PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Nov 1, 2001
Visa Entry Reform Act of 2001 - Requires the Director of the Office of Homeland Security, in conjunction with specified other entities, to establish and supervise a single computerized database (lookout database) to screen and identify inadmissible or deportable aliens. States that such information shall be available to immigration, Customs, law enforcement, and intelligence personnel. Sets forth required database and related information.Directs: (1) the Secretary of State to establish a Terrorist Lookout Committee at each embassy; (2) the Attorney General and the Secretary of State to develop a "SmartVisa" system which shall include machine-readable visas containing biometric information; and (3) that issued U.S. passports contain standard biometric identifiers.Conditions participation in the visa waiver program upon a country's: (1) issuance of U.S. machine-readable, tamper resistant passports containing biometric data; and (2) reporting of its stolen passports to the United States. Authorizes the Attorney General to terminate a country from program participation for reasons of national security.Requires commercial air, land, or sea carriers arriving from a foreign country to provide the United States with specified crew and passenger manifest information prior to departure for the United States.Sets forth requirements for fraud-resistant Federal and federally-regulated documents.Prohibits, with exceptions, issuance of a foreign student visa to a national of a country on the Department of State's list of state sponsors of international terrorism.Provides for the implementation and expansion of the foreign student monitoring program, including provisions respecting: (1) submission of certain Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) forms; (2) background checks; and (3) educational institution reporting data on foreign students, including student failure to enroll.Provides for additional consular Customs, and INS investigative personnel.Directs the Comptroller General to determine the feasibility of requiring each nonimmigrant alien to report annually to the INS respecting his or her status.
People & committees
Sen. Feinstein, Dianne [D-CA] · D–CA
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S11386)
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
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Source last updated: Aug 10, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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