American Families United Act

The "American Families United Act" aims to promote family unity by amending the Immigration and Nationality Act, granting new discretionary authority to the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security. This authority specifically applies to non-citizen spouses and children of United States citizens, allowing for greater flexibility in immigration decisions affecting these family members. The core purpose is to prevent family separation and facilitate immigration relief for these individuals. Under this bill, the Attorney General may terminate removal proceedings, decline removal orders, or waive grounds of inadmissibility or deportability for eligible individuals. Similarly, the Secretary of Homeland Security can waive inadmissibility, decline to issue notices to appear, or grant other immigration benefits. Both officials can exercise this discretion if they determine that removal or denial of relief would cause hardship to the alien's U.S. citizen spouse, parent, or child, with a clear presumption that family separation constitutes hardship . The Act also includes special provisions for the spouses and children of deceased U.S. citizens, allowing for similar discretionary relief if sought within two years of the citizen's death or under extraordinary circumstances. However, this discretionary authority does not apply to aliens deemed inadmissible or deportable under specific serious criminal, security, or marriage fraud grounds. Finally, the bill permits motions to reopen or reconsider past immigration decisions if the outcome would have been different had these new provisions been in effect, provided such motions are filed within two years of the Act's enactment or due to extraordinary circumstances.