S. 1653: International Tourism Facilitation Act

112th Congress · introduced 2011-10-04 · Immigration · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2011-10-04 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

International Tourism Facilitation Act

Plain summary

International Tourism Facilitation Act - Amends the Department of State and Related Agency Appropriations Act, 2005 to authorize the Secretary of State to charge consular services fees which may be deposited in the appropriate Department of State account to the extent that the amount of such fees collected during a fiscal year is greater than the amount of consular service fees deposited in the Treasury during FY2011. Amends the Department of State Authorities Act of 2006 to repeal the Secretary's authority to amend consular service surcharges in support of enhanced border security that are in addition to passport and immigrant visa fees in effect on January 1, 2004. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the Secretary to waive nonimmigrant visa interviews for up to three additional years (four years total) for individuals who previously held a U.S. visa. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress regarding nonimmigrant visa projections and plans to service such projections through 2020 in the high-growth markets of Brazil, China, and India.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

International Tourism Facilitation Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] · 6 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Christopher A. Coons (D-DE)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] reported raising $2.5 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (4)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization: A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Fiscal year: The 12-month period a government uses for its budget. The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30 and is named for the calendar year in which it ends. Most states use July 1 to June 30.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-112s1653.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/112/s>

Record fed-us-cong112-s1653 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong112 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong112