[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 431 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 431

   Supporting the goals and ideals of ``International Parental Child 
Abduction Month'' and expressing the sense of the Senate that Congress 
  should raise awareness of the harm caused by international parental 
                            child abduction.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 12, 2018

Mr. Grassley (for himself, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Cruz, and Mr. Menendez) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                          on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Supporting the goals and ideals of ``International Parental Child 
Abduction Month'' and expressing the sense of the Senate that Congress 
  should raise awareness of the harm caused by international parental 
                            child abduction.

Whereas thousands of children in the United States have been abducted from the 
        United States by parents, separating those children from their parents 
        who remain in the United States;
Whereas it is illegal under section 1204 of title 18, United States Code, to 
        remove, or attempt to remove, a child from the United States or retain a 
        child (who has been in the United States) outside of the United States 
        with the intent to obstruct the lawful exercise of parental rights;
Whereas more than 600 children experienced international parental child 
        abduction during 2015;
Whereas, during 2016, one or more cases of international parental child 
        abduction involving children who are citizens of the United States were 
        identified in 106 countries around the world;
Whereas the United States is a party to the Convention on the Civil Aspects of 
        International Child Abduction, done at the Hague, October 25, 1980 (TIAS 
        11670) (referred to in this preamble as the ``Hague Convention on 
        Abduction''), which--

    (1) supports the prompt return of wrongly removed or retained children; 
and

    (2) calls for all participating parties to respect parental custody 
rights;

Whereas a significant number of children who were abducted from the United 
        States have yet to be reunited with their custodial parents;
Whereas, during 2016, 13 countries were identified under the Sean and David 
        Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act of 2014 
        (22 U.S.C. 9101 et seq.) as engaging in a pattern of noncompliance;
Whereas, during the 20-year period ending on the date of enactment of this 
        resolution, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has 
        provided assistance for more than 6,000 international family abduction 
        cases involving children wrongfully removed from or retained outside of 
        the United States;
Whereas the Supreme Court of the United States has recognized that family 
        abduction--

    (1) is a form of child abuse with potentially ``devastating 
consequences for a child'', that may include negative impacts on the 
physical and mental well-being of the child; and

    (2) can cause a child to ``experience a loss of community and 
stability, leading to loneliness, anger, and fear of abandonment'';

Whereas, according to the 2010 Report on Compliance with the Hague Convention on 
        the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction by the Department of 
        State, research shows that an abducted child is at risk of significant 
        short- and long-term problems, including ``anxiety, eating problems, 
        nightmares, mood swings, sleep disturbances, [and] aggressive 
        behavior'';
Whereas international parental child abduction has devastating emotional 
        consequences not only for the child but also for the parent from whom 
        the child is separated;
Whereas the United States has a history of promoting child welfare through 
        institutions including--

    (1) in the Department of Health and Human Services--

    G    (A) the Administration for Children and Families; and

    G    (B) the Children's Bureau; and

    (2) in the Department of State, the Office of Children's Issues;

Whereas Congress has signaled a commitment to ending international parental 
        child abduction by enacting the International Child Abduction Remedies 
        Act (22 U.S.C. 9001 et seq.), the International Parental Kidnapping 
        Crime Act of 1993 (Public Law 103-173; 107 Stat. 1998), and the Sean and 
        David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act of 
        2014 (22 U.S.C. 9101 et seq.);
Whereas, in 2012, the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 543, 112th Congress, 
        agreed to December 4, 2012, which--

    (1) condemned international parental child abduction;

    (2) urged countries identified by the Department of State as 
noncompliant with the Hague Convention on Abduction to fulfill the 
commitment those countries made to implement the Hague Convention on 
Abduction; and

    (3) expressed the sense of the Senate that the United States should--

    G    (A) pursue the return, by all appropriate means, of each child 
abducted by a parent to another country;

    G    (B) if a child is abducted by a parent and not returned to the 
United States, facilitate access to the abducted child for the parent 
remaining in the United States; and

    G    (C) where appropriate, seek the extradition of the parent that 
abducted the child;

Whereas all 50 States and the District of Columbia have enacted laws 
        criminalizing parental kidnapping;
Whereas, in 2016, the Prevention Branch of the Office of Children's Issues of 
        the Department of State--

    (1) fielded 2,537 inquiries from the general public relating to 
preventing a child from being removed from the United States; and

    (2) enrolled 4,087 children in the Children's Passport Issuance Alert 
Program, which--

    G    (A) is one of the most important tools of the Department of State 
for preventing international parental child abduction; and

    G    (B) allows the Office of Children's Issues to contact the 
enrolling parent or legal guardian to verify whether the parental consent 
requirement has been met when a passport application has been submitted for 
an enrolled child;

Whereas, the Department of State cannot track the ultimate destination of a 
        child through the use of the passport of the child issued by the 
        Department of State if the child is transported to a third country after 
        departing from the United States;
Whereas a child who is a citizen of the United States may have another 
        nationality and may travel using a passport issued by another country, 
        which--

    (1) increases the difficulty in determining the whereabouts of the 
child; and

    (2) makes efforts to prevent abductions all the more critical;

Whereas, in 2016, the Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with the 
        Prevention Branch of the Office of Children's Issues of the Department 
        of State, enrolled 131 children in a program aimed at preventing 
        international parental child abduction;
Whereas, the Department of State, through the International Visitor Leadership 
        Program and related initiatives with global partners of the United 
        States, has reduced the number of children who have been reported 
        abducted from the United States by 25 percent during the past 2 years; 
        and
Whereas the United States should continue to play a leadership role in raising 
        awareness about the devastating impacts of international parental child 
        abduction by educating the public about the negative emotional, 
        psychological, and physical consequences to children and parents 
        victimized by international parental child abduction: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the Senate recognizes and observes ``International 
Parental Child Abduction Month'' during the period beginning on April 
1, 2018, and ending on May 1, 2018, to raise awareness of, and 
opposition to, international parental child abduction.
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