“To require certain protections for any dependent child whose parent is a detained alien, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section expresses the sense of Congress that family units qualify as a humanitarian or significant public benefit for parole determinations by the Secretary of Homeland Security under section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and that status as an alien parent shall not count as a negative factor in child custody decisions.
This section requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to inquire within two hours of taking an alien into custody, and before any transfer to a detention facility, whether the individual is a covered parent and to document the response. It mandates release of covered parents unless an immigration judge finds by clear and convincing evidence an individualized safety risk that cannot be mitigated through supervised release, and requires monthly inquiries into parental status during immigration proceedings.
This section requires the Department of Homeland Security to allow detained parents to make free telephone calls to arrange care for their dependent children before any transfer or removal, to arrange regular in-person visits with each child, and to make daily free telephone and video calls with each child. It also prohibits transfers of such parents to a different Immigration and Customs Enforcement area of responsibility except in exceptional circumstances or when legally required.
This section requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to ensure that covered parents may participate in family court proceedings and case planning activities affecting custody of their dependent children, make confidential uncharged telephone calls to counsel and child welfare agencies, obtain passports and records before removal, and receive advance notice of their child's travel arrangements. It also authorizes immigration judges to appoint government-funded counsel to covered parents during family integrity custody review proceedings.
This section establishes a presumption that parental rights remain intact when a dependent child is physically separated from a parent detained under immigration laws, if a state court has not terminated those rights. It further provides that such separation does not constitute a determination of abandonment, abuse, or neglect under federal or state law.
This section requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to give each covered parent subject to a final order of removal oral and written notice, in the parent's preferred language, that the parent may request in writing removal from the United States with dependent children to the same country and may amend the request. It provides that no effect is given to any such request made under duress or other coercive conditions.
This section establishes within U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters an Office of Detained Parent Coordination, headed by a National Coordinator with at least 10 years of experience in child welfare, family court, or guardianship matters. The office must employ at least 8 full-time staff and coordinate child welfare proceedings, visitation, guardianship arrangements, and travel for detained parents and their children; provide training to Department of Homeland Security employees on protections for such parents; and update the online detainee locator system to include information on referrals from state and local law enforcement.
This section establishes a community-based case management program, administered outside U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, that provides alternatives to detention for aliens and offers case management along with access to social services, medical and mental health services, housing, transportation, and legal services in the appropriate language.
This section requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to publish quarterly on the Department website the number of detained covered parents transferred from state or local custody, supported with child custody arrangements, involved in family court or child welfare proceedings, and removed with their children, along with minimum, maximum, average, and median detention durations and child placement details. It directs submission of reports containing this data every 180 days to the Senate Judiciary, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committees and the House Judiciary, Homeland Security, and Education and Workforce Committees, with the initial report covering implementation plans and later reports including training data, while requiring consistent collection methods and protection of personally identifiable information.
This section requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to facilitate, at Government expense, the reunification in the United States of any dependent child with a covered parent in a community-based setting no later than 2 months after the parent's removal, if the parent desires reunification. It also requires the Secretary to facilitate, at Government expense, the parent's arrangements for the child to remain in the United States, including participation in family court or child welfare proceedings.
This section preserves the obligations of the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 235 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, and the Flores Settlement Agreement.
This section defines key terms for the Act. A covered parent is an alien who is the parent of a dependent child physically present in the United States. A dependent child is an individual under age 18 or incapable of self-support due to physical, medical, or mental disability. A parent includes a biological or adoptive parent, legal guardian, or kin caregiver whose parental rights have not been relinquished or terminated.