TITLE III:INTERIOR ENFORCEMENT

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§ 3504 : CODIFYING BOARD OF IMMIGRATION APPEALS


a.

DEFINITION OF BOARD MEMBER.— Section 101(a)(8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

53.

The term Board Member means an attorney whom the Attorney General appoints to serve on the Board of Immigration Appeals within the Executive Office of Immigration Review, and is qualified to review decisions of immigration judges and other matters within the jurisdiction of the Board of Immigration Appeals.

b.

BOARD OF IMMIGRATION APPEALS.— Section 240(a)(1)(8 U.S.C. 1229a(a)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following:The Board of Immigration Appeals and its Board Members shall review decisions of immigration judges under this section..

c.

APPEALS.— Section 240(b)(4)(8 U.S.C. 1229a(b)(4)), as amended by section 3502(b), is further amended—

1.

in subparagraph (B), by striking , and and inserting a semicolon;

2.

in subparagraph (C), by striking the period and inserting ; and; and

3.

by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:

D.

the alien or the Department of Homeland Security may appeal the immigration judge’s decision to a 3-judge panel of the Board of Immigration Appeals.

d.

DECISION AND BURDEN OF PROOF.— Section 240(c)(1)(A)(8 U.S.C. 1229a(c)(1)(A)) is amended to read as follows:

A.

IN GENERAL.—At the conclusion of the proceeding, the immigration judge shall decide whether an alien is removable from the United States. The determination of the immigration judge shall be based only on the evidence produced at the hearing. On appeal, the Board of Immigration Appeals shall issue a written opinion. The opinion shall address all dispositive arguments raised by the parties. The panel may incorporate by reference the opinion of the immigration judge whose decision is being reviewed, provided that the panel also addresses any arguments made by the nonprevailing party regarding purported errors of law, fact, or discretion.