HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
118 |
TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2004 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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REQUESTING THAT the IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE allow FILIPINO national LONGLINE FISHERMEN with a c-1 visa to enter hawaii.
WHEREAS, Filipino national longline fishermen have been an important part of Hawaii's longline fishing industry for over a decade and now comprise more than half of the industry's workers; and
WHEREAS, approximately 250 Filipino nationals are recruited by Hawaii-based companies on a one-year contract basis to fill the crews of longline fishing expeditions operating throughout waters surrounding the Hawaiian Islands; and
WHEREAS, Filipino national fishermen fill an employment void in the State, as longline fishing companies have been unsuccessful at recruiting locally; and
WHEREAS, Filipino fishermen are invaluable to Hawaii's fishing industry, having been trained specifically for longline fishing and contributing additional skills including navigation, cooking, and performing mechanical and electrical repairs; and
WHEREAS, in October 2002, the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) prohibited Filipino nationals hired as longline fishermen with C-1 transit visas from entering Hawaiian ports; and
WHEREAS, the INS has routinely granted C-1 visas to foreign fishermen in the past; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2004, that the INS and its local Immigration District Director are requested to reconsider their decision to prohibit Filipino national longline fishermen with a C-1 visa from entering Hawaiian ports; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Director of the INS and the Director of its local Immigration District.
OFFERED BY: |
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Report Title:
Requesting that Filipino nationals with a C-1 visa be allowed to enter Hawaii.