Should Americans Who Join Terror Groups Have Their Citizenship Revoked? (H.R. 774)

What is H.R. 774?

(Updated January 11, 2021)

This bill would amend the existing law that describes actions that are grounds for loss of a citizen’s status as a U.S. national to include joining, supporting, or pledging allegiance to a foreign terrorist organization. Under current law the State Dept. can revoke the U.S. nationality of Americans who formally renounce their citizenship, become citizens of or pledge allegiance to foreign nations, engage in hostilities against the U.S., or are convicted of treason.

This legislation would expand that list to include the following actions as grounds for the loss of American citizenship:

• Taking an oath or making a declaration of allegiance to a foreign terrorist organization after attaining the age of 18;

• Entering, or serving in, a foreign terrorist organization;

• Becoming a member of, or providing training or material assistance to, a foreign terrorist organization;

• Accepting, serving in, or performing the duties of any office, post, or employment under the government of a foreign state or political subdivision, or a foreign terrorist group if the person knowingly declares allegiance to that government or group.

The Secretary of State would be prohibited from issuing a passport to a person who is a member, or is attempting to become a member of a foreign terrorist group. If such a passport has already been issued, the Secretary would be required to revoke that passport.

A person who is denied a passport or has their passport revoked or restricted may request a due process hearing within 60 days of receiving notice of the non-issuance, revocation, or restriction.

Argument in favor

If a U.S. citizen knowingly joins or assists a foreign terrorist organization they should have their passport and status as a citizen revoked to prevent them from harming other Americans. The current standard for revoking the citizenship of terrorists isn’t broad enough.

Argument opposed

Revoking a person’s U.S. citizenship for “providing material assistance” to terrorists is problematic, as material assistance could be broadly interpreted and lead to violations of the person’s rights. The current standard for revoking the citizenship of terrorists works.

Impact

American citizens who have their citizenship or passport revoked because of their association with a foreign terrorist organization; the State Department and the Justice Department; and the Secretary of State.

Cost of H.R. 774

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Rep. Steve King (R-IA) reintroduced this bill from the previous Congress to broaden the circumstances under which the federal government can revoke the passport and U.S. citizenship of Americans who join terror groups:

“Over past years, many vulnerabilities to American security have emerged. Some American citizens have sworn allegiance to foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs), and that is why Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and I have re-introduced the Expatriate Terrorist Act (ETA). Upon taking an oath to a FTO, American terrorists have voluntarily renounced their citizenship. Such individuals who comit acts of terror against the United States are demonstrating they no longer uphold their pledge to our country. Regardless of prior citizenship, by birth or naturalization, ETA will make it clear that if a national of the U.S. chooses to take an oath or pledge allegiance to a FTO, that individual has affirmatively renounced American citizenship and relinquished all protection under the law.”

Opponents of this legislation have called it “very dangerous” and an “unconstitutional deprivation of rights” on the grounds that it’d empower federal bureaucrats “to start sniping away at Americans’ rights of citizenship and travel.”

Of Note: The Supreme Court weighed in on the issue of expatriation in the 1980 case Vance v. Terrazas, holding unanimously that citizenship is protected under the Fourteenth Amendment and cannot be removed by Congress without a person’s consent. But a majority of the court also found in Vance v. Terrazas that Congress can establish a standard of preponderance of evidence that a citizen intended to give up their citizenship by undertaking actions.

On February 20, 2019, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that a 24-year old woman who held a U.S. passport and joined ISIS in Syria at age 19 but was captured and now wants to return to the U.S. with her 18-month old son wouldn’t be allowed to return to the country:

“Ms. Hoda Muthana is not a U.S. citizen and will not be admitted into the United States. She does not have any legal basis, no valid U.S. passport, no right to a passport, nor any visa to travel to the United States. We continue to strongly advise all U.S. citizens not to travel to Syria.”

Muthana’s attorney accused the Trump administration of attempting to “wrongfully strip citizens of their citizenship”, and maintained that she should continue to have U.S. citizenship.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Steve King (R-IA) Press Release (115th Congress)

• The Blaze (Previous Version)

• The Week (Previous Version)

• Huffington Post (Opposed)

• National Review (Opposed)

• Reason (Opposed)

• ABC (Context)