President Biden Signs the First Private Laws in Over a Decade

     Private laws? What does that mean? Most Americans have never even heard of private laws, nor do they know that the average piece of legislation is actually called a "public law." There's a reason for that. Private laws are laws that apply to only one specific individual and provide some form of relief, almost always for immigrants at risk of deportation.

     Private laws are far less common nowadays than they were a few decades ago. Republicans are largely opposed to the practice, and, in fact, the last time private laws were signed was the 111th Congress, when Democrats under President Obama held a trifecta. On December 22nd, 2010, Obama signed two private laws to extend visa eligibility to Shigeru Yamada and Hotaru Nakama Ferschke. Trump signed zero such bills into law.

     On December 27th, 2022, and January 5th, 2022, President Biden signed a combined total of three private laws providing relief to Rebecca Trimble; three members of the Bueso family; and three members of the Kurdekar family. At three laws providing relief to seven people, this is actually the most private legislation Congress has passed since the 108th Congress from 2003 to 2005.

     So, why are private laws important? Let's take a look at one such law President Biden signed, providing relief to Rebecca Trimble. Brought to the United States illegally when she was just a few days old in 1989 and put up for adoption, Trimble joined the military and moved to Alaska, marrying a dentist who works in underserved communities, while becoming a mother. In 2012, when she applied for a driver's license, she learned that she was not a legal citizen like she believed, and, after eight years of failed appeals, was told in 2020 that she had 33 days to leave the country or be deported. She would be going back to Mexico, a country she didn't even remember, because of her adoption, leaving behind a shattered family and a shattered community.

     With this private law, Rebecca Trimble can continue residing in the United States for the rest of her life, can continue being the proud veteran and mother her community knows and loves. That's the power a private law has. As the 117th Congress ends and the 118th Congress begins, I'm urging Republicans and Democrats alike to not make the same mistake that was made a decade ago, and instead to continue working on a bipartisan basis to pass more private laws to help people like Rebecca Trimble, people who truly build a better America.