Sen. Cotton Introduces Bill to Strip Citizenship From Naturalized Citizens Convicted of Any Felony
This bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process. It was recently introduced in the Senate and sent to the Committee on the Judiciary for review. No further actions are scheduled at this time.
This bill proposes a major change to citizenship laws that will likely face strong opposition from civil rights groups and many lawmakers. It currently lacks the broad support needed to pass.
Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works
Naturalized citizens would face a permanent risk of losing their citizenship if they are ever convicted of any felony, no matter how minor. Currently, denaturalization is reserved for narrow circumstances like fraud or subversive group membership. This bill vastly expands those grounds, creating a two-tier system where naturalized citizens face consequences (loss of citizenship) that native-born citizens never would for the same crime. The removal of time limits for both revocation based on group membership and criminal prosecution for naturalization fraud adds further legal exposure for all naturalized citizens.
“by inserting ``or has been convicted at any time of any felony,'' after ``section 313,''”
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
The Naturalization Accountability Act eliminates the five-year limitation post-naturalization for membership in a terrorist organization to be evidence for denaturalization. It also removes the ten-year statute of limitations for criminal denaturalization cases in federal district court.
The proposed legislation would remove the five to 10-year limitation periods for revocation of naturalization if the person belongs to a terrorist organization or commits certain crimes. The bill specifically targets naturalized citizens and does not affect those born in the U.S.
Senator Tom Cotton introduced the Naturalization Accountability Act to provide grounds to revoke citizenship from any naturalized citizen who commits a felony or supports a terrorist group. The bill ensures that naturalized citizens who break laws are subject to denaturalization proceedings.
No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Naturalization Accountability Act
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