To provide discretionary authority to an immigration judge to determine that an alien parent of a United States citizen child should not be ordered removed, deported, or excluded from the United States.

Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act, in the case of an alien subject to removal, deportation, or exclusion and who is the parent of a U.S. citizen child, to authorize an immigration judge to decline to order such removal if the judge determines such action to be against the child's best interests.

States that such discretion shall not apply to an alien when the judge determines that the alien: (1) is excludable or deportable on security grounds, or (2) has engaged in sex trafficking or severe forms of trafficking in persons.

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 406 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 406

To provide discretionary authority to an immigration judge to determine 
  that an alien parent of a United States citizen child should not be 
     ordered removed, deported, or excluded from the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 23, 2013

 Mr. Serrano introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide discretionary authority to an immigration judge to determine 
  that an alien parent of a United States citizen child should not be 
     ordered removed, deported, or excluded from the United States.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. DISCRETIONARY AUTHORITY WITH RESPECT TO REMOVAL, 
              DEPORTATION, OR EXCLUSION OF PARENTS OF CITIZEN CHILDREN.

    Section 240(c)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1229a(c)(4)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(D) Discretion of judge in case of citizen 
                child.--In the case of an alien subject to removal, 
                deportation, or exclusion who is the parent of a child 
                who is a citizen of the United States, the immigration 
                judge may exercise discretion to decline to order the 
                alien removed, deported or excluded from the United 
                States if the judge determines that such removal, 
                deportation, or exclusion is clearly against the best 
                interests of the child, except that this subparagraph 
                shall not apply to any alien who the judge determines--
                            ``(i) is described in section 212(a)(3) or 
                        237(a)(4); or
                            ``(ii) has engaged in conduct described in 
                        paragraph (8) or (9) of section 103 of the 
                        Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 
                        U.S.C. 7102).''.
                                 <all>