Kerrie Orozco First Responders Family Support Act

Floor Speech

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I rise today in support of H.R. 6580, the Kerrie Orozco First Responders Family Support Act.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the sponsor for introducing this bill.

The bill, as is made clear by its title, is a tribute to Ms. Orozco, a police officer in Omaha, Nebraska.

On May 20, 2015, after 7 years of service in the Omaha Police Department, Kerrie was fatally shot in the line of duty while serving a felony arrest warrant.

She was survived by her husband, Hector Orozco, and her two stepchildren, Natalie and Santiago.

H.R. 6580 gives tribute to the sacrifice made by Kerrie and her family by recognizing the sacrifices made by all first responders who are killed in the line of duty as well as their surviving family members.

The bill honors their sacrifice by speeding up the citizenship process for the surviving immigrant's spouses, children, and parents of slain first responders.

Specifically, the bill would waive certain physical resident requirements for surviving immediate family members who are already on the road to becoming citizens.

Current law requires such individuals to reside in the United States as lawful permanent residents for 5 years before becoming eligible to apply for naturalization. This bill would waive that 5-year requirement and, thus, allow surviving family members to naturalize more quickly. It is modeled on the Military Personnel Citizenship Processing Act, which became law in 2008 after receiving unanimous support in both Houses of Congress. That bill provides similar benefits to the surviving immigrant family members of U.S. armed services members who were killed in action.

H.R. 6580 simply recognizes that domestic first responders also serve this country at great sacrifice both to themselves and their families. This bill is the least we can do to recognize their service and their sacrifice.

I congratulate Representative Bacon for introducing this bill and ensuring its vote on the floor. Mr. Speaker, I also want to thank Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte and Ranking Member Jerry Nadler for their support of this important piece of legislation.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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