H.R. 6975 — Fraud Accountability Act

This section establishes a new ground of deportability under INA §237(a)(2)(A) (8 USC 1227(a)(2)(A)) for any alien convicted of a crime involving fraud committed against a private individual, fund, corporation, or government entity, notwithstanding the $10,000 loss threshold for fraud as an aggravated felony under INA §101(a)(43)(M) (8 USC 1101(a)(43)(M)). (As background, aggravated felony convictions are currently deportable offenses; this change makes fraud convictions deportable regardless of loss amount.)

This section expands mandatory detention pending removal proceedings under INA §236(c)(1)(B) to include aliens deportable for money laundering offenses under INA §237(a)(2)(A)(vi), in addition to those previously covered under INA §237(a)(2)(A)(ii) (multiple convictions with aggregate sentence of five years or more), (A)(iii) (illicit trafficking or possession of controlled substance), (B) (any controlled substance violation except single offense of possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana), (C) (firearms offenses), or (D) (miscellaneous serious crimes). (Thus, DHS must take such aliens into custody without possibility of bond or conditional release while removal proceedings are pending.)

This section amends INA §340 (denaturalization proceedings) to require any U.S. court, upon convicting a naturalized citizen of an offense described in INA §237(a)(2) (i.e., criminal grounds of deportability, such as aggravated felonies, controlled substance offenses, or multiple crimes involving moral turpitude), to revoke the order admitting the person to citizenship and cancel the naturalization certificate. It grants such courts jurisdiction to take these actions notwithstanding the federal-question jurisdiction requirement of 28 U.S.C. §1331. (Thus, state courts as well as federal courts must automatically denaturalize qualifying naturalized citizens upon conviction.)

This section establishes the effective date of the Act and its amendments as the date of enactment. It applies the amendments made by section 4 to fraud committed by any alien on or after September 30, 1996, against any private individual, fund, corporation, or government entity if the alien was not arrested, charged, or indicted for such conduct before the date of enactment.