Many apologies Gopher.  I wasn't thinking that this was an AOL link that
couldn't be accessed by everyone.  I pasted the article below.

Betty
________________________________
Congress OKs Disabled Citizens Bill
By BART JANSEN
.c The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate gave final congressional approval Thursday to
legislation allowing disabled immigrants to become citizens without taking
the oath of allegiance.

President Clinton supports the bill, which would offer citizenship to about
1,000 immigrants a year whose disabilities prevent them from reciting the
oath. One is Vijai Rajan, a Southern California woman with cerebral palsy
whose case spurred action on the bill.

Legal permanent residents receive government benefits while awaiting
citizenship. Relatives of the disabled say the citizenship law would give
them the peace of mind knowing that the immigrant can remain in the country
after their caretakers die.

``If we go and she is going to outlive us, then she literally is left
stateless. We could not let that happen,'' said Sunder Rajan of Anaheim,
Calif., a naturalized citizen who sought citizenship for his 25-year-old
daughter born in India. ``When we would travel, we would be treated one way
and she was treated like a pariah, an outcast.''

Vijai Rajan suffers from cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, seizures and
Crohn's disease, a severe intestinal ailment. She uses a wheelchair and
receives 24-hour care. Although she has lived in the United States since she
was young, she cannot understand, recite or raise her hand to take the oath.

Immigration experts say Rajan's case illustrates a small but significant
problem in the law that faces immigrants with Alzheimer's disease, Down
syndrome or autism.

Immigration and Naturalization Service officials, criticized for their
handling of Rajan's case, said they can waive citizenship requirements for
applicants to pass history and English tests. That would leave requirements
that applicants live in the country at least five years and have no criminal
record.

INS is unable to waive the requirement for the oath, officials said. There is
no provision for people who couldn't communicate a ``meaningful allegiance,''
said Bill Strassberger, an INS spokesman.

``It does require a change in the law,'' he said.

The bill from Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, would allow the attorney general to
grant a waiver for ``an individual with a disability, or a child, who is
unable to understand or communicate an understanding of the meaning of the
oath.'' It passed the Senate without dissent.

The Senate also passed two other immigration bills by unanimous consent,
extending programs to allow foreign religious workers into the United States
and to let foreigners seeking long-term medical treatments stay longer.

Both votes sent the bills to Clinton.

The religious worker bill maintains the current limit of 10,000 visas a year
for foreign religious workers to conduct activities in the United States. The
program expired in September but was extended until 2003.

Examples of those using the visas include nuns, missionaries and religious
broadcasters, said Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee, D-Texas.

``Such individuals make important contributions to the United States by
caring for the sick, the aged, providing shelter and nutrition to the most
needy, supporting families in crisis and working with the religious
leaders,'' she said during the October House debate.

Under the sick foreigners bill, aliens in the country for long-term care
would be able to stay beyond the normal 210-day cap allowed by a current visa
waiver program. The legislation starts a three-year pilot program that allows
the attorney general to waive the time limit for the sick and selected family
members.

The legislation contains safeguards to ensure the 300 annual waivers go only
to those truly in need, said Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas.

The bills are S.2812, H.R. 2961 and H.R. 4068.

On the Net: Bill texts are available: http://thomas.loc.gov

AP-NY-10-19-00 2039EDT

Copyright 2000 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news
report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed
without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.  All active
hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

In a message dated 10/20/2000 10:30:18 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:

> Betty - whats the URL for this story ?
>  I cant access that aol page :-(
>
>  Gopher
>