READMITTING MARY COHEN BIENVENU TO JUNE 27, 1939.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House and ordered to be printed Mr. LESINSKI, from the Committee on Immigration and Naturalization, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany S. J. Res. 72] The Committee on Immigration and Naturalization, to whom was referred the joint resolution (S. J. Res. 72) readmitting Mary Cohen Bienvenu to citzenship, having considered the same, report it back to the House without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. The bill and report of the Senate committee were read by the clerk of the committee, and representatives of the Department of Labor were called upon to explain the expatriation and repatriation of persons having lost their citizenship. There also appeared a witness who had met Mrs. Bienvenu abroad and had investigated the circumstances of her loss of citizenship, by reason of her marriage to her alien husband in 1934, by reason of signing a declaration in the French consulate just prior to her marriage, which act expatriated her, as she became a citizen of France. Mrs. Bienvenu did not know at the time of signing the declaration that she thereby relinquished her citizenship, and the witness referred to stated that from his investigation he was satisfied that she had no intention of forefeiting her citizenship. After thorough discussion by the committee, the bill was reported favorably. The report by the Senate committee sets forth the facts fully, and that report is therefore incorporated herein and made a part of this report. [S. Rept. No. 183, 76th Cong., 1st sess.] The Committee on Immigration, to whom was referred the joint resolution (S. J. Res. 72) readmitting Mary Cohen Bienvenu to citizenship, having considered the same, report it back to the Senate without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. H. Repts., 76-1, vol. 5-21 The facts in the case as presented to your committee are briefly as follows: Mrs. Bienvenu is a native citizen of the United States, born in Altanta, Ga., the daughter of a former United States Senator, who is alleged to have forfeited her citizenship by marriage in 1934, to one Jean Marie Emile Charles Bienvenu, a citizen of France. It appears from the records that Mrs. Bienvenu was born in Atlanta, Ga., on March 14, 1902, and that on April 23, 1934, contemplating marriage to the citizen of France, she made and signed a certain declaration in the French consulate at New York, which declaration, with the marriage which immediately followed, operated under French law to naturalize her as a citizen of France. Mrs. Bienvenu insists that she did not intend to surrender her citizenship and did not understand that this would be the consequences of signing the declaration. Subsequently she applied to the_Department of State for an extension of her American passport. The State Department, however, concluded that she had expatriated herself by reason of section 2 of the act of March 1907. That section provides that any American citizen shall be deemed to have expatriated himself when he has been naturalized in any foreign state in conformity with its laws. Under article 8 of the French law of August 10, 1927, and article 10 of the French decree of the same date, Mrs. Bienvenu became a naturalized citizen of France. Section 2 of the act of Congress of March 2, 1907, provides that any American citizen shall be deemed to have expatriated himself when he has been naturalized in any foreign state in conformity with its laws, or when he has taken an oath of allegiance to a foreign state. It is under this provision that it was held that Mrs. Bienvenu became expatriated. There is no provision of law in the United States under which Mrs. Bienvenu may regain her citizenship except through having been lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence and complying with the general provisions of the naturalization law, which require at least 5 years' continuous residence in the United States after such permanent admission, at least 6 months' residence in the country in which the petitioner resides immediately preceding the filing of a petition for naturalization, and a declaration of intention to become a citizen not Jess than 2 nor more than 7 years old. Your committee, after thoroughly condidering the facts as presented, recommend that the bill be favorably reported. The views of the Department of State on the bill follow: Hon. RICHARD B. RUSSELL, Jr., Chairman, Committee on Immigration, United States Senate, Washington, D. C. MARCH 2, 1939. MY DEAR SENATOR RUSSELL: Permit me to refer to your letter of February 22, wherein you request my view in relation to Senate Joint Resolution 72. The resolution was introduced by yourself on February 16, 1939, and bears the title "Joint resolution readmitting Mary Cohen Bienvenu to citizenship." The resolution describes Mrs. Bienvenu as a native citizen of the United States, born in Atlanta, Ga., the daughter of a former Senator of the United States, who is alleged to have forfeited her citizenship by marriage in 1934, and would provide that she is hereby on her own application unconditionally readmitted to United States citizenship. It appears from the records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service that Mrs. Bienvenu was born at Atlanta, Ga., on March 14, 1902; that on April 23, 1934, contemplating marriage to one Jean Bienvenu, a citizen of France, she made and signed a certain declaration in the French consulate at New York, which declaration, with the marriage which immediately followed, operated under French law to naturalize her as a citizen of France. Subsequently she applied to the Department of State for an extension of her American passport. The State Department, however, concluded that she had expatriated herself by reason of section 2 of the act of March 2, 1907. That section provides that any American citizen shall be deemed to have expatriated himself when he has been naturalized in any foreign state in conformity with its laws. Provision is made in the naturalization law for the ready resumption of citizenship by a woman who lost citizenship through marriage to an alien. That provision, however, is probably not available to Mrs. Bienvenu for the reason that it was not merely marriage to an alien but actual foreign naturalization, voluntarily acquired, which operated to terminate her American citizenship. As there does not appear to be any provision applicable to her case relaxing the usual requirements for naturalization, her only remedy for recovering American citizenship lies in complying with all of the usual requirements. Mrs. Bienvenu is now in the United States as a visitor. A visitor's status does not qualify her to proceed toward naturalization. In order to comply with existing law it will be necessary for her to effect entry into the United States as an immigrant; to thereafter file a declaration of intention; and, when she has completed 5 years' residence in the United States following admission as an immigrant, and her declaration of intention is at least 2 years old, she may file a petition upon which she might be naturalized 90 days thereafter. The question of whether Mrs. Bienvenu should be relieved of such formality by the enactment of special legislation is of course for legislative determination by the Congress. For that reason I have no comment to make on the disposition which should be made of the bill. Cordially yours, EDW. J. SHAUGHNESSY, CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO H. R. 3325 JUNE 27, 1939.-Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed Mr. SABATH, from the Committee on Rules, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. Res. 2331 The Committee on Rules, having had under consideration House Resolution 233, report the same to the House with the recommendation that the resolution do pass. О |