Vets family reunification bill refiled in Congress - By Jennie L. Ilustre - Articles/Stories

WASHINGTON – An advocate said that before the US 109th Congress adjourns on Dec. 16, there’s hope it will pass a bill to speed up the US entry of all children and minor grandchildren (below-age 21) of naturalized Filipino American World War II veterans by next year.
Sen. Daniel K. Akaka and Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, Democrats from Hawaii, re-filed this proposal as stand-alone bill S. 4070 last Nov. 16, according to Eric Lachica, executive director of the American Coalition for Filipino Veterans based here. Last May, Akaka?s family reunification proposal was tacked on as an amendment to a popular bill, but it didn’t make it to the final version.

Lachica said the strategy this time is to lobby senators when Congress comes back for a lame duck Dec. 5-16 session to vote for the bill “as a rider to any of the remaining nine appropriations bills" that Congress must pass to keep the government operating.

The bill seeks “to exempt children of certain Filipino World War II veterans from the numerical limitations on immigrant visas." If the 109th Congress approves the bill, the adult children, and under the derivative concept their own minor children, will gain entry to the US within next year. Those with pending visa applications that have not been acted on for years will go to the head of the line, and enter the US within three to six months.

The bill seeks to address a situation resulting from the Immigration Act of 1990, sponsored by Inouye. IMACT enabled qualified Filipino WWII veterans to become US citizens. But the law did not extend this benefit to their adult sons and daughters, many of whom have been waiting to get their visa petitions approved by the US.

Lachica said he, coalition national president Patrick Ganio, veterans and community advocates would join forces and “go all-out”in their lobbying to get Congress to approve the “the popular, without-any-opposition bill" before it adjourns next month.

The bill enjoys bipartisan support. Among its Democratic sponsors are Senator Inouye (HI) and Sen. Barbara Boxer and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, both from California. Republican supporters include Sen. Arlen Specter (PA), Sen. George Allen (VA) Sen. Lisa Murkowski (AK) and Sen. John Ensign (NV).

Before the Nov. 7 elections, the coalition successfully lobbied the popular California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), to write a letter to President George W. Bush and to Congressman. James Sensebrenner (R-Wisconsin), chair of the Judiciary Committee, urging their support of the family reunification bill.

Lachica also cited the support of White House key staffers Ollie Cantos, associate director for domestic policy, and Rudy Pamintuan, chair of the White House Asian American Pacific Islander Commission.

California veterans who will be in the capital to attend a Dec. 6-7 veterans summit will join in the lobbying. Coalition president Ganio will fly in from Jackson, Florida. The gathering, which aims to come up with a strategy on the veterans pension bill, was organized by the Philippine Ambassador to the US Willy Gaa and Alma Kerns, who was elected National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) national chair last September.

If lobbying efforts fail next month, veterans and their supporters eye the 110th US Congress next year. Democrats will take over Congress on Jan. 4. Akaka will become chairman of the senate committee on veterans affairs. Congressman Bob Filner (D-CA), co-sponsor of the Filipino WWII pension bill for nonservice-connected (not combat-related ailment)veterans, will become chairman of the House veterans affairs committee.