CSHJR 13(MLV): Urging the President of the United States to expand evacuation efforts for applicants with approved Special Immigrant Visas, including resumption of evacuation flights organized by the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts; urging the United States Department of State to secure legal protections and humanitarian assistance for Special Immigrant Visa applicants; urging the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services in the United States Department of Homeland Security to expedite the review of applications for Special Immigrant Visas; and requesting that the United States Secretary of State provide a report to Congress regarding efforts to reinstate evacuation flights for applicants with approved Special Immigrant Visas.
00 CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 13(MLV) 01 Urging the President of the United States to expand evacuation efforts for applicants 02 with approved Special Immigrant Visas, including resumption of evacuation flights 03 organized by the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts; urging the United States 04 Department of State to secure legal protections and humanitarian assistance for Special 05 Immigrant Visa applicants; urging the United States Citizenship and Immigration 06 Services in the United States Department of Homeland Security to expedite the review of 07 applications for Special Immigrant Visas; and requesting that the United States 08 Secretary of State provide a report to Congress regarding efforts to reinstate evacuation 09 flights for applicants with approved Special Immigrant Visas. 10 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 11 WHEREAS, on September 11, 2001, the United States experienced an unprecedented 12 terrorist attack in which nearly 3,000 innocent lives were lost, leading to the nation's 13 commitment to dismantle terrorist networks and ensure global security; and
01 WHEREAS, in response to the September 11 attacks, the United States launched 02 Operation Enduring Freedom on October 7, 2001, marking the beginning of the United States- 03 led mission in Afghanistan to eliminate Al-Qaeda and remove the Taliban regime, which had 04 provided sanctuary to terrorist operatives; and 05 WHEREAS, on January 6, 2006, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 06 Year 2006 (P.L. 109-163) was enacted, including sec. 1059, which formally established the 07 Special Immigrant Visa program as part of the Afghan Allies Protection Act; and 08 WHEREAS the Special Immigrant Visa program provided a pathway for Iraqi and 09 Afghan nationals who worked as translators or interpreters for United States military forces to 10 apply for permanent United States residency, recognizing their vital contributions and 11 ensuring their protection; and 12 WHEREAS, on January 28, 2008, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 13 Year 2008 (P.L. 110-181) was enacted, incorporating the Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2007 14 under Subtitle C (secs. 1241 - 1249), which expanded the Special Immigrant Visa program to 15 recognize the significant threats faced by Iraqi and Afghan allies who served the United States 16 government, military, and contractors by allowing more Iraqi and Afghan allies to become 17 eligible for visas, ensuring broader protections and a pathway to permanent residency in the 18 United States; and 19 WHEREAS, on March 11, 2009, the Afghan Allies Protection Act was enacted as 20 sec. 602(b) of the Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 (P.L. 111-8), which established a 21 dedicated Special Immigrant Visa program for Afghan nationals, distinct from the Iraqi 22 program, and authorized the issuance of 7,500 visas over five years to Afghan allies who 23 provided faithful and valuable service to the United States government; and 24 WHEREAS the number of visas authorized for Afghans by the Special Immigrant 25 Visa program has since been increased, through amendments by Congress, to a total of more 26 than 50,500 visas; and 27 WHEREAS the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts in the United States 28 Department of State is responsible for implementing sec. 2502 of the Extending Government 29 Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act (P.L. 117-43), which authorized the 30 emergency evacuation and resettlement of Afghan allies following the withdrawal of the 31 United States from Afghanistan; and
01 WHEREAS many Afghan Americans who have served alongside our service 02 members and have already entered the United States through blue passports, green cards, or 03 approved Special Immigrant Visas may still be trying to reunite with spouses and children 04 who remain stranded in Afghanistan or Pakistan; 05 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the President of the 06 United States to direct the United States Secretary of State to immediately resume evacuation 07 flights organized by the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts to transport applicants 08 with approved Special Immigrant Visas and their families from Afghanistan to designated 09 third-party country processing centers; and be it 10 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the President of the 11 United States to direct the United States Secretary of State to expedite and expand the 12 evacuation of applicants with approved Special Immigrant Visas and their families from third- 13 party host countries to the United States, ensuring timely processing and resettlement; and be 14 it 15 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States 16 Department of State to resume processing stalled applications by Afghan allies who have 17 approved Special Immigrant Visas for the evacuation of their families from third-party host 18 countries to the United States, thus preventing Afghan allies and their families from being 19 separated indefinitely; and be it 20 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States 21 Citizenship and Immigration Services in the United States Department of Homeland Security 22 to expedite the review of pending applications for Special Immigrant Visas; and be it 23 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States 24 Department of State to secure legal protections and humanitarian assistance for Special 25 Immigrant Visa applicants stranded in third-party host countries, preventing forced 26 deportations or detentions; and be it 27 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States 28 Secretary of State to provide a report to Congress within 60 days after receiving this 29 resolution, detailing efforts to reinstate evacuation flights for applicants with approved 30 Special Immigrant Visas and their families, including efforts to overcome logistical barriers 31 and conduct diplomatic negotiations.
01 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Donald J. Trump, President 02 of the United States; the Honorable JD Vance, Vice President of the United States and 03 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Mike Johnson, Speaker of the U.S. House of 04 Representatives; the Honorable John Thune, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the 05 Honorable Marco Rubio, United States Secretary of State; Mara Tekach, Coordinator for 06 Afghan Relocation Efforts; Kika Scott, Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Director 07 of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; 08 and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the 09 Honorable Nicholas Begich, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in 10 Congress.