H.R. 3896 (108th): ICARE Act

Introduced:
Mar 04, 2004 (108th Congress, 2003–2004)
Sponsor:
Rep. Jim DeMint [R-SC4]
Status:
Died (Referred to Committee)
See Instead:

S. 3031 (same title)
Referred to Committee — Dec 07, 2004

The bill’s title was written by the bill’s sponsor. H.R. stands for House of Representatives bill.

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Status

This bill was introduced on March 4, 2004, in a previous session of Congress, but was not enacted.

Progress
Introduced Mar 04, 2004
Cosponsors
16 cosponsors (10R, 6D) (show)
Committees

House Foreign Affairs

House Judiciary

The committee chair determines whether a bill will move past the committee stage.

Full Title

To establish an Office of Intercountry Adoptions within the Department of State, and to reform United States laws governing intercountry adoptions.

Summary

No summaries available.

Text

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Last updated Mar 04, 2004.
32 pages

Primary Source

View on THOMAS (The Library of Congress)

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Citation

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GovTrack’s Bill Summary

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Library of Congress Summary

The summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress.

3/4/2004--Introduced.
Intercountry Adoption Reform Act of 2004 or ICARE Act - Establishes an Office of Intercountry Adoptions within the Department of State (DOS). Requires the President to appoint an Ambassador at Large to head the Office. Transfers to the Office all immigration functions with respect to intercountry adoptions currently performed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to grant automatic U.S. citizenship to internationally adopted children upon entry of a full and final adoption decree (thus dispensing with the need for such children to obtain visas). Creates a new W nonimmigrant visa category for children traveling to the United States to be adopted by U.S. citizens. Allows adopted children age 18 or under to claim an exception to immunization requirements for purposes of admissibility (currently limited to those age 10 or under). Redefines the term "adoptable child." Requires U.S. citizen adoptive parents to obtain approval of an adoption petition prior to issuance of a W visa or a full and final adoption decree. Provides that such petitions are subject to the terms applicable to orphan petitions. Directs the Ambassador to issue regulations: (1) establishing an expedited reapproval process for families whose prior approvals to adopt have expired; and (2) governing the appeal of petition denials. Requires the Office to determine whether a child is an adoptable child, pursuant to specified procedures, as a prerequisite to the issuance of a W visa or a full and final adoption decree.

House Republican Conference Summary

The summary below was written by the House Republican Conference, which is the caucus of Republicans in the House of Representatives.

No summary available.

House Democratic Caucus Summary

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The bill contains the following citations to other parts of U.S. law:

United States Code

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