[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2203 Engrossed in House (EH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2203

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
  To increase transparency, accountability, and community engagement 
    within the Department of Homeland Security, provide independent 
 oversight of border security activities, improve training for agents 
and officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration 
            and Customs Enforcement, 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. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSMAN FOR BORDER AND 
              IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT RELATED CONCERNS.

    (a) In General.--Title VII of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 
U.S.C. 341 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
section:

``SEC. 711. OMBUDSMAN FOR BORDER AND IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT RELATED 
              CONCERNS.

    ``(a) In General.--Within the Department there shall be a position 
of Ombudsman for Border and Immigration Enforcement Related Concerns 
(in this section referred to as the `Ombudsman'), who shall--
            ``(1) be independent of Department agencies and officers;
            ``(2) report directly to the Secretary; and
            ``(3) have a background in immigration law, civil rights, 
        and law enforcement.
    ``(b) Functions.--It shall be the function of the Ombudsman to--
            ``(1) in coordination with the Inspector General of the 
        Department, establish an independent, neutral, accessible, 
        confidential, and standardized process to assist individuals 
        (including aliens (as such term is defined in section 101 of 
        the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)) in 
        resolving complaints with respect to U.S. Customs and Border 
        Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a 
        subcontractor, or a cooperating entity, which process shall 
        include a publicly accessible website through which a 
        complainant can check on the status of such a complaint;
            ``(2) identify and thereafter review, examine, and make 
        recommendations to the Secretary to address chronic issues 
        identified by the Ombudsman in carrying out the function 
        described in paragraph (1);
            ``(3) establish a Border Oversight Panel in accordance with 
        subsection (f); and
            ``(4) review compliance with departmental policies and 
        standards of care for custody of aliens by U.S. Immigration and 
        Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 
        including any violations of applicable policy or standards of 
        care involving force-feeding.
    ``(c) Confidentiality.--The existence of a complaint, including the 
identity of any Department employee implicated in a complaint, shall be 
kept confidential by the Ombudsman and, in the absence of the written 
consent of an individual who submits a complaint, the Ombudsman shall 
keep confidential the identity of and any identifying information 
relating to such individual. Such confidentiality requirement may not 
be considered as a factor of whether or not information under this 
subsection may be disclosed under section 552 of title 5, United Stated 
Code (commonly referred to as the Freedom of Information Act).
    ``(d) Annual Reporting.--Not later than June 30 of each year 
beginning in the year after the date of the enactment of this section, 
the Ombudsman shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the 
Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate a report that includes, for 
the previous year, the following:
            ``(1) The number and types of complaints received under 
        this section and for each complaint--
                    ``(A) the component or subcomponent, subcontractor, 
                or cooperating entity identified;
                    ``(B) the demographics of the complainant; and
                    ``(C) a description of the resolution of the 
                complaint or the status of the resolution process.
            ``(2) Any complaint pattern that could be prevented or 
        reduced by policy training or practice changes.
            ``(3) A description of any pattern of violations of any 
        applicable policy or standards.
            ``(4) A description of each complaint received under this 
        section with respect to which U.S. Customs and Border 
        Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a 
        subcontractor, or a cooperating entity, as applicable, has 
        taken action to resolve, and the time between receipt and 
        resolution of each such complaint.
            ``(5) A description of complaints received under this 
        section for which action has not been taken after one year, and 
        the period during which each complaint has been open.
            ``(6) Recommendations the Ombudsman has made under 
        subsection (b)(2).
            ``(7) Other information, as determined appropriate by the 
        Ombudsman.
    ``(e) Appointment of Border Communities Liaison.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Ombudsman, in conjunction with the 
        Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties of the Department, 
        shall appoint a Border Community Liaison (in this subsection 
        referred to as the `Liaison') in each U.S. Border Patrol sector 
        on the northern and southern borders. Each Liaison shall report 
        to the Ombudsman.
            ``(2) Purposes.--Each Liaison appointed under this 
        subsection shall--
                    ``(A) foster cooperation between U.S. Customs and 
                Border Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs 
                Enforcement, and border communities;
                    ``(B) consult with border communities on the 
                development of policies, directives, and programs of 
                U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration 
                and Customs Enforcement;
                    ``(C) receive feedback from border communities on 
                the performance of U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
                and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; and
                    ``(D) submit to the Ombudsman an annual report 
                detailing their findings, feedback received from border 
                communities, and recommendations to increase 
                cooperation between U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 
                U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and border 
                communities.
    ``(f) Border Oversight Panel.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--The Ombudsman shall establish a 
        Border Oversight Panel (in this subsection referred to as the 
        `Panel').
            ``(2) Composition.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Panel shall be composed of 
                30 members selected by the Ombudsman.
                    ``(B) Chairperson.--The Ombudsman shall be the 
                chair of the Panel.
                    ``(C) Expertise.--Members of the Panel shall have 
                expertise in immigration, local crime indices, civil 
                and human rights, community relations, cross-border 
                trade and commerce, quality of life indicators, or 
                other experience the Ombudsman determines is 
                appropriate, and shall include individuals who reside 
                in or near border counties.
            ``(3) Duties.--The Panel shall evaluate and make 
        recommendations regarding the border enforcement policies, 
        strategies, and programs of the Department operating along the 
        northern and southern borders of the United States to--
                    ``(A) take into consideration the impact of such 
                policies, strategies, and programs on border 
                communities, including protecting due process, civil 
                and human rights of border residents and visitors, and 
                private property rights of land owners;
                    ``(B) uphold domestic and international legal 
                obligations;
                    ``(C) reduce the number of migrant deaths; and
                    ``(D) improve the safety of agents and officers of 
                U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration 
                and Customs Enforcement.
    ``(g) Staffing.--The Secretary shall take appropriate action to 
ensure the Ombudsman's office is sufficiently staffed and resourced to 
carry out its duties effectively and efficiently.
    ``(h) Training.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Ombudsman shall conduct a yearly 
        evaluation of all training given to agents and officers of U.S. 
        Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs 
        Enforcement.
            ``(2) Contents.--Each evaluation under paragraph (1) shall 
        include whether the training referred to in such paragraph 
        adequately addresses the following:
                    ``(A) Best practices in community policing, 
                cultural awareness, and carrying out enforcement 
                actions near sensitive locations, such as places of 
                worship or religious ceremony, school or education-
                related places or events, courthouses or other civic 
                buildings providing services accessible to the public, 
                hospitals, medical treatment or health care facilities, 
                public demonstrations, and attorney's offices 
                (including a public defender or legal aid offices).
                    ``(B) Policies for operating in locations where 
                there are limitations on cooperation by local law 
                enforcement.
                    ``(C) Interaction with vulnerable populations, 
                including instruction on screening, identifying, and 
                responding to vulnerable populations, such as children, 
                victims of human trafficking, and the acutely ill.
                    ``(D) Standards of professional and ethical 
                conduct, including the following:
                            ``(i) Lawful use of force, de-escalation 
                        tactics, and alternatives to the use of force.
                            ``(ii) Complying with chain of command and 
                        lawful orders.
                            ``(iii) Conduct and ethical behavior toward 
                        the public in a civil and professional manner.
                            ``(iv) Civil rights and legal protections 
                        for nationals of the United States and aliens.
                            ``(v) Non-biased questioning.
                            ``(vi) Sensitivity towards lesbian, gay, 
                        bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals.
                            ``(vii) Permissible and impermissible 
                        social media activity.
                            ``(viii) Sexual and other harassment and 
                        assault, including an assessment of whether 
                        adequate policies exist to resolve complaints.
                    ``(E) Protecting the civil, constitutional, human, 
                and privacy rights of individuals, with special 
                emphasis on the scope of enforcement authority, 
                including chain of evidence practices and document 
                seizure, and use of force policies available to agents 
                and officers.
                    ``(F) Maintaining and updated understanding of 
                Federal legal rulings, court decisions, and Department 
                policies and procedures.
                    ``(G) The scope of agents' and officers' authority 
                to conduct immigration enforcement activities, 
                including interviews, interrogations, stops, searches, 
                arrests, and detentions, in addition to identifying and 
                detecting fraudulent documents.
            ``(3) Recommendations.--Not later than 90 days after 
        conducting each evaluation under paragraph (1), the Ombudsman 
        shall develop, and submit to the Secretary, recommendations 
        regarding any additional training.
            ``(4) Feedback.--Not later than 180 days after receiving 
        recommendations transmitted by the Ombudsman, the Secretary 
        shall respond publicly and in writing with feedback on each of 
        the recommendations, an action plan to implement any of such 
        recommendations with which the Secretary concurs, and a 
        justification for why any of such recommendations have been 
        rejected.
    ``(i) Electronic Tracking.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Ombudsman, in coordination with the 
        Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the 
        Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the 
        Office of Refugee Resettlement of the Department of Health and 
        Human Services, shall develop recommendations for the 
        establishment of an electronic tracking number system on a 
        single interface, which shall be used to track the location of 
        a child who has been separated from a parent, legal guardian, 
        or other relative of such child, and which shall be accessible 
        to agents and officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 
        U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Office of 
        Refugee Resettlement.
            ``(2) Tracking number.--The recommendations developed under 
        this subsection shall consider how a tracking number can be 
        assigned to a child who has been separated from a parent, legal 
        guardian, or other relative of such child that--
                    ``(A) is transferrable;
                    ``(B) may be shared easily on the electronic 
                tracking system described in this subsection by agents 
                and officers of--
                            ``(i) U.S. Customs and Border Protection;
                            ``(ii) U.S. Immigration and Customs 
                        Enforcement; and
                            ``(iii) the Office of Refugee Resettlement 
                        of the Department of Health and Human Services; 
                        and
                    ``(C) is interoperable with the electronic location 
                records of a parent, legal guardian, or other relative 
                of such child.
    ``(j) Body-worn Cameras.--
            ``(1) Requirement.--Not later than 120 days after the date 
        of the enactment of this section, the Ombudsman, in 
        coordination with the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 
        Protection, the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs 
        Enforcement, and labor organizations representing agents and 
        officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. 
        Immigration and Customs Enforcement, shall submit to the 
        Committee on Homeland Security and the Committee on the 
        Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
        Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on 
        the Judiciary of the Senate a plan for requiring, not later 
        than one year after such date of enactment, the use of body-
        worn cameras by U.S. Border Patrol agents and U.S. Immigration 
        and Customs Enforcement officers whenever such agents and 
        officers are engaged in border security or immigration 
        enforcement activities.
            ``(2) Elements.--The plan required under paragraph (1) 
        shall include the following:
                    ``(A) Benchmarks for implementation of the use of 
                body-worn cameras within U.S. Customs and Border 
                Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs 
                Enforcement.
                    ``(B) Policies, procedures, and training modules 
                for the use of body-worn cameras by agents and officers 
                of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. 
                Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including training 
                modules relating to the appropriate use of such cameras 
                and adverse action for non-compliance.
                    ``(C) Mechanisms to ensure compliance with body-
                worn camera policies and procedures.
            ``(3) Considerations.--The plan required under paragraph 
        (1) shall be informed by--
                    ``(A) existing State and local policies requiring 
                the use of body-worn cameras; and
                    ``(B) principles regarding body-worn cameras 
                published by major civil and human rights 
                organizations.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of the Homeland 
Security Act of 2002 is amended by adding after the item relating to 
section 710 the following new item:

``Sec. 711. Ombudsman for Border and Immigration Enforcement Related 
                            Concerns.''.

            Passed the House of Representatives September 25, 2019.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.
116th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                               H. R. 2203

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

  To increase transparency, accountability, and community engagement 
    within the Department of Homeland Security, provide independent 
 oversight of border security activities, improve training for agents 
and officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration 
            and Customs Enforcement, and for other purposes.