HF 4221

as introduced - 85th Legislature (2007 - 2008) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

1.1A resolution
1.2memorializing Congress to create a path toward lawful permanent resident status for
1.3Liberians with temporary protected status and to extend temporary protected status
1.4until a permanent solution is enacted.
1.5WHEREAS, the State of Minnesota is home to Liberians who sought safety in the United
1.6States from the brutal armed conflict in their homeland; and
1.7WHEREAS, many of the Liberians living in Minnesota are lawfully here in the United
1.8States under Temporary Protected Status, which has been afforded to citizens of Liberia since the
1.9outbreak of the conflict in 1991; and
1.10WHEREAS, Temporary Protected Status terminated on October 1, 2007, and most
1.11Liberians residing in the United States now have a status of Deferred Enforced Departure, which
1.12will terminate on March 31, 2009; and
1.13WHEREAS, upon the termination of Deferred Enforced Departure, Liberians who have
1.14held this status will be subject to deportation from the United States, often without regard to the
1.15family, property, or careers they leave behind in the United States; and
1.16WHEREAS, the political and human rights situation in Liberia, although improved since
1.17the time of the civil conflict, remains unclear as the new Liberian government transitions to
1.18democracy; and
1.19WHEREAS, much of the infrastructure of Liberia has been destroyed as a result of the
1.20conflict, leaving Liberians without running water, electricity, access to basic health care, and with
1.21a national unemployment rate of 85 percent; and
2.1WHEREAS, the police and judicial systems in Liberia are in the early stages of rebuilding
2.2following the conflict and the regime of Charles Taylor; and
2.3WHEREAS, Senate File 656, the Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act of 2007,
2.4was introduced in the United States Senate on February 16, 2007; the United States House of
2.5Representatives companion, the Liberian Refugee Immigration Protection Act of 2007, H.R.
2.61941, was introduced on April 19, 2007; and passage of this legislation would allow eligible
2.7Liberians living in the United States to apply for lawful permanent resident status; and
2.8WHEREAS, on July 30, 2007, the United States House of Representatives approved H.R.
2.93123, which grants a one-year extension of Temporary Protected Status, and its companion
2.10is S.1903; and
2.11WHEREAS, the termination of Temporary Protected Status may endanger the lives, safety,
2.12and well-being of Liberians living in the State of Minnesota; NOW, THEREFORE,
2.13BE IT RESOLVED by the Legislature of the State of Minnesota that it encourages the
2.14United States Congress to act speedily to grant the extension of Temporary Protected Status
2.15until a permanent solution is enacted.
2.16BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of the State of Minnesota urges
2.17Minnesota's Senators and Representatives in Congress to prioritize the debate and enactment of
2.18legislation allowing Liberians living in the United States to apply for lawful permanent resident
2.19status.
2.20BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota is
2.21directed to prepare copies of this memorial and transmit them to the President of the United
2.22States, the President and the Secretary of the United States Senate, the Speaker and the Clerk of
2.23the United States House of Representatives, the chair of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary,
2.24the chair of the House Committee on the Judiciary, and Minnesota's Senators and Representatives
2.25in Congress.