Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Nicaragua Political Prisoner Support Act”.
Nicaragua Political Prisoner Support Act
A BILL
To provide Nicaraguan political prisoners who arrived in the United States on February 9, 2023, and their immediate family members with certain benefits available to refugees.
Sec. 2 Defined term
In this section, the term eligible Nicaraguan national means an alien—
who is a citizen or national of Nicaragua; or
in the case of an alien having no nationality, whose former or last habitual residence was in Nicaragua; and
who arrived in the United States on February 9, 2023, as part of a political prisoner release, and was granted a 2-year humanitarian parole by the United States Government; or
who is the parent, spouse, or child of an individual described in paragraph (1).
Sec. 3 Eligibility requirements
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an eligible Nicaraguan national is eligible for the benefits described in section 4 if—
such individual has completed security and law enforcement background checks to the satisfaction of the Secretary of Homeland Security; and
such individual’s parole—
has not been terminated by the Secretary of Homeland Security; or
was terminated while a renewal application was pending for such parole and the sole reason for such termination was that the renewal application had not yet been processed.
Sec. 4 Benefits
An individual described in section 3 is eligible for—
resettlement assistance, entitlement programs, and other benefits that are available to refugees admitted under section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157) to the same extent as such refugees;
child welfare services described in section 412(d)(2) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1522(d)(2)); and
a driver’s license or identification card under section 202 of the REAL ID Act of 2005 (division B of Public Law 109–13; 49 U.S.C. 30301 note), notwithstanding subsection (c)(2)(B) of such Act.
Sec. 5 Rules of construction
Sec. 6 Exemption from the Paperwork Reduction Act
The requirements under chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code (commonly referred to as the “Paperwork Reduction Act”) shall not apply to any action taken to implement this section involving the translation of an approved collection of information into a new language.