Enhanced protections for vulnerable unaccompanied alien children and female detainees

(a)

Mandatory training

The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Office of Refugee Resettlement of the Department of Health and Human Services and independent child welfare experts, shall mandate live training of all personnel who come into contact with unaccompanied alien children (as defined in section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 279)) in all relevant legal authorities, policies, and procedures pertaining to this vulnerable population. (b)

Care and transportation

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that all unaccompanied children who will undergo any immigration proceedings before the Department of Homeland Security and the Executive Office for Immigration Review are duly transported and placed in the care and legal and physical custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement within a maximum of 72 hours of their apprehension absent narrowly defined exceptional circumstances, including a natural disaster or comparable emergency beyond the control of the Secretary of Homeland Security or the Office of Refugee Resettlement. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that female officers are responsible and at all times present during the transfer and transport of female detainees who are in the custody of the Secretary of Homeland Security. (c)

Qualified resources

For purposes of this section, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide adequately trained and qualified staff resources at each major port of entry (as defined by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection station assigned to that port having in its custody over the past two fiscal years an average per year of 50 or more unaccompanied alien children (as defined in section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 279))), including U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents charged primarily with the safe, swift, and humane transportation of unaccompanied alien children to Office of Refugee Resettlement custody and independent licensed social workers dedicated to ensuring the proper temporary care for the children while in Department of Homeland Security custody prior to their transfer to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, who will ensure that each child— (1)receives emergency medical care; (2)receives mental health care in case of trauma and has access to psychosocial health services; (3)is provided with a pillow, linens, and sufficient blankets to rest at a comfortable temperature, a bed, and a mattress placed in an area specifically designated for residential use; (4)receives adequate nutrition; (5)enjoys a safe and sanitary living environment; (6)receives educational materials; and (7)has access to at least three hours per day of indoor and outdoor recreational programs and activities. (d)

Notification

The Secretary of Homeland Security shall immediately notify the Office of Refugee Resettlement of an unaccompanied alien child in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security to effectively and efficiently coordinate the child’s transfer to and placement with the Office of Refugee Resettlement. (e)

Notice of rights and access to counsel

The Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that an independent licensed social worker, as described in subsection (c), provides all unaccompanied alien children upon apprehension with both a video orientation and oral and written notice of their rights under the Immigration and Nationality Act including their rights to relief from removal and their rights to confer with counsel (as guaranteed under section 292 of such Act), family, or friends while in the Department of Homeland Security’s temporary custody and relevant complaint mechanisms to report any abuse or misconduct they may have experienced. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that the video orientation and written notice of rights is available in English and in the five most common native languages spoken by the unaccompanied children held in custody at that location during the preceding fiscal year, and that the oral notice of rights is available in English and in the most common native language spoken by the unaccompanied children held in custody at that location during the preceding fiscal year. (f)

Confidentiality

The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall maintain the privacy and confidentiality of all information gathered in the course of providing care, custody, placement and follow-up services to unaccompanied alien children, consistent with the best interest of the unaccompanied alien child, by not disclosing such information to other government agencies or nonparental third parties. The Secretary may share information when authorized to do so by the child and when consistent with the child’s best interest. The Secretary may provide information to a duly recognized law enforcement entity, if such disclosure would prevent imminent and serious harm to another individual. All disclosures shall be duly recorded in writing and placed in the child’s files. (g)

Other policies and procedures

The Secretary shall further adopt fundamental child protection policies and procedures— (1)for reliable age determinations of children which exclude the use of fallible forensic testing of children’s bone and teeth developed in consultation with medical and child welfare experts; (2)to ensure the safe and secure repatriation and reintegration of unaccompanied alien children to their home countries through specialized programs developed in close consultation with the Secretary of State, the Office of the Refugee Resettlement and reputable independent child welfare experts including placement of children with their families or nongovernmental agencies to provide food, shelter and vocational training and microfinance opportunities; (3)to utilize all legal authorities to defer the child’s removal if the child faces a risk of life-threatening harm upon return including due to the child’s mental health or medical condition; and (4)to ensure that unaccompanied alien children (as defined in section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 279)) are physically separated from any adult who is not an immediate family member and are separated by sight and sound from immigration detainees and inmates with criminal convictions, pretrial inmates facing criminal prosecution, children who have been adjudicated delinquents or convicted of adult offenses or are pending delinquency or criminal proceedings, and those inmates exhibiting violent behavior while in detention as is consistent with the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5601 et seq.).