Oklahoma Senator James Lankford is the latest official in Washington to claim that Congress has the power to restrict citizenship for those born in U.S. territories.

Senate Bill 5667, the “Ending Birthright Citizenship in U.S. Territories Act,” would amend the federal code so that only certain children born in U.S. territories would be recognized as U.S. citizens moving forward. Unlike a similar bill introduced earlier this year in the House, which would take effect next year, the Senate version would take effect immediately upon passage. Lankford’s bill comes weeks after President Trump targeted birthright citizenship in U.S. territories through Executive Order 14418.

“Now both chambers in Congress are considering legislation that claims the power to redefine who is a citizen by birth in U.S. territories,” said Neil Weare, Co-Director of Right to Democracy, which works to advance democracy, equity, and self-determination in U.S. territories. “This reflects a disturbing trend built on the assumption that citizenship rights for those born in U.S. territories are not constitutionally protected the same as for those born in other parts of the United States.”

 The new Senate legislation would amend the federal statute defining who is a citizen at birth by adding language “excluding any person born in any territory of the United States,” whose mother was “not lawfully present in such territory” and whose father “is not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident.”  

Weare added: “If Congress has the power to limit birthright citizenship for one group of people in the territories, then it has the power to do that across the board to anyone. So while today this Senate bill targets the children of certain immigrants, tomorrow Congress might target anyone born in a U.S. territory.”

 Weare was counsel of record for an amicus brief in Trump v. Barbara filed on behalf of twenty-one current and former officials from all five U.S. territories. The brief examined how the text and history of the Citizenship Clause support recognizing a constitutional right to citizenship in states and territories alike.

 Weare explained, “Neither this new Senate bill nor the earlier House bill are consistent with the Supreme Court’s recent ruling that ‘[a] child born on American soil and subject to American law’ is ‘an American citizen.’ As the Supreme Court made clear in Barbara, neither the President nor Congress have the power to redefine who has a constitutional right to citizenship.”

Adi Martinez Roman, co-Director of Right to Democracy, stated, “This new legislation is just the latest example of the federal government seeking to take unilateral action in U.S. territories without consulting the people of these communities. Whether it is the imposition of deep sea mining in the Pacific or postal service rule changes that raise costs and cut service, our people are forced to bear the burdens of federal actions without any political agency or self-determination. This is a painful reminder of how the colonial legal framework established by the Insular Cases makes those in Congress think they can do whatever they want in U.S. territories.”

 More information is available in a Frequently Asked Questions page available on Right to Democracy’s website.

Right to Democracy is also organizing a petition calling on “Congress, the President, and the Courts to reject the idea that the federal government has the power to deny U.S. citizenship to anyone simply because they were born in a U.S. territory.” It is also encouraging people from U.S. territories to complete an online community survey to collect feedback on whether Congress should have the power to limit citizenship in U.S. territories.  

Right to Democracy brings together people across the political status spectrum to confront the undemocratic colonial framework governing people in U.S. territories and advance a future grounded in democracy, equity, and self-determination.