[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3567 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3567

   To prohibit the use of funds for the operation or construction of 
               internment camps, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 10, 2018

Mr. Merkley (for himself and Mr. Wyden) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To prohibit the use of funds for the operation or construction of 
               internment camps, and for other purposes.

    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 ``No Internment Camps Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Federal Government has intentionally separated and 
        detained families seeking asylum in the United States 
        purportedly to deter other foreign nationals from coming to the 
        United States in the future. Such method of deterrence is 
        ineffective, contrary to human rights norms, and likely 
        violates United States and international law.
            (2) On September 7, 2018, the Secretary of Homeland 
        Security issued a proposed rule entitled ``Apprehension, 
        Processing, Care, and Custody of Alien Minors and Unaccompanied 
        Alien Children'' (83 Fed. Reg. 45486 (September 7, 2018)), that 
        attempts to circumvent a 1997 court agreement commonly known as 
        the ``Flores Settlement Agreement'' to undermine current legal 
        protections for children and families and increase family 
        detention.
            (3) Detaining families can have long-term consequences on 
        children, such as--
                    (A) difficulty regulating emotions, achieving 
                developmental milestones, and forming healthy 
                relationships;
                    (B) increased rates of anxiety, depression, and 
                post-traumatic stress disorder; and
                    (C) heightened risks of suicide and self-harm.
            (4) When family units are placed in family detention 
        facilities--
                    (A) family members experience feelings of isolation 
                and increased stress;
                    (B) the ability of the parents to care for their 
                children is compromised by the constraints of 
                detention; and
                    (C) the detention setting creates barriers to--
                            (i) accessing counsel and legal services; 
                        and
                            (ii) successfully obtaining relief from 
                        removal.
            (5) Nondetention-based practices, such as family case 
        management and community-based programs, are effective and 
        humane alternatives to family detention.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate committees of congress.--The term 
        ``appropriate committees of Congress'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on the Judiciary and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on the Judiciary and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives.
            (2) Family residential center.--The term ``family 
        residential center'' means a facility dedicated to detaining 
        alien families.
            (3) Fund.--The term ``Fund'' means the Emergency Fund for 
        Asylum Seekers established by section 5(a).
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Homeland Security.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR INTERNMENT CAMPS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, none 
of the amounts made available after the date of the enactment of this 
Act for any fiscal year may be obligated or expended to operate or 
construct a family residential center, whether directly operated by 
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or by another governmental or 
nongovernmental contractor.
    (b) Previously Authorized Expenditures.--
            (1) In general.--Beginning 1 year after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, none of the amounts made available 
        before such date of enactment for the purpose of operating or 
        constructing a family residential center may be used for such 
        purpose.
            (2) Prohibition on transfer.--None of the amounts made 
        available before the date of the enactment of this Act may be 
        reprogrammed or transferred for the purpose of operating or 
        constructing a family residential center.
    (c) Alternatives to Detention.--
            (1) Transfer of funds.--Amounts obligated to operate a 
        family residential center as of the date of the enactment of 
        this Act shall be transferred to the Alternatives to Detention 
        Account for the implementation of the Family Case Management 
        Program and the development of additional community-based 
        nondetention programs for alien families.
            (2) Nonprofit entity contracting partner.--The Secretary 
        shall contract with a qualified nonprofit entity for the 
        operation of the Family Case Management Program and other 
        community-based nondetention programs for alien families.
            (3) Legal orientation.--To facilitate participant 
        compliance with legal requirements, a nondetention program 
        under this subsection shall include a legal orientation for 
        each participant in the program.
            (4) Case management training.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary shall provide case 
                management training for all personnel of a nondetention 
                program under this subsection, including personnel of--
                            (i) the Department of Homeland Security; 
                        and
                            (ii) the nonprofit entity contracted under 
                        paragraph (2).
                    (B) Best practices.--The training under 
                subparagraph (A) shall be based on social welfare best 
                practices.
    (d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act may be construed to 
endorse the separation of alien families who enter the United States at 
or between ports of entry.

SEC. 5. EMERGENCY FUND FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS.

    (a) Establishment of Emergency Fund.--There is established in the 
Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the ``Emergency 
Fund for Asylum Seekers''.
    (b) Determination.--The Secretary may make a determination with 
respect to the number of alien families that have entered the United 
States for the purpose of seeking asylum during a fiscal year.
    (c) Availability and Use.--
            (1) 100 percent increase.--If the number of alien families 
        determined by the Secretary under subsection (b) to have 
        entered the United States for the purpose of seeking asylum 
        during a fiscal year exceeds 100 percent of the number of alien 
        families that entered the United States for such purpose during 
        the preceding fiscal year, as of the end of the comparable 
        month of the preceding fiscal year, $80,000,000 shall be made 
        available from the Fund for the purpose of increasing the 
        capacity of the Department of Homeland Security to process, 
        transport, parole, and release such alien families, of which 
        not less than $20,000,000 shall be made available for grants to 
        1 or more nonprofit entities that operate respite centers to 
        assist such alien families with services and compliance with 
        legal requirements.
            (2) 200 percent increase.--If the number of alien families 
        determined by the Secretary under subsection (b) to have 
        entered the United States for the purpose of seeking asylum 
        exceeds 200 percent of the number of alien families that 
        entered the United States for such purpose, as of the end of 
        the comparable month of the preceding fiscal year, an 
        additional amount of $20,000,000 shall be made available from 
        the Fund for the purpose of interviewing, processing, 
        transporting, paroling, and releasing alien families, of which 
        not less than $5,000,000 shall be made available for grants to 
        1 or more nonprofit entities that operate respite centers to 
        assist such alien families with services and compliance with 
        legal requirements.
    (d) Notification.--Not later than 14 days after the date on which 
an amount under subsection (c) is made available, the Secretary shall 
notify the appropriate committees of Congress of such availability.
    (e) Limitations.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
amounts in the Fund shall not be--
            (1) reprogrammed or transferred for the purpose of 
        operating or constructing a family residential center; or
            (2) made available for the purpose of detaining or 
        separating alien families.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Fund $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 
through 2024.
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