American Citizenship Act

This bill, known as the American Citizenship Act, aims to amend section 301 of the Immigration and Nationality Act to clarify the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment's Citizenship Clause. It proposes a new definition for birthright citizenship, stating that a person born in the United States is a citizen only if they are "not subject to any foreign power." The legislation further specifies that a person is deemed "subject to a foreign power" if neither parent is a United States citizen or has been lawfully admitted for permanent residence at the time of the person's birth. This change would limit automatic citizenship for children born in the U.S. to those with at least one parent who is a citizen or a legal permanent resident. Importantly, the amendment explicitly states that it will not affect the citizenship or nationality status of any person born before its enactment date , ensuring no retroactive application of the new definition.