Sponsors (2)
Last progress June 9, 2025 (8 months ago)
Introduced on June 9, 2025 by Donald J. Bacon
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Allows certain immediate relatives of U.S. citizens who died as a result of injuries or disease incurred while working as public safety officers to become U.S. citizens without meeting the usual residence or physical-presence requirements. Eligible survivors — spouses, children, or parents who otherwise meet standard naturalization criteria — may naturalize even if they have not lived in the United States or met the normal physical presence test. The term “public safety officer” is drawn from existing federal law and remains the controlling definition. Survivors must still satisfy the other usual naturalization requirements (for example, age, good moral character, and the oath).
Adds a new subsection (f) to Section 319 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1430) titled “Immediate relatives of public safety officers.” This creates the legal vehicle for the provisions described below.
Authorizes naturalization of any person who is the surviving spouse, child, or parent of a United States citizen when the citizen spouse, parent, or child dies as a result of injury or disease incurred in or aggravated by employment as a public safety officer.
Requires the eligible surviving relative to comply with all other requirements of the Immigration and Nationality Act title for naturalization, except for the prior residence or specified physical presence requirements.
Defines “public safety officer” for purposes of this subsection by reference to the meaning given in section 1204 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968.
Directly affected: surviving spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens who died from injuries or disease sustained in public safety work. These survivors can become naturalized U.S. citizens without meeting the usual continuous residence or physical-presence requirements, removing a major procedural barrier to citizenship for those families. They still must satisfy other standard naturalization requirements (e.g., good moral character, language/knowledge tests if applicable, and the Oath).
Agencies and programs: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will need to update eligibility guidance, case adjudication procedures, and documentation standards to verify both the family relationship and that the decedent’s death is covered under the public safety officer definition. Because the change is narrow and does not include new funding, costs will be absorbed within existing agency resources unless Congress provides additional appropriations later.
Communities and broader effects: The change provides a pathway to citizenship for a small, specific group of grieving families, likely improving their access to benefits and stability that accompany citizenship (voting, federal employment eligibility, and simpler travel/immigration for dependents). Administrative verification of death-related claims may present some procedural complexity but no large-scale policy shifts or broad fiscal impacts are apparent from the text.