Govwatch

Introduced

In Committee

3

Passed One Chamber

4

Passed Both

5

Signed into Law

Sponsor

Yvette D. Clarke

Democrat · NY · Representative

Votes with party: 97.5% (570 recorded votes)

Full profile: /officials/C001067

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

Cosponsors (28)

Members who have signed on to support this bill since introduction. Source: Congress.gov.

Latest Action

The most recent step in the bill's legislative path. Committee Activity below shows referrals and reports; the full action-by-action history including floor proceedings lives at Congress.gov →

Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

2026-06-25

Source: Congress.gov

Committee Activity

Currently in

House Committee on the JudiciaryReferred To · 2026-06-25

Plain-English Summary

The legislation would protect and update the diversity visa program, which currently allows the U.S. to issue visas to people from countries with low immigration rates to the United States. The bill aims to preserve this program while making changes to how it operates, affecting immigrants seeking to come to America through this pathway and potentially influencing immigration patterns across different countries.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

Full Bill Text

Verbatim text published on Congress.gov via GovInfo. Use Cmd+F / Ctrl+F to search within this excerpt.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 9457 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 9457 To protect the integrity of the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, prevent unauthorized program-wide suspension, ensure transparency and congressional oversight of executive action, and reaffirm congressional intent. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES June 25, 2026 Ms. Clarke of New York (for herself, Ms. Ansari, Ms. Brown, Mr. Carson, Mr. Casar, Ms. Crockett, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Espaillat, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr. Goldman of New York, Mr. Green of Texas, Mrs. Grijalva, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Mejia, Mr. Menefee, Mr. Moulton, Ms. Norton, Mrs. Ramirez, Ms. Randall, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Sewell, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr. Torres of New York, Ms. Underwood, Ms. Velazquez, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, and Ms. Wilson of Florida) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To protect the integrity of the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, prevent unauthorized program-wide suspension, ensure transparency and congressional oversight of executive action, and reaffirm congressional intent. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Diversity Visa Protection and Modernization Act''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following: (1) The Diversity Immigrant Visa Program is a congressionally authorized program established under section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act to promote diversity in lawful permanent immigration to the United States of America. (2) Congress has delegated to the executive branch authority to administer immigration programs, including conducting security screening and imposing targeted restrictions where justified by national security or foreign policy concerns. (3) Such authority has historically included country- specific, regional, or case-by-case limitations, including restrictions related to armed conflict, sanctions, diplomatic breakdowns, or individualized security risks. (4) Program-wide or indefinite suspension of the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, including halting issuance across all eligible countries, exceeds routine administrative discretion absent explicit statutory authorization. (5) National security screening of Diversity Immigrant Visa applicants occurs prior to visa issuance and can be strengthened or tailored without suspending the program as a whole. (6) Indefinite or opaque administrative pauses undermine congressional intent, due process, and the lawful expectations of Diversity Immigrant Visa selectees. (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to-- (1) reaffirm the authority of Congress over the continuation of the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program as a whole; (2) distinguish between permissible targeted restrictions and impermissible wholesale suspension of the program; (3) ensure transparency, accountability, and congressional oversight when the executive branch limits Diversity Immigrant Visa processing; and (4) protect eligible Diversity Immigrant Visa selectees from losing lawful immigration opportunities due to broad, non- specific administrative pauses (or Executive action). SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON PROGRAM-WIDE SUSPENSION OF THE DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT VISA PROGRAM. (a) Prohibition on Program-wide Suspension.--Except as provided in subsection (b), the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security, as applicable, may not suspend, pause, or stop the issuance of visas pursuant to section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(c)). (b) Limited Exceptions.--The Secretary of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security, as applicable, may-- (1) implement a country-specific or regional suspension or limitation on the issuance of visas pursuant to section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(c)) following notification to Congress in accordance with subsection (c); (2) undertake a case-by-case delay, denial, or request for enhanced screening based on an individualized security, criminal, or eligibility determinations;…

Show the remaining 324 words

or (3) suspend the issuance of visas pursuant to section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(c)) for a limited period not exceeding 60 days with issuance automatically resuming on the date that is 60 days after the date of such suspension following notification to Congress in accordance with subsection (c). (c) Congressional Notice and Transparency Requirements.-- (1) Notice to congress.--Not later than 7 days before initiating a suspension or limitation described under subsection (b)(1), the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security, as applicable, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees notice of such suspension or limitation, including -- (A) the scope, geographic reach, and duration of the suspension or limitation; (B) identification of the specific and extraordinary threat that necessitates the issuance of visas pursuant to section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(c)) and explanation why a narrower, targeted, or country-specific measure would not sufficiently address the identified threat, if applicable; (C) the specific national security or foreign policy rationale for the suspension or limitation; (D) the legal authority relied upon for such suspension; and (E) the steps being taken to resume normal issuance of visas pursuant to section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(c)). (2) Public disclosure.--The notice described under paragraph (1) shall be published in the Federal Register, except for classified annexes provided to the appropriate congressional committees. (d) Protection for Diversity Immigrant Visa Selectees.--No individual issued a visa pursuant to section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(c)) shall lose eligibility for such visa as a result of a suspension described under subsection (b)(3). (e) Appropriate Congressional Committee Defined.--In this section, the term ``appropriate congressional committee'' means-- (1) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Senate; (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; and (3) the Committee on Foreign Relations on the Senate. <all>

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