[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2624 Introduced in House (IH)]
113th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2624
To provide for enhanced protections for vulnerable unaccompanied alien
children and female detainees.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 8, 2013
Ms. Roybal-Allard (for herself and Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary,
and in addition to the Committees on Homeland Security, Foreign
Affairs, and Appropriations, for a period to be subsequently determined
by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as
fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for enhanced protections for vulnerable unaccompanied alien
children and female detainees.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Child Trafficking Victims Protection
Act''.
SEC. 2. PROTECTING CHILD TRAFFICKING VICTIMS.
(a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``Child
Trafficking Victims Protection Act''.
(b) Defined Term.--In this section, the term ``unaccompanied alien
children'' has the meaning given such term in section 462 of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 279).
(c) Mandatory Training.--The Secretary, in consultation with the
Secretary of Health and Human Services and independent child welfare
experts, shall mandate appropriate training of all personnel who come
into contact with unaccompanied alien children in the relevant legal
authorities, policies, practices, and procedures pertaining to this
vulnerable population.
(d) Care and Transportation.--Notwithstanding any other provision
of law, the Secretary shall ensure that all unaccompanied alien
children who will undergo any immigration proceedings before the
Department or 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 not later than 72 hours after their
apprehension absent exceptional circumstances, including a natural
disaster or comparable emergency beyond the control of the Secretary or
the Office of Refugee Resettlement. The Secretary, to the extent
practicable, shall ensure that female officers are continuously present
during the transfer and transport of female detainees who are in the
custody of the Department.
(e) Qualified Resources.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall provide adequately
trained and qualified staff and resources, including the
accommodation of child welfare officials, in accordance with
subsection (e), at U.S. Customs and Border Protection ports of
entry and stations.
(2) Child welfare professionals.--The Secretary of Health
and Human Services, in consultation with the Secretary, shall
hire, on a full- or part-time basis, child welfare
professionals who will provide assistance, either in person or
by other appropriate methods of communication, in not fewer
than 7 of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection offices or
stations with the largest number of unaccompanied alien child
apprehensions in the previous fiscal year.
(f) Child Welfare Professionals.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the
Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall ensure that
qualified child welfare professionals with expertise in
culturally competent, trauma-centered, and developmentally
appropriate interviewing skills are available at ports of entry
and stations as described in subsection (d).
(2) Duties.--Child welfare professionals described in
paragraph (1) shall--
(A) develop guidelines for treatment of
unaccompanied alien children in the custody of the
Department;
(B) conduct screening of all unaccompanied alien
children in accordance with section 235(a)(4) of the
William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection
Reauthorization Act of 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1232(a)(4));
(C) notify the Department and the Office of Refugee
Resettlement of children that potentially meet the
notification and transfer requirements set forth in
subsections (a) and (b) of section 235 of such Act (8
U.S.C. 1232);
(D) interview adult relatives accompanying
unaccompanied alien children;
(E) provide an initial family relationship and
trafficking assessment and recommendations regarding
unaccompanied alien children's initial placements to
the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which shall be
conducted in accordance with the timeframe set forth in
subsections (a)(4) and (b)(3) of section 235 of such
Act (8 U.S.C. 1232); and
(F) ensure that each unaccompanied alien child in
the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection--
(i) receives emergency medical care when
necessary;
(ii) receives emergency medical and mental
health care that complies with the standards
adopted pursuant to section 8(c) of the Prison
Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (42 U.S.C.
15607(c)) whenever necessary, including in
cases in which a child is at risk to harm
himself, herself, or others;
(iii) is provided with climate appropriate
clothing, shoes, basic personal hygiene and
sanitary products, a pillow, linens, and
sufficient blankets to rest at a comfortable
temperature;
(iv) receives adequate nutrition;
(v) enjoys a safe and sanitary living
environment;
(vi) has access to daily recreational
programs and activities if held for a period
longer than 24 hours;
(vii) has access to legal services and
consular officials; and
(viii) is permitted to make supervised
phone calls to family members.
(3) Final determinations.--The Office of Refugee
Resettlement in accordance with applicable policies and
procedures for sponsors, shall submit final determinations on
family relationships to the Secretary, who shall consider such
adult relatives for community-based support alternatives to
detention.
(4) Report.--Not later than 18 months after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary
shall submit a report to Congress that--
(A) describes the screening procedures used by the
child welfare professionals to screen unaccompanied
alien children;
(B) assesses the effectiveness of such screenings;
and
(C) includes data on all unaccompanied alien
children who were screened by child welfare
professionals.
(g) Immediate Notification.--The Secretary shall notify the Office
of Refugee Resettlement of an unaccompanied alien child in the custody
of the Department as soon as practicable, but generally not later than
48 hours after the Department encounters the child, to effectively and
efficiently coordinate the child's transfer to and placement with the
Office of Refugee Resettlement.
(h) Notice of Rights and Right to Access to Counsel.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall ensure that all
unaccompanied alien children, upon apprehension, are provided--
(A) an interview and screening with a child welfare
professional described in subsection (e)(1); and
(B) an orientation and oral and written notice of
their rights under the Immigration and Nationality Act,
including--
(i) their right to relief from removal;
(ii) their right to confer with counsel (as
guaranteed under section 292 of such Act (8
U.S.C. 1362)), family, or friends while in the
temporary custody of the Department; and
(iii) relevant complaint mechanisms to
report any abuse or misconduct they may have
experienced.
(2) Languages.--The Secretary shall ensure that--
(A) the video orientation and written notice of
rights described in paragraph (1) is available in
English and in the 5 most common native languages
spoken by the unaccompanied children held in custody at
that location during the preceding fiscal year; and
(B) 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.
(i) 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
unless such disclosure is--
(1) recorded in writing and placed in the child's file;
(2) in the child's best interest; and
(3)(A) authorized by the child or by an approved sponsor in
accordance with section 235 of the William Wilberforce
Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (8
U.S.C. 1232) and the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (Public Law 104-191); or
(B) provided to a duly recognized law enforcement entity to
prevent imminent and serious harm to another individual.
(j) Other Policies and Procedures.--The Secretary shall adopt
fundamental child protection policies and procedures--
(1) for reliable age determinations of children, developed
in consultation with medical and child welfare experts, which
exclude the use of fallible forensic testing of children's bone
and teeth;
(2) 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
(3) to ensure, in accordance with the Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5601 et seq.),
that unaccompanied alien children, while in detention, are--
(A) physically separated from any adult who is not
an immediate family member; and
(B) separated from--
(i) immigration detainees and inmates with
criminal convictions;
(ii) pretrial inmates facing criminal
prosecution; and
(iii) inmates exhibiting violent behavior.
(k) Repatriation and Reintegration Program.--
(1) In general.--The Administrator of the United States
Agency for International Development, in conjunction with the
Secretary, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the
Attorney General, international organizations, and
nongovernmental organizations in the United States with
expertise in repatriation and reintegration, shall ensure that
programs in the United States and within the country of return
support the safe and sustainable repatriation and reintegration
of unaccompanied alien children into their country of
nationality or of last habitual residence, including placement
with their families, legal guardians, or other sponsoring
agencies.
(2) Report on repatriation and reintegration of
unaccompanied alien children.--Not later than 18 months after
the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter,
the Administrator of the Agency for International Development
shall submit a substantive report to the Committee on the
Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of
the House of Representatives on efforts to improve repatriation
and reintegration programs for unaccompanied alien children.
(l) Transfer of Funds.--
(1) Authorization.--The Secretary, in accordance with a
written agreement between the Secretary and the Secretary of
Health and Human Services, shall transfer such amounts as may
be necessary to carry out the duties described in subsection
(f)(2) from amounts appropriated for U.S. Customs and Border
Protection to the Department of Health and Human Services.
(2) Report.--Not later than 15 days before any proposed
transfer under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Health and Human
Services, in consultation with the Secretary, shall submit a
detailed expenditure plan that describes the actions proposed
to be taken with amounts transferred under such paragraph to--
(A) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
and
(B) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives.
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