS : According to the author, the U.S. Government needs to
follow through on its commitment to protect Afghans who have
worked for the U.S. government in Afghanistan. The Afghan
Allies Protection Act of 2009 was put in place to honor Afghans
who have supported the United States in their efforts overseas.
The U.S. Government has reportedly not yet processed thousands
of visa applications submitted by Afghans who qualify for the
program.
Background : The Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 allows for
Afghan Nationals who support the U.S. efforts in Afghanistan to
apply for 7,500 allotted visas. Since legislation was enacted
in 2009, 5,700 applications reportedly have been submitted to
the Department of State, and only 32 have reportedly been
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approved. According to the State Department, until 2011, the
U.S. Embassy in Kabul did not process a single visa under the
Afghans Allies Protection program. There is thus a reported
backlog of over 5,000 applicants for such visas.
The author's office notes that our Afghan allies and their
families continue to face danger as a result of their support of
U.S. actions in Afghanistan and they deserve an expedited visa
process to honor the risks that they have taken on behalf of our
troops overseas. Without the Special Immigration Visas
authorized by the Afghan Allies Federal Protection Act, foreign
nationals may only appeal to the general asylum process. That
process, however, is lengthy and very difficult to meet.
According to a report in Forbes, as of 2013 "some 80
interpreters have died in battle in Afghanistan since 2007. To
return home would be a death sentence for others." ("Endangered
Wartime Interpreters: The U.S. Should Protect Those Who Protect
Us," Forbes Magazine, February 25, 2013.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dougbandow/2013/02/25/endangered-wart
ime-interpreters-the-u-s-should-protect-those-who-protect-us/ )
The same article notes that the U.S. has been much more
responsive to the needs of Iraqi allies, but that the same
diligence has not been extended to Afghan allies.
A June 2013 article in the Ventura County Star further explains
the danger our allies face:
In Afghanistan, the Taliban have promised to kill
Afghanis who worked for the Americans and their
families. In Iraq, similar threats were made by radical
Islamic insurgents. They were not idle threats. The
terrorists proved quite diligent in carrying out those
threats. Thus, the U.S. forces made a bargain, both
explicit and implicit: Work for us and we will see that
you and your families get visas for safe haven in
America. In neither country have we come even close to
holding up our half of the bargain, thanks to red tape
and a U.S. bureaucracy that works only fitfully. Visas
in Iraq were handed out only grudgingly and sparingly.
Now the same thing is happening in Afghanistan.
Apparently, we learned nothing in Iraq. ("A debt of
honor to U.S. forces' Afghan helpers," Staff Reports,
Ventura County Star. Wednesday, June 19, 2013.)
Previous Policies on Visas for Allies: The U.S. has a
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longstanding policy of granting special immigrant status to
those who assist military operations overseas. While the close
relationship between Korea and the U.S. (including heavy
military presence) after the Korean War prevented foreign
nationals allied with the United States from widespread threats,
foreign nationals did find themselves under threat after U.S.
withdrawal from Vietnam. There, Cambodian and South Vietnamese
allies were targeted for revenge after the fall of Saigon in
April of 1975. In response, President Gerald Ford championed
the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act, passed on
May 23, 1975. Under that act, approximately 130,000 refugees
from South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia were reportedly allowed to
enter the United States under a special status and were eligible
for relocation and other financial assistance. Over 800,000
non-military refugees from the area would later settle in the
U.S.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Drew Liebert and Kelly Bradfield / JUD.
/ (916) 319-2334