THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY METCALFE, BARRAR, CHRISTIANA, CLYMER, COX, CREIGHTON, EVERETT, GABLER, GEIST, HARRIS, KAUFFMAN, KNOWLES, MILLARD, MILLER, MUSTIO, PERRY, PYLE, ROCK, SWANGER, VULAKOVICH, REESE AND GROVE, MARCH 1, 2011

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, MARCH 1, 2011  

AN ACT

Providing for the Commonwealth Citizenship Act.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Short title.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the Commonwealth

Citizenship Act.

Section 2.  Citizenship.

(a)  Criteria.--A person is a citizen of this Commonwealth

if:

(1)  The person is born in the United States and subject

to the jurisdiction thereof.

(2)  The person is a resident of this Commonwealth.

(b)  Construction of terms.--For the purposes of this act,

"subject to the jurisdiction of the United States" has the

meaning that it bears in section 1 of the fourteenth amendment

to the Constitution of the United States, namely, that the

person is a child of at least one parent who owes no allegiance

to any foreign sovereignty or a child without citizenship or

nationality in any foreign country. For the purposes of this

act, a person who owes no allegiance to any foreign sovereignty

is a United States citizen or national, or an immigrant accorded

the privilege of residing permanently in the United States or a

person without citizenship or nationality in any foreign

country.

(c)  Additional criteria.--In addition to the criteria of

citizenship described under subsections (a) and (b), a person is

a citizen of this Commonwealth if:

(1)  The person is naturalized in the United States.

(2)  The person is a resident of this Commonwealth.

(d)  Effect.--Citizenship of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

shall not confer upon the holder thereof any right, privilege,

immunity or benefit under law.

Section 20.  Effective date.

This act shall take effect in 60 days.