Vargas bill package aims to aid deported veterans
Hoping to focus attention on the factors that lead to military veterans who have been deported from the U.S., Congressman Juan Vargas has introduced three bills as part of his Deported Veterans Bill Package to provide adequate resources and solutions to them.
The three bills that make up his package include The Immigrant Veterans Eligibility Tracking System (I-VETS) Act of 2017, Healthcare Opportunities for Patriots in Exile (HOPE) Act of 2017 and Naturalization at Training Sites (NATS) Act of 2017.
The main goal of the legislative package is to prevent veterans from being deported and allow those who have already been deported the opportunity to access needed medical services.
I-Vets Act directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to identify non-citizens who have served in the military when applying for immigration benefits or when placed in immigration enforcement proceedings to allow DHS to fast-track the naturalization applications of those veterans.
“A number of our nation’s service members are immigrants who answered the call to serve and protect our nation and our freedom,” Vargas said in a statement. “These bills will ensure that immigrant service members are well informed on their path to naturalization and allow veterans who have been deported to access the health care services they need.”
The goal of the NATS Act is to ensure that non-citizen members of the armed forces are thoroughly informed of the naturalization option at their disposal.
The main objective of the legislation is to direct each branch of the Armed Forces to establish a naturalization office at their initial training sites.
Also to instruct the Secretary of Defense to identify and contact non-citizen service members and inform them of their options and require the Department of Defense to retain trained staff at the established naturalization offices.
The third and final bill introduced by Vargas is the Hope Act of 2017 which would allow deported veterans the opportunity to temporarily parole back into the United States to seek care from a VA facility and give the Secretary of Homeland Security the discretion to temporarily parole deported veterans into the U.S. on a case by case basis to seek health care then return home.
“All U.S. military veterans, regardless of their immigration status, should be able to access the VA benefits they have rightfully earned by serving our country,” Vargas said. “These brave men and women were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for our country, so it’s time for us to make sure that all of our veterans, including those that have been deported, are taken care of.”
In addition to the introduction of the bills, Vargas will also lead a group of seven legislators who are members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus who will visit the Deported Veterans Support House in Tijuana to get a chance to interact with some of the former armed forces veterans who have been removed from the country.
The members of Congress who will join Vargas in the tour includes Lou Correa, Nanette Diaz Barragan, Raul Grijalva, Joaquin Castro, Vicente Gonzalez and Michelle Lujan Grisham.
It is estimated that there are currently more than 10,000 non-citizens serving in the U.S. military and more than 11,000 more under reserve status. According to a 2016 report by the American Civil Liberties Union found that more than 230 veterans have deported from the U.S.
Castro told NBC Latino when announcing the tour that he thinks the deported veterans should have the opportunity to become citizens.
“Many, if not most, were legal permanent residents, who were eligible to become citizens and perhaps never applied,” he told NBC Latino. “They stood up for their country and put their lives on the line.”