Sustainable Population and Immigration Act

A BILL

To establish the principles and practices for maintaining a stabilized, sustainable population, including sustainable levels of immigration, in the United States.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

(a) This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sustainable Population and Immigration Act.”

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS.

(a) The Congress finds that—

(1) pursuant to the Steady State Economy Act of 2036, the United States has undertaken the transition from a growing economy to a steady state economy;

(2) the transition to a steady state economy is scheduled for completion no later than 2061, pursuant to the 25-year Steady-State Transition Plan of the Commission on Economic Sustainability;

(3) a steady state economy is achieved when population multiplied by per capita consumption, expressed in terms of GDP, is stabilized or mildly fluctuating at a size within the ecological capacity of the nation;

(4) a stabilized, sustainable level of population is a crucial element of a steady state economy;

(5) a sustainable level of immigration is an essential element of sustainable population policy;

(6) the United States has a fertility rate below replacement level;

(7) the United States has a relatively stable mortality rate, with significant exceptions during pandemics;

(8) emigration from the United States is low and relatively stable;

(9) the U.S. population may be stabilized almost entirely with levels of net immigration that counteract low fertility rates; and

(10) U.S. visitors and undocumented occupants also put pressure on U.S. ecological capacity, entailing a cautious approach to estimating sustainable population levels.

(b) The Congress declares that it is the policy of the Federal government to use all practicable means, consistent with its needs and obligations and other essential national policies, to—

(1) carefully monitor the U.S. population and the flow of migrants;

(2) maintain estimates of visitors and non-authorized immigrants;

(3) maintain, without resorting to coercive measures, a stabilized population as consistent with a sustainable, steady state economy;

(4) allow for immigration levels that, considering fertility, mortality, and emigration rates, result in a stabilized U.S. population;

(5) adjust allowable immigration levels on an annual basis as needed to complement changing fertility, mortality, and emigration rates, consistent with the declaration in section 2(b)(2) of this Act;

(6) provide access to family planning domestically and encourage access to family planning internationally;

(7) establish and maintain regular, established pathways for immigration into the United States for purposes of safety and efficiency of travel, monitoring, and enforcement; and

(8) aid countries with wide-spread poverty, thereby lessening the need to emigrate.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

(a) In this Act—

(1) the term “Act” means the Sustainable Population and Immigration Act;

(2) the term “Commission” means the Commission on Economic Sustainability;

(3) the term “lawful permanent resident” means an immigrant living in the United States under legally authorized, perennial occupancy with no time limit;

(4) the term “net migration” means immigration minus emigration;

(5) the term “non-immigrant visa” means a temporary visa granted to a person who is not a U.S. citizen;

(6) The term “U.S. population” means the number of individuals legally residing in the United States;

(7) The term “lawful U.S. visitor” means a person legally present but not perennially residing in the United States;

(8) The term “Secretary” means the U.S. Secretary of State;

(9) the term “steady-state net migration” means that net migration in the context of non-replacement fertility rates results in a stabilized population; and

(10) The term “undocumented occupants” means all persons present in the United States who are not part of the U.S. population or lawful U.S. visitors.

SEC. 4. STABILIZING POPULATION.

(a) GENERAL RULE.—The Commission on Economic Sustainability shall serve as the authoritative clearinghouse of information and policy targets for stabilizing U.S. population by 2061.

(b) REPORTING.—The Commission, beginning in 2032, shall publish annually by June 1 a Population Stabilization Report that includes—

(1) U.S. fertility and mortality rates;

(2) U.S. immigration and emigration figures;

(3) the U.S. population census and trends;

(4) lawful U.S. visitor counts; and

(5) estimates of undocumented occupants.

(c) PRESCRIBING.—The Commission shall prescribe, as part of its annual Population Stabilization Report, a gross immigration allowance designed to gradually stabilize the U.S. population by reducing the difference between actual net migration and steady-state net migration over a 25-year period or less, until actual net migration equals net migration rate are equal.

(d) CONGRUENCE WITH OPTIMAL GDP.—In prescribing gross immigration allowances pursuant to section 4(c), and to the degree possible given trends in fertility and mortality, the Commission shall ensure that steady-state migration and U.S. population stabilization correspond with an optimal GDP range as identified in the Commission’s 25-year Steady-State Transition Plan.

(e) COMMENCEMENT.—The Commission shall begin operations on October 1, 2030, in preparation for the first annual report in 2032 pursuant to section 4(b).

SEC. 5. ALLOCATION OF IMMIGRANT VISAS.

(a) GENERAL RULE.—The Secretary shall be responsible for allocating immigrant visas, assisting immigrants with naturalization, and issuing permanent resident cards.

(b) ALLOCATION CRITERIA.—In allocating immigrant visas, the Secretary shall—

(1) allocate a number of immigrant visas that does not exceed the annual gross immigration allowance provided by the Commission pursuant to section 4(c), and that is no less than 90% of the annual gross immigration allowance; and

(2) allocate the number of immigrant visas provided for in section 5(a) pursuant to a ranking of applications provided by the Citizenship and Immigration Services.

SEC. 6. AID-IN-PLACE FUND.

(a) GENERAL RULE.—It shall be the responsibility of the Secretary to assist nations with widespread poverty and disproportionately high rates of emigration, such that the wellbeing of their citizens is enhanced, lessening the propensity to undertake physically risky, mentally exhausting, and culturally challenging emigration efforts.

(b) AID-IN-PLACE FUND.—

(1) Congress authorizes $75 billion per annum for an Aid-in-Place Fund for the purposes identified in section 5(a).

(2) The Aid-in-Place Fund shall be administered by the Secretary.

(3) No less than $20 billion of annual Aid-in-Place funding shall be reserved for assistance programs in Central American, Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan African nations.

(1) The following criteria, in order of importance, shall be applied to potential recipient nations by the Secretary in allocating Aid-in-Place Fund appropriations—

(A) absolute poverty rates;

(B) rates of emigration to the United States;

(D) reproductive rights of women;

(E) health of democracy; and

(F) presence of family planning programs.

(2) The Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register no later than August 1, 2031, detailed guidelines to be used by the Department of State for prioritizing Aid-in-Place funding pursuant to the criteria in section 5(c)(1) above.

(d) AID-IN-PLACE FUNDING PROGRAMS.—

(1) Aid-in-Place funding shall be conditional upon recipient nations demonstrating their intentions and accomplishments in:

(A) Poverty reduction including by provision of—

(i) financial assistance to families and individuals;

(ii) food and cooking supplies;

(iii) public housing; and

(iv) shelter for the homeless.

(B) Democratic governance including the maintenance of—

(i) freedom of speech;

(ii) free and fair elections;

(iii) freedom of religion; and

(iv) freedom of reproduction.

(i) reproductive education;

(ii) availability of contraceptives; and

(iii) sexually transmitted disease prevention.

(e) COMMENCEMENT.—Annual Aid-in-Place funding shall be effective for the fiscal year beginning on October 1, 2028.

(f) APPLICATION AND ADMINISTRATION.—All international aid provisions introduced and defined in sections 4(a-d) shall be administered by the Secretary.

SEC. 7. MANDATORY BUDGET ADJUSTMENTS.

(a) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE REDUCTION.—Annual appropriations for the Aid-in-Place Fund will correspond with concurrent annual reductions in the Department of Defense budget, except in times of war.

(b) APPLICATION AND ADMINISTRATION.—The budget adjustments mandated in section 7(a) shall be determined by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office and implemented by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.