A new house bill aims to help deported veterans re-enter the United States as lawful permanent residents.
The Veteran Visa and Protection Act, introduced July 14, by Rep. Raul Grijalva of Arizona, would give noncitizen veterans who have committed petty crimes the chance to stay in or return to the country. Rep. Grijalva said this would work on a case-by-case basis.
“It’s particular to veterans who served that were honorably discharged and paid their price to society in terms of incarceration,” he said.
These veterans would receive a visa, meaning they could begin again their path to U.S. citizenship, which typically takes lawful permanent residents several years to obtain.
Rep. Grijalva said he doesn’t know exactly how many people this act would affect because Homeland Security doesn’t keep a record of veteran status.
“Problem is, since the question was never asked there was no documentation as to whether or not that person was a veteran,” Rep. Grijalva said. “And we are saying that question needs to be asked.”
He added that the deported veterans miss out on the benefits they received by serving in the armed forces.
“More importantly, they’ve been rooted and taken away from their family after - after - they’ve served the penalty for the crime they were convicted (of),” Grijalva said.