[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 618 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 618

Supporting the goals and ideals of ``Countering 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 22, 2024

    Mr. Tillis (for himself and Mr. Murphy) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Supporting the goals and ideals of ``Countering 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 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 to 
        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 9,816 children were reported abducted from the United States between 
        2010 and 2020;
Whereas, during 2022, one or more cases of international parental child 
        abduction involving children who are citizens of the United States were 
        identified in 99 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 the majority of children who were abducted from the United States have 
        yet to be reunited with their custodial parents;
Whereas, in 2022, Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Bulgaria, Ecuador, Egypt, Honduras, 
        India, Jordan, the Republic of Korea, Peru, Romania, the Russian 
        Federation, and the United Arab Emirates were identified pursuant to 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 (as defined in section 3 of such Act (22 U.S.C. 9101));
Whereas, between 2015 and 2022, a total of 19 countries were previously 
        identified as engaging in a pattern of noncompliance, including Austria, 
        the Bahamas, the People's Republic of China, Colombia, Costa Rica, the 
        Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Japan, Lebanon, Morocco, Nicaragua, Oman, 
        Pakistan, Panama, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Trinidad and Tobago, 
        and Tunisia, showing the importance of continued enforcement of United 
        States law by the executive branch to ensure the return of abducted 
        children;
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'', which may include negative impacts on the 
physical and mental well-being of the child; and

    (2) may 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, 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 for the child and for the parent from whom the child is 
        separated;
Whereas the United States has a history of promoting child welfare through 
        institutions, including--

    (1) the Children's Bureau of the Administration for Children and 
Families of the Department of Health and Human Services; and

    (2) the Office of Children's Issues of the Bureau of Consular Affairs 
of the Department of State;

Whereas the Coalition to End International Parental Child Abduction, through 
        dedicated advocacy and regular testimony, has highlighted the importance 
        of this issue to Congress and called on successive administrations to 
        take concerted action to stop international parental child abduction and 
        repatriate kidnapped United States children;
Whereas Bring Abducted Children Home, Bring Our Kids Home, iStand Parent 
        Network, and the Coalition to End International Parental Child Abduction 
        have been recognized by the Department of Justice as nonprofit 
        organizations specializing in international parental child abduction;
Whereas Congress has signaled a commitment to ending international parental 
        child abduction by enacting--

    (1) the International Child Abduction Remedies Act (22 U.S.C. 9001 et 
seq.);

    (2) the International Parental Kidnapping Crime Act of 1993 (Public Law 
103-173), which enacted section 1204 of title 18, United States Code; and

    (3) the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention 
and Return Act of 2014 (22 U.S.C. 9101 et seq.);

Whereas the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 543, 112th Congress, agreed to on 
        December 4, 2012, condemning the international abduction of children;
Whereas the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 431, 115th Congress, agreed to on 
        April 19, 2018, to raise awareness of, and opposition to, international 
        parental child abduction;
Whereas the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 23, 116th Congress, agreed to on 
        April 11, 2019, to raise awareness of the harm caused by international 
        parental child abduction;
Whereas the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 568, 117th Congress, agreed to on 
        July 21, 2022, to raise awareness of the harm caused by international 
        parental child abduction;
Whereas the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 115, 118th Congress, agreed to on 
        May, 10 2023, to raise awareness of the harm caused by international 
        parental child abduction;
Whereas Congress calls upon the Department of State to fully utilize the tools 
        available under the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction 
        Prevention and Return Act of 2014 (22 U.S.C. 9101 et seq.) to negotiate, 
        and make publicly available, bilateral agreements or memorandums of 
        understanding--

    (1) with countries not parties to the Hague Convention on Abduction to 
resolve abduction and access cases; and

    (2) regarding open abduction and access cases predating the Hague 
Convention on Abduction with countries that have thereafter become parties 
to the Hague Convention on Abduction;

Whereas all 50 States and the District of Columbia have enacted laws 
        criminalizing parental kidnapping;
Whereas, in 2022, the Prevention Branch of the Office of Children's Issues of 
        the Department of State--

    (1) fielded more than 4,900 inquiries from the general public relating 
to preventing a child from being removed from the United States; and

    (2) enrolled more than 3,500 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;

    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; and

    G    (C) has enrolled a total of over 62,400 children in the program 
since its inception;

Whereas the Department of State cannot track the ultimate destination of a child 
        through the use of the passport 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 of determining the whereabouts of the 
child; and

    (2) makes efforts to prevent abduction more critical;

Whereas, during 2022, 165 children were returned to the United States, and an 
        additional 117 abduction cases, involving 145 children, were resolved 
        without the children being returned to the United States; and
Whereas, in 2022, the Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with the 
        Prevention Branch of the Office of Children's Issues of the Department 
        of State, enrolled 307 children in the Prevent Abduction Program, which 
        is aimed at preventing international parental child abduction through 
        coordination with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officers at the 
        airport, seaport, or land border ports of entry by intercepting the 
        child before departure: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) recognizes and observes ``Countering International 
        Parental Child Abduction Month'' during the period beginning on 
        April 1, 2024, and ending on April 30, 2024, to raise awareness 
        of, and opposition to, international parental child abduction; 
        and
            (2) urges the United States to continue playing 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.
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