House Immigration Body Approves Bill to Admit Citizens’ Parents over 55

Congressman Dickstein’s bill to admit parents 55 years or over of American citizens outside of the quota restrictions was approved yesterday by the House immigration committee by a vote of 14 to 2. The committee authorized Representative Dickstein to present the favorable report on its behalf to the House. Congressman Jenkins and Congressman Box opposed the bill and the former announced his intentions of filing a minority report.

If the House passes this bill it will be the first substantial modification of the 1924 quota immigration law. According to State Department estimates some 24,000 parents of American citizens who will come under the provisions of the bill are awaiting visas. The Dickstein bill originally provided for the admission of parents 60 years or over but at today’s meeting he succeeded in having the age limit reduced.

Five additional bills for amending the immigration law introduced at the beginning of the present session by Congressman Dickstein are still pending before the Committee and he will press for action on them at the earliest opportunity.

The Immigration Committee today also approved of Congressman Cable’s bill to permit the restoration of citizenship to former American women citizens who lost their citizenship through marriage to an alien prior to September 22, 1922. This will enable such women to obtain non-quota readmission to the United States and immediate naturalization before any court having jurisdiction in naturalization matters without any of the usual preliminary requirements and delay applicable to other candidates for citizenship.