[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 107 (Tuesday, June 25, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H5147-H5159]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE AND
SECURITY AT THE SOUTHERN BORDER ACT, 2019
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 462, I call
up the bill (H.R. 3401) making emergency supplemental appropriations
for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2019, and for other purposes,
and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 462, the
amendment printed in House Report 116-128 shall be considered as
adopted, and the bill, as amended, is considered read.
The text of the bill, as amended, is as follows:
H.R. 3401
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the
following sums are appropriated, out of any money in the
Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the fiscal year
ending September 30, 2019, and for other purposes, namely:
TITLE I
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
General Administration
executive office for immigration review
For an additional amount for ``Executive Office for
Immigration Review'', $17,000,000 to be used only for
services and activities provided by the Legal Accesa
Programs, of which not less than $2,000,000 shall be for the
continued operation of the Immigration Court Helpdesk
Program: Provided, That such amount is designated by the
Congress as being for an emergency requirement pursuant to
section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act of 1985.
United States Marshals Service
federal prisoner detention
For an additional amount for ``Federal Prisoner
Detention'', $155,000,000 to be used only for the necessary
expenses related to United States prisoners in the custody of
the United States Marshals Service as authorized by section
4013 of title 18, United States Code: Provided, That such
amount is designated by the Congress as being for an
emergency requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of
the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of
1985.
TITLE II
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Security, Enforcement, and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
operations and support
For an additional amount for ``Operations and Support'' for
necessary expenses to respond to the significant rise in
aliens at the southwest border and related activities,
$1,217,931,000, to remain available until September 30, 2020;
of which $702,500,000 is for migrant processing facilities;
of which $92,000,000 is for consumables; of which $19,950,000
is for medical assets and high risk support; of which
$8,000,000 is for Federal Protective Service support; of
which $35,000,000 is for transportation; of which $90,636,000
is for temporary duty and overtime costs; of which
$19,845,000 is for reimbursements for temporary duty and
overtime costs; and of which $50,000,000 is for mission
support data systems and analysis: Provided, That such amount
is designated by the Congress as being for an emergency
requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
procurement, construction, and improvements
For an additional amount for ``Procurement, Construction,
and Improvements'' for migrant processing facilities,
$85,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2023:
Provided, That such amount is designated by the Congress as
being for an emergency requirement pursuant to section
251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
operations and support
For an additional amount for ``Operations and Support'' for
necessary expenses to respond to the significant rise in
aliens at the southwest border and related activities,
$128,238,000; of which $35,943,000 is for transportation of
unaccompanied alien children; of which $11,981,000 is for
detainee transportation for medical needs, court proceedings,
or relocation to and from U.S. Customs and Border Protection
custody; of which $5,114,000 is for reimbursements for
overtime and temporary duty costs; of which $20,000,000 is
for alternatives to detention; of which $45,000,000 is for
detainee medical care; and of which $10,200,000 is for the
Office of Professional Responsibility for background
investigations and facility inspections: Provided, That such
amount is designated by the Congress as being for an
emergency requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of
the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of
1985.
Federal Emergency Management Agency
federal assistance
For an additional amount for ``Federal Assistance'',
$60,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2020,
for the emergency food and shelter program under Title III of
the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11331
et seq.) for the purposes of providing assistance to aliens
released from the custody of the Department of Homeland
Security: Provided, That notwithstanding Sections 315 and
316(b) of such Act, funds made available under this section
shall be disbursed by the Emergency Food and Shelter Program
National Board not later than 30 days after the date on which
such funds becomes available: Provided further, That the
Emergency Food and Shelter Program National Board shall
distribute such funds only to jurisdictions or local
recipient organizations serving communities that have
experienced a significant influx of such aliens: Provided
further, That such funds may be used to reimburse such
jurisdictions or local recipient organizations for costs
incurred in providing services to such aliens on or after
January 1, 2019: Provided further, That such amount is
designated by the Congress as being for an emergency
requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
GENERAL PROVISIONS--THIS TITLE
Sec. 201. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
funds made available under each heading in this title shall
only be used for the purposes specifically described under
that heading.
Sec. 202. Division A of the Consolidated Appropriations
Act, 2019 (Public Law 116-6) is amended by adding after
section 540 the following:
``Sec. 541. (a) Section 831 of the Homeland Security Act of
2002 (6 U.S.C. 391) shall be applied--
``(1) in subsection (a), by substituting `September 30,
2019,' for `September 30, 2017,'; and
``(2) in subsection (c)(1), by substituting `September 30,
2019,' for `September 30, 2017'.
``(b) The Secretary of Homeland Security, under the
authority of section 831 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002
(6 U.S.C. 391(a)), may carry out prototype projects under
section 2371b of title 10, United States Code, and the
Secretary shall perform the functions of the Secretary of
Defense as prescribed.
``(c) The Secretary of Homeland Security under section 831
of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391(d)) may
use the definition of nontraditional government contractor as
defined in section 2371b(e) of title 10, United States
Code.''.
Sec. 203. (a) The Secretary of the Department of Homeland
Security shall establish policies and distribute written
personnel guidance, as appropriate, not later than 60 days
after the date of enactment of this Act on the following:
(1) Providing private meeting space and video
teleconferencing access for individuals returned to Mexico
under the Migrant Protection Protocols to consult with legal
counsel, including prior to initial immigration court
hearings.
(2) Efforts, in consultation with the Department of State,
to address the housing,
[[Page H5148]]
transportation, and security needs of such individuals.
(3) Efforts, in consultation with the Department of
Justice, to ensure that such individuals are briefed, in
their primary spoken language to the greatest extent
possible, on their legal rights and obligations prior to
being returned to Mexico.
(4) Efforts, in consultation with the Department of
Justice, to prioritize the immigration proceedings of such
individuals.
(5) The establishment of written policies defining
categories of vulnerable individuals who should not be so
returned.
(b) For purposes of this section, the term ``Migrant
Protection Protocols'' means the actions taken by the
Secretary to implement the memorandum dated January 25, 2019
entitled ``Policy Guidance for the Implementation of the
Migrant Protection Protocols''.
(c) The amounts provided by this section are designated by
the Congress as being for an emergency requirement pursuant
to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
Sec. 204. None of the funds provided in this Act under
``U.S. Customs and Border Protection--Operations and
Support'' for facilities shall be available until U.S.
Customs and Border Protection establishes policies (via
directive, procedures, guidance, and/or memorandum) and
training programs to ensure that such facilities adhere to
the National Standards on Transport, Escort, Detention, and
Search, published in October of 2015: Provided, That not
later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall provide a detailed
report to the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and
the House of Representatives, the Committee on the Judiciary
of the Senate, and the House Judiciary Committee regarding
the establishment and implementation of such policies and
training programs.
Sec. 205. No later than 30 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security
shall provide a report on the number of U.S. Customs and
Border Protection Officers assigned to Northern Border land
ports of entry and temporarily assigned to the ongoing
humanitarian crisis: Provided, That the report shall outline
what resources and conditions would allow a return to
northern border staffing levels that are no less than the
number committed in the June 12, 2018 Department of Homeland
Security Northern Border Strategy: Provided further, That the
report shall include the number of officers temporarily
assigned to the southwest border in response to the ongoing
humanitarian crisis, the number of days the officers will be
away from their northern border assignment, the northern
border ports from which officers are being assigned to the
southwest border, and efforts being made to limit the impact
on operations at each northern border land port of entry
where officers have been temporarily assigned to the
southwest border.
Sec. 206. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made
available by this Act or division A of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2019 (Public Law 116-6) for the
Department of Homeland Security may be used to relocate to
the National Targeting Center the vetting of Trusted Traveler
Program applications and operations currently carried out at
existing locations unless specifically authorized by a
statute enacted after the date of enactment of this Act.
Sec. 207. (a) Of the additional amount provided under
``U.S. Customs and Border Protection--Operations and
Support'', $200,000,000 is for a multi-agency, integrated,
migrant processing center pilot program for family units and
unaccompanied alien children, including the following:
(1) Ongoing assessment and treatment efforts for physical
or mental health conditions, including development of a
support plan and services for each member of a vulnerable
population.
(2) Assessments of child protection and welfare needs.
(3) Food, shelter, hygiene services and supplies, clothing,
and activities appropriate for the non-penal, civil detention
of families.
(4) Personnel with appropriate training on caring for
families and vulnerable populations in a civil detention
environment.
(5) Free telephonic communication access, including support
for contacting family members.
(6) Direct access to legal orientation, legal
representation, and case management in private areas of the
center.
(7) Credible fear and reasonable fear interviews conducted
by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services asylum officers
in private areas of the center.
(8) Granting of asylum directly by U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services for manifestly well-founded or clearly
meritorious cases.
(9) For family units not found removable prior to departure
from the center--
(A) release on own recognizance or placement in
alternatives to detention with case management; and
(B) coordinated transport to a respite shelter or city of
final destination.
(10) For family units found removable prior to departure
from the center, safe return planning support by an
immigration case manager, including a consular visit to
assist with reintegration.
(11) On-site operational support by non-governmental
organizations for the identification and protection of
vulnerable populations.
(b) The Secretary shall notify the Committees on
Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives
within 24 hours of any--
(1) unaccompanied child placed in the pilot program whose
time in Department of Homeland Security custody exceeds 72
hours; and
(2) family unit placed in the pilot program whose time in
such custody exceed exceeds 9 days.
(c) Prior to the obligation of the amount identified in
subsection (a), but not later than 30 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit a plan for
the implementation of the pilot program to the Committees on
Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives
which shall include a definition of vulnerable populations.
Sec. 208. Not later than 30 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security
shall establish final plans, standards, and protocols to
protect the health and safety of individuals in the custody
of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which shall include--
--
(1) standards and response protocols for medical
assessments and medical emergencies;
(2) requirements for ensuring the provision of water,
appropriate nutrition, hygiene, and sanitation needs;
(3) standards for temporary holding facilities that adhere
to best practices for the care of children, which shall be in
compliance with the relevant recommendations in the Policy
Statement of the American Academy of Pediatrics entitled,
``Detention of Immigrant Children'';
(4) protocols for responding to surges of migrants crossing
the southern border or arriving at land ports of entry; and
(5) required training for all Federal and contract
personnel who interact with migrants on the care and
treatment of individuals in civil detention.
Sec. 207. Not later than 120 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security
shall submit to the House of Representatives and the Senate a
plan for ensuring access to appropriate translation services
for all individuals encountered by U.S. Customs and Border
Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, including an
estimate of related resource requirements and the feasibility
and potential benefit of these components jointly procuring
such services.
TITLE III
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
refugee and entrant assistance
(including transfer of funds)
For an additional amount for ``Refugee and Entrant
Assistance'' $2,881,552,000, to be merged with and available
for the same period as funds appropriated in division B of
Public Law 115-245 and made available through fiscal year
2021 under this heading, and to be made available for any
purpose funded under such heading in such law: Provided, That
if any part of the reprogramming described in the
notification submitted by the Secretary of Health and Human
Services (the ``Secretary'') to the Committees on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate
on May 16, 2019, has been executed as of the date of the
enactment of this Act, such amounts provided by this Act as
are necessary shall be used to reverse such reprogramming:
Provided further, That of the amounts provided under this
heading, the amount allocated by the Secretary for costs of
leases of property that include facilities to be used as
hard-sided dormitories for which the Secretary intends to
seek State licensure for the care of unaccompanied alien
children, and that are executed under authorities transferred
to the Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR)
under section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, shall
remain available until expended: Provided further, That ORR
shall notify the Committees on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives and the Senate within 72 hours of conducting
a formal assessment of a facility for possible lease or
acquisition and within 7 days of any lease or acquisition of
real property: Provided further, That not less than
$866,000,000 of the amounts provided under this heading shall
be used for the provision of care in licensed shelters and
for expanding the supply of shelters for which State
licensure will be sought, of which not less than $27,000,000
shall be available for the purposes of adding shelter beds in
State-licensed facilities in response to funding opportunity
HHS-2017-ACF-ORR-ZU-1132, and of which not less than
$185,000,000 shall be available for expansion grants to add
beds in State-licensed facilities and open new State-licensed
facilities, and for contract costs to acquire, activate, and
operate facilities that include small- and medium-scale hard-
sided facilities for which the Secretary intends to seek
State licensure in an effort to phase out the need for
shelter beds in unlicensed facilities: Provided further, That
not less than $100,000,000 of the amounts provided under this
heading shall be used for post-release services, child
advocates, and legal services: Provided further, That the
amount made available for legal services in the preceding
proviso shall be made available for the same purposes for
which amounts were provided for such services in fiscal year
2017: Provided further, That not less than $8,000,000 of the
amounts provided under this heading shall be used for the
purposes of hiring additional Federal Field Specialists and
for increasing
[[Page H5149]]
case management and case coordination services, with the goal
of more expeditiously placing unaccompanied alien children
with sponsors and reducing the length of stay in ORR custody:
Provided further, That not less than $1,000,000 of amounts
provided under this heading shall be used for the purposes of
hiring project officers and program monitor staff dedicated
to pursuing strategic improvements to the Unaccompanied Alien
Children program and for the development of a discharge rate
improvement plan which shall be submitted to the Committees
on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the
Senate within 120 days of the date of enactment of this Act:
Provided further, That of the amounts provided under this
heading, $5,000,000 shall be transferred to ``Office of the
Secretary--Office of Inspector General'' and shall remain
available until expended for oversight of activities
supported with funds appropriated under this heading:
Provided further, That none of the funds made available under
this heading may be transferred pursuant to the authority in
section 205 of division B of Public Law 115-245: Provided
further, That the amount provided under this heading is
designated by the Congress as being for an emergency
requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
GENERAL PROVISIONS--THIS TITLE
Sec. 301. The Secretary of Health and Human Services (the
``Secretary'') shall prioritize use of community-based
residential care (including long-term and transitional foster
care and small group homes) and shelter care other than
large-scale institutional shelter facilities to house
unaccompanied alien children in the custody of the Department
of Health and Human Services. The Secretary shall prioritize
State-licensed, hard-sided dormitories.
Sec. 302. Funds made available in this Act under the
heading ``Department of Health and Human Services--
Administration for Children and Families--Refugee and Entrant
Assistance'' shall remain available for obligation only if
the operational directives issued by the Office of Refugee
Resettlement between December 1, 2018, and June 15, 2019, to
accelerate the identification and approval of sponsors,
remain in effect.
Sec. 303. Funds made available in this Act under the
heading ``Department of Health and Human Services--
Administration for Children and Families--Refugee and Entrant
Assistance'' shall be subject to the authorities and
conditions of section 224 of division A of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2019 (Public Law 116-6).
Sec. 304. None of the funds made available in this Act
under the heading ``Department of Health and Human Services--
Administration for Children and Families--Refugee and Entrant
Assistance'' may be obligated to a grantee or contractor to
house unaccompanied alien children (as such term is defined
in section 462(g)(2) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6
U.S.C. 279(g)(2))) in any facility that is not State-licensed
for the care of unaccompanied alien children, except in the
case that the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the
``Secretary'') determines that housing unaccompanied alien
children in such a facility is necessary on a temporary basis
due to an influx of such children or an emergency: Provided,
That--
(1) the terms of the grant or contract for the operations
of any such facility that remains in operation for more than
six consecutive months shall require compliance with--
(A) the same requirements as licensed placements, as listed
in Exhibit 1 of the Flores Settlement Agreement, regardless
of the status of the underlying settlement agreement;
(B) staffing ratios of 1 on-duty Youth Care Worker for
every 8 children or youth during waking hours, 1 on-duty
Youth Care Worker for every 16 children or youth during
sleeping hours, and clinician ratios to children (including
mental health providers) as required in grantee cooperative
agreements; and
(C) access provided to legal services;
(2) the Secretary may grant a 60-day waiver for a
contractor's or grantee's non-compliance with paragraph (1)
if the Secretary certifies and provides a report to Congress
on the contractor's or grantee's good-faith efforts and
progress towards compliance and the report specifies each
requirement referenced n paragraph (1) that is being waived
for 60 days;
(3) the Secretary shall not waive requirements for grantees
or contractors to provide or arrange for the following
services----
(A) proper physical care and maintenance, including
suitable living accommodations, food, appropriate clothing,
and personal grooming items;
(B) a complete medical examiation (including screening for
infectious disease) within 48 hours of admission, unless the
minor was recently examined at another facility;
(C) appropriate routine medical and dental care;
(D) at least one individual counseling session per week
conducted by trained social work staff with the specific
objectives of reviewing a minor's progress, establishing new
short term objectives, and addressing both the developmental
an crisis-related needs of each minor;
(E) educational services appropriate to the minor's level
of development, and communication skills in a structured
classroom setting, Monday through Friday, which concentrates
primarily on the development of basic academic competencies
and secondarily on English Language Training;
(F) activities according to a leisure time plan which shall
include daily outoor activity, weather permitting, at least
one hour per day of structured leisure time activities (this
should not include time spent wathching television).
Activities should be increased to three hours on days when
school is not in session;
(G) wheneve possible, access to religious services of the
minor's choice;
(H) visitation and contact with family members (regardless
of t heir immigration status) which is structured to
encourage such visitation. The staff shall respect the
minor's privacy while reasonably preventing the unauthorized
release of the minor;
(I) family reunification services designed to identify
relatives in the United States as well as in foreign
countries and assistance in obtaining legal guardianship when
necessary for the release of the minor; and
(J) legal services information regarding the availability
of free legal assistance, the right to be represented by
counsel at no expense to the government, the right to a
deportation or xclusion hearing before an immigration judge,
the right t apply for political asylum or to request
voluntary departure in lieu of deportation;
(4) if the Secretary determines that a contractor or
grantee is not in compliance with any of the requirements set
forth in paragraph (3), the Secretary shall not permit such
contractor or grantee to continue to provide services beyond
a reasonable period, not to exceed 60 days, need to award a
contract or grant to anew service provider, and the incumbent
contractor or grantee shall be be eligible to compete for the
new contract or grant;
(5) for any such unlicensed facility in operation for more
than three consecutive months, ORR shall conduct a minimum of
one comprehensive monitoring visit during the first three
months of operation, with quarterly monitoring visits
thereafter;
(6) not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of
this Act, ORR shall brief the Committees on Appropriations of
the House of Representatives and the Senate outlining the
requirements of ORR for influx facilities; and
(9) the amounts provided by this section are designated by
the Congress as being for an emergency requirement pursuant
to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
Sec. 305. In addition to the existing Congressional
notification requirements for formal site assessments of
potential influx facilities, the Secretary shall notify the
Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives
and the Senate at least 15 days before operationalizing an
unlicensed facility, and shall (1) specify whether the
facility is hard-sided or soft-sided, and (2) provide
analysis that indicates that, in the absence of the influx
facility, the likely outcome is that unaccompanied alien
children will remain in the custody of the Department of
Homeland Security for longer than 72 hours or that
unaccompanied alien children will be otherwise placed in
danger. Within 60 days of bringing such a facility online,
and monthly thereafter, the Secretary shall provide to the
Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives
and the Senate a report detailing the total number of
children in care at the facility, the average length of stay
and average length of care of children at the facility, and,
for any child that has been at the facility for more than 60
days, their length of stay and reason for delay in release.
Sec. 306. (a) The Secretary shall ensure that, when
feasible, no unaccompanied alien child is at an unlicensed
facility if the child is not expected to be placed with a
sponsor within 30 days.
(b) The Secretary shall ensure that no unaccompanied alien
child is at an unlicensed facility if the child--
(1) is under the age of 13;
(2) does not speak English or Spanish as his or her
preferred language;
(3) has known special needs, behavioral health issues, or
medical issues that would be better served at an alternative
facility;
(4) is a pregnant or parenting teen; or
(5) would have a diminution of legal services as a result
of the transfer to such an unlicensed facility.
(c) ORR shall notify a child's attorney of record in
advance of any transfer, where applicable.
Sec. 307. None of the funds made available in this Act may
be used to prevent a United States Senator or Member of the
House of Representatives from entering, for the purpose of
conducting oversight, any facility in the United States used
for the purpose of maintaining custody of, or otherwise
housing, unaccompanied alien children (as defined in section
462(g)(2) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C.
279(g)(2))): Provided, That nothing in this section shall be
construed to require such a Senator or Member to provide
prior notice of the intent to enter such a facility for such
purpose.
Sec. 308. Not later than 14 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, and monthly thereafter, the Secretary
of Health and Human Services shall submit to the Committees
on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the
Senate, and make publicly available online, a report with
respect to children who were separated from their parents or
legal guardians by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
(regardless of whether or not such separation was
[[Page H5150]]
pursuant to an option selected by the children, parents, or
guardians), subsequently classified as unaccompanied alien
children, and transferred to the care and custody of ORR
during the previous month. Each report shall contain the
following information:
(1) The number and ages of children so separated subsequent
to apprehension at or between ports of entry, to be reported
by sector where separation occurred.
(2) The documented cause of separation, as reported by DHS
when each child was referred.
Sec. 309. Not later than 30 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of
the House of Representatives and the Senate a detailed spend
plan of anticipated uses of funds made available in this
account, including the following: a list of existing grants
and contracts for both permanent and influx facilities,
including their costs, capacity, and timelines; costs for
expanding capacity through the use of community-based
residential care placements (including long-term and
transitional foster care and small group homes) through new
or modified grants and contracts; current and planned efforts
to expand small-scale shelters and available foster care
placements, including collaboration with state child welfare
providers; influx facilities being assessed for possible use;
costs and services to be provided for legal services, child
advocates, and post release services; program administration;
and the average number of weekly referrals and discharge rate
assumed in the spend plan: Provided, That such plan shall be
updated to reflect changes and expenditures and submitted to
the Committees on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives and the Senate every 60 days until all funds
are expended or expire.
Sec. 310. The Office of Refugee Resettlement shall ensure
that its grantees are aware of current law regarding the use
of information collected as part of the sponsor vetting
process.
Sec. 311. The Secretary is directed to report the death of
any unaccompanied alien child in Office of Refugee
Resettlement (ORR) custody or in the custody of any grantee
on behalf of ORR within 24 hours, including relevant details
regarding the circumstances of the fatality, to the
Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives
and the Senate.
Sec. 312. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
funds made available in this Act under the heading
``Department of Health and Human Services--Administration for
Children and Families--Refugee and Entrant Assistance'' shall
only be used for the purposes specifically described under
that heading.
SEC. 313. (a) The Secretary of Health and Human Services
shall ensure that no unaccompanied alien child (as defined in
section 462(g)(2) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6
U.S.C. 279(g)(2))) spends more than 90 days, in aggregate, at
an unlicensed facility.
(b) Not later than 45 days after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Secretary shall ensure transfer to a State-
licenses facility for any unaccompanied alien child who has
been at an unlicenses facility for longer than 90 days.
(c) Subsetions (a) and (b) shall not apply to an
unaccompanie alien child when the Secretary determines that a
potential sponsor had been identified and the unaccompanied
alien child is expected to be placed with the sponsor within
30 days.
(d) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b), if the
Secretary determines there is insufficient space available at
State-licensed facilities to transfer an unaccompanied alien
child who has been at an unlicensed facility for longer than
90 days, the Secretary shall submit a written justification
to the Committees on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives an the Senate, and shall sumit a s ummary
every two weeks, disaggregated by influx facility, on the
number of unaccompanied alien children at each influx
facility longer than 90 days, with a summary of both the
status of placement and the transfer efforts for all children
who has been in care for longer than 90 days.
TITLE IV
GENERAL PROVISIONS--THIS ACT
Sec. 401. (a) Fiscal Year 2017.--Funds made available by
the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related
Programs Appropriations Act, 2017 (division J of Public Law
115-31) that were initially obligated for assistance for El
Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras may not be reprogrammed
after the date of enactment of this Act for assistance for a
country other than for which such funds were initially
obligated: Provided, That if the Secretary of State suspends
assistance for the central government of El Salvador,
Guatemala, or Honduras pursuant to section 7045(a)(5) of such
Act, not less than 75 percent of the funds for such central
government shall be reprogrammed for assistance through
nongovernmental organizations or local government entities in
such country: Provided further, That the balance of such
funds shall only be reprogrammed for assistance for countries
in the Western Hemisphere.
(b) Fiscal Year 2018.--Section 7045(a) of the Department of
State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
Appropriations Act, 2018 (division K of Public Law 115-141)
is amended by striking paragraph (4)(D) and inserting in lieu
of paragraph (1) the following paragraph:
``(1) Funding.--Subject to the requirements of this
subsection, of the funds appropriated under titles III and IV
of this Act, not less than $615,000,000 shall be made
available for assistance for countries in Central America, of
which not less than $452,000,000 shall be for assistance for
El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to implement the United
States Strategy for Engagement in Central America (the
Strategy): Provided, That such amounts shall be made
available notwithstanding any provision of law permitting
deviations below such amounts: Provided further, That if the
Secretary of State cannot make the certifications under
paragraph (3), or makes a determination under paragraph
(4)(A) or (4)(C) that the central government of El Salvador,
Guatemala, or Honduras is not meeting the requirements of
this subsection, not less than 75 percent of the funds for
such central government shall be reprogrammed for assistance
through nongovernmental organizations or local government
entities in such country: Provided further, That the balance
of such funds shall only be reprogrammed for assistance for
countries in the Western Hemisphere.''.
(c) Fiscal Year 2019.--Section 7045(a) of the Department of
State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
Appropriations Act, 2019 (division F of Public Law 116-6) is
amended by striking paragraph (2)(C) and inserting at the
end, between paragraph (4)(B) and subsection (b), the
following new paragraph:
``(5) Funding.--Subject to the requirements of this
subsection, of the funds appropriated under titles III and IV
of this Act, not less than $540,850,000 shall be made
available for assistance for countries in Central America, of
which not less than $452,000,000 shall be made available for
assistance for El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to
implement the United States Strategy for Engagement in
Central America: Provided, That such amounts shall be made
available notwithstanding any provision of law permitting
deviations below such amounts: Provided further, That if the
Secretary of State cannot make the certification under
paragraph (1), or makes a determination under paragraph (2)
that the central government of El Salvador, Guatemala, or
Honduras is not meeting the requirements of this subsection,
not less than 75 percent of the funds for such central
government shall be reprogrammed for assistance through
nongovernmental organizations or local government entities in
such country: Provided further, That the balance of such
funds shall only be reprogrammed for assistance for countries
in the Western Hemisphere.''.
Sec. 402. Each amount appropriated or made available by
this Act is in addition to amounts otherwise appropriated for
the fiscal year involved.
Sec. 403. No part of any appropriation contained in this
Act shall remain available for obligation beyond the current
fiscal year unless expressly so provided herein.
Sec. 404. Unless otherwise provided for by this Act, the
additional amounts appropriated by this Act to appropriations
accounts shall be available under the authorities and
conditions applicable to such appropriations accounts for
fiscal year 2019.
Sec. 405. Each amount designated in this Act by the
Congress as being for an emergency requirement pursuant to
section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act of 1985 shall be available (or rescinded
or transferred, if applicable) only if the President
subsequently so designates all such amounts and transmits
such designations to the Congress.
Sec. 406. Any amount appropriated by this Act, designated
by the Congress as being for an emergency requirement
pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget
and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 and subsequently so
designated by the President, and transferred pursuant to
transfer authorities provided by this Act shall retain such
designation.
This Act may be cited as the ``Emergency Supplemental
Appropriations for Humanitarian Assistance and Security at
the Southern Border Act, 2019''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The bill, as amended, shall be debatable for
1 hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority
member of the Committee on Appropriations.
The gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey) and the gentlewoman from
Texas (Ms. Granger) each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.
General Leave
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include
extraneous material on H.R. 3401.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Speaker of the House.
Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
[[Page H5151]]
Madam Speaker, let me first salute Chairwoman Nita Lowey,
Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, and
all of the appropriators--also the ranking member--for their relentless
good-faith work on a strong bill that protects vulnerable children,
keeps America safe, and honors our values.
Madam Speaker, when people ask me, what are the three most important
issues facing the Congress? I always say the same thing: children,
children, children.
Today, we have the opportunity to help the children. We are ensuring
that children have food, clothing, sanitary items, shelter, and medical
care. We are providing access to legal assistance. And we are
protecting families because families belong together.
Right now, children need their families. Right now, little children
are enduring trauma and terror. Many are living in squalor at Border
Patrol stations. Some are sleeping on the cold ground without warm
blankets or hot meals. Kids as young as 7 and 8 years old are watching
over infants because there is no one else there to care for them.
As one little girl caring for two infants said, I need comfort, too.
I am bigger than they are, but I am a child, too.
Today, we found out that the administration is sending children back
to a station in Clint, Texas, from where, just days earlier, those
children had been removed after enduring weeks without a shower or a
change of clothes. When visiting these children, one lawyer reported,
the children are locked in their cells. They said they can't bring
themselves to play because they are trying to stay alive in there.
And yet, last week, the Trump Department of Justice argued in court
that the government should not have to provide children in custody with
soap, toothbrushes, or beds.
This situation is child abuse. It is an atrocity that violates every
value we have, not only as Americans, but as moral beings. Today,
sadly, our values are being undermined by the President's failed
policies which has intensified the situation of heartbreak and horror
on the border, which challenges the conscience of America.
Today, our legislation is a vote against the cruel attitude toward
children of this administration. This bill does not fund the
administration's failed mass detention policy. Instead, it funds
effective, humane alternatives to detention that have a proven record
of success. This legislation secures limits on how the money is spent
and how the administration treats children. And it creates strong
oversight by Congress so that we can protect children and ensure this
crisis never occurs again.
This legislation also helps address the root causes of this
situation. It reverses the administration's senseless decision to block
the humanitarian funding that Congress had already appropriated for the
Northern Triangle countries, where many of these refugees are coming
from. And it ensures that the funding is used by these countries to
curb migration, improve border security, and prevent human smuggling
and drug trafficking, in addition to combating corruption, reducing
poverty, and promoting growth. That is what the agenda is about.
A recent trip by some of our colleagues, led by Chairman Eliot Engel,
Chairman Jerry Nadler, and other Members to the Northern Triangle, saw
the effective use of those funds. And while they were there, exercising
oversight and seeing the effective use of those funds, at that very
moment, the President reversed the policy.
We are launching a $200 million pilot initiative to improve the
Customs and Border Protection's processing system, based on a proposal
from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
The evangelical community, Madam Speaker, a while back when there was
another Muslim ban, we were not in the majority, but we did have a
hearing where many people came. National security experts, diplomats,
everyone came. People of faith-based organizations came to object to
the President's Muslim ban. And, at that time, representatives of the
evangelical community of America--this is not an individual, but a
representative of the evangelicals in America--stated that America's
refugee resettlement program is the crown jewel of America's
humanitarianism.
We must protect and strengthen this pillar of our immigration system
and our democracy. Families belong together. And as we face the
challenges presented by the President's policy, we must help immigrants
know their rights. Immigrants must know their rights. Families belong
together.
Every Member of this body has a sacred moral obligation to protect
the human rights and the lives of vulnerable families, no matter who
they are and from where they came. They all are God's children. They
have a spark of divinity within them that we must respect. And we must
remember our own spark of divinity as we view these children and our
responsibilities to them.
Madam Speaker, I urge a strong, bipartisan vote for the children, the
children, the children.
{time} 1945
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of House Democrats' humanitarian
supplemental to care for the increased number of migrants crossing the
southern border.
In a matter of days, the Department of Health and Human Services and
Department of Homeland Security will run out of money to care for
children and families at the border who are already held in deplorable,
chaotic conditions, often without needed medical care or even soap and
toothbrushes.
Children go without showers or clean clothes for weeks, and 7- and 8-
year-olds care for infants they don't know, while toddlers go without
diapers. This is heartbreaking and, in the richest country on Earth,
unacceptable.
This bill totals $4.5 billion for basic human needs and better care.
It includes $200 million for an integrated, multiagency processing
center pilot program with nonprofits, as well as $60 million to assist
local entities and non profits serving the influx of migrants.
The President's cruel immigration policies that tear apart families
and terrorize communities demand the stringent safeguards in this bill
to ensure these funds are used for humanitarian needs only--not for
immigration raids, not for detention beds, not for a border wall.
This bill would better protect migrants' rights and dignity with
stronger requirements for care of unaccompanied children, including
standards for medical care and medical emergencies; nutrition, hygiene,
and facilities; and personnel training.
Strict conditions on influx shelters that house children would
mandate compliance with requirements in the Flores settlement. Sponsors
and potential sponsors would be safeguarded from DHS immigration
enforcement based on information collected by HHS during the sponsor
vetting process.
Madam Speaker, we cannot be complicit in the crisis and suffering at
the border. I urge support for this legislation, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Almost 2 months ago, the administration sounded the alarm about the
crisis at our southwest border and told the Congress additional funds
were badly needed. Now, 2 months later, we are here. We have this
border supplemental appropriations bill, H.R. 3401, that falls terribly
short and will only further delay addressing the problem.
I oppose this bill in its current form.
Hundreds of thousands of people have arrived at the border this year.
Some are coming through points of entry, and many are crossing through
the desert or the Rio Grande.
Men and women across agencies and departments have been working
together to try to respond to the overwhelming surge of people coming
to the border illegally for the past 3 months, totaling over 100,000
people per month. Last month topped that: 144,000 men, women, and
children from 51 countries.
Our agents and officers, our volunteers, our nongovernmental
organizations are dealing with nearly 20,000 people in a space designed
for a fraction of that. They are dealing with the increasing summer
heat, and they are dealing with migrants with grave medical conditions.
[[Page H5152]]
This is a real crisis, and we need a bill that provides for all the
agencies that are involved in responding. It is long overdue.
The bill before us does not provide Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, the Department of Defense, or the immigration courts with
the funds they need.
In addition, the bill includes provisions tying the administration's
hands, including restrictions on foreign aid to Central American
countries and stopping HHS from changing policies that could protect
unaccompanied children.
We are out of time. Some of our agencies are spending money they
don't have because they have must-pay bills for contracts for food and
shelter and transportation and medical care.
I want everyone to be very aware of what they are dealing with:
People are waiting in terrible conditions in the desert, and summer is
here; children are sleeping on the ground and need to be moved to
shelters or homes. We need doctors and pediatricians. We need
caregivers.
We need immigration courts to rule in a timely manner. We should not
force those who have submitted claims for asylum and other forms of
release to wait any longer. The more time we spend on partisan
measures, the longer it will be before help arrives to those who
desperately need it.
We need to act now on a bipartisan solution, and I urge my colleagues
to reject this bill. It is partisan and dangerous.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the distinguished and outstanding chair of
the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Subcommittee.
Ms. DeLAURO. Madam Speaker, we face a humanitarian crisis at our
southern border, and we face a crisis of care.
Six children have died in U.S. custody in the last 9 months. In the
10 previous years, not one child died. These lost, scared, and
vulnerable young people are so distraught in what the Miami Herald
called ``prison-like facilities'' that they are self-harming. It breaks
our heart, and it must steel our conviction for action tonight.
And we have been acting. In the 2020 Labor-HHS appropriations bill,
we strengthened protections for the unaccompanied children program.
These include funding legal services, blocking the administration's
memorandum of agreement that had HHS erroneously prioritizing
immigration enforcement over care for kids and scaring sponsors from
coming forward, and requiring the administration to abide by the
protections that are guaranteed under the standards of care under the
Flores Agreement.
That is what we have done. This is what we are doing now.
This emergency supplemental provides funding for the housing of
children. It implements protections for them. It enacts mechanisms to
ensure their safe and expeditious placement with sponsors.
We provide legal services, child advocates, post-release services,
additional Federal field specialists, and case management personnel to
identify potential family sponsors and to discharge children to them as
quickly as possible.
The emergency supplemental provides the full amount of $2.9 billion
requested by the administration--the full amount. These funds enable
the Department to expand its network of shelters to care for children.
So we do provide the funds. However, we do not provide a blank check,
because a blank check could be license to continue the abuses that we
uncovered.
All of us were shocked and outraged last year at the administration's
intentional family separation policy, adding to the number of children
that HHS had to care for and doing so with no plan to reunify these
families. The tragedy is some children will never be reunited with
their families, and that is on this administration's watch.
Along with these funds, this bill includes new and necessary
protections. They redirect HHS to its core mission, which is to be
caring for children, placing them in a safe environment with sponsors.
This bill gives priority to small and medium-scale State licensed
shelters wherever possible. And for the first time ever, it requires
currently exempt influx facilities to meet the minimum standards of
care required by the Flores settlement. If these grantees do not
comply, their contracts are revoked.
The bill limits the number of days children can spend at an influx
shelter. A temporary facility should not become a near-permanent way
station. The bill requires HHS to maintain the directives that have
been successfully accelerating the placement of children.
And, finally, the bill enhances transparency, provides adequate
safeguards against the misuse of funds. It prohibits funds from being
transferred outside of HHS. It does not give the Secretary discretion
to decide which Flores protections should apply to influx shelters. And
the bill requires HHS to report to the Congress within 24 hours if a
child dies in HHS custody.
Not one Member in this body would volunteer his or her child or
grandchild to be detained in these facilities. Not one of us would
choose to expose our youngsters to these conditions. So we must not
allow any children to continue to suffer, nor can we miss the
opportunity to help.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from Connecticut.
Ms. DeLAURO. President Franklin Roosevelt once said, quoting the
poet, Dante: ``Divine justice weighs the sins of the cold-blooded and
the sins of the warmhearted in different scales. Better the occasional
faults of a government that lives in a spirit of charity than the
consistent omissions of a government frozen in the ice of its own
indifference.''
We are not indifferent. We should not be indifferent tonight. Do not
let us become frozen.
I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, let us pass this
emergency supplemental bill because the lives of children are at stake,
and we should not play fast and loose with those lives when we have the
power to do something, to make a difference, and to protect these
children and make sure they get to a safe haven and a safe landing.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from
Tennessee (Mr. Fleischmann).
Mr. FLEISCHMANN. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Texas
(Ms. Granger), the ranking member.
As the ranking member of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on
Appropriations, I know all too well the challenges we are facing on the
border. I have the utmost respect for Chairwoman Roybal-Allard and her
work to address these issues and work with all the members of the
subcommittee.
At the time we crafted the fiscal year 2019 regular appropriations
bill, we could not have predicted the sheer mass of people pouring
across the border this spring and summer. But this fiscal year, Customs
and Border Patrol has already encountered almost 700,000 people. That
is double the amount in all the previous fiscal years, and we still
have 3 months to go.
Further, we are not talking about separating children. We are talking
about children coming to this country without parents who can care for
them. We can't just let kids wander the streets. We need to ensure
that HHS has the space and the capacity to find sponsors or suitable
homes for these kids.
DHS cannot wait another month for funds, and DHS definitely cannot
wait on Health and Human Services to receive more funds. We need a
complete border supplemental bill providing relief and resources for
all agencies working at the border and within the country to work
through the number of migrants coming across the southern border. That
includes Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and that also includes
the Department of Defense.
Further, we need a supplemental bill that does not throw up
roadblocks to implementing the aid we are trying to deliver. Madam
Speaker, I urge the House to, instead, take up a more bipartisan bill
that would also pass the Senate and get signed by the President on
Friday.
Time is of the essence. We need to work with the Senate and the
President to get a bill enacted. Madam Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on
this bill. Let's take up a bill that could deliver the humanitarian aid
by the end of this week.
[[Page H5153]]
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Roybal-Allard), the outstanding chairwoman of the
Homeland Security Subcommittee.
Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R.
3401.
We have all seen the tragic pictures of immigrants held in extremely
overcrowded CBP facilities never designed to hold families and tender-
aged children. I and many colleagues have been to the border and
witnessed firsthand the horrific, indisputably untenable and
intolerable conditions.
This bill addresses this humanitarian crisis and sets forth strong
oversight provisions and requirements to ensure the basic human care of
migrants in custody, especially the children.
Funding for the Department of Homeland Security totals nearly $1.5
billion, $150 million above the Senate committee bill.
{time} 2000
This crucial funding will directly address the humanitarian crisis at
the border by supporting temporary CBP holding facilities to relieve
dangerous overcrowding and by providing medical and transportation
support, blankets, food, water, and other consumables for migrants.
Combined with funding in title III for unaccompanied children, the
bill also provides resources needed to reduce time in CBP custody and
to ensure their facilities are safe, sanitary, and humane.
The bill also includes $200 million for an innovative multiagency
pilot program to better address the medical and legal needs of families
and unaccompanied children. It will also improve the Department's
efficiency in migrant processing without compromising migrant legal
protections.
This pilot will co-locate Customs and Border Protection, Immigration
and Customs Enforcement, Citizenship and Immigration Services, Office
of Refugee Resettlement, and nonprofit humanitarian organizations into
a single facility. This will reduce overall processing time, provide
consistent medical assessments and treatment, and offer legal
orientation much earlier. Nonprofit organizations will provide
assessments of migrants' needs and vulnerabilities and help families
transition to local shelters or alternatives to detention.
The bill also includes $60 million to help nonprofits and local
jurisdictions continue their efforts to provide assistance to migrants
released from DHS custody.
The Office of Refugee Resettlement is nearly out of money. Without
additional resources for sheltering capacity, children will continue to
be held for weeks or longer in ill-equipped CBP holding facilities
never intended to hold children for more than a few hours.
Let me be clear: Without passage of this bill, the only alternative
is the Senate bill, which has insufficient oversight provisions and
leaves the door open for further abusive behavior by the
administration. H.R. 3401 takes a constructive, balanced approach with
the right mix of funding and oversight.
Madam Speaker, Congress simply cannot adjourn without providing the
funding needed to address the humanitarian crisis and trauma of
migrants and their children at the border. The only way to ensure the
inclusion of strong oversight, compliance requirements, and priorities
in the emergency supplemental package is to pass H.R. 3401.
I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this supplemental.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Rutherford).
Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I thank the ranking member for
yielding.
Madam Speaker, I am truly saddened this evening to rise in opposition
to what should be a humanitarian assistance bill for those who are
suffering at our southern border.
For over 50 days, my Republican colleagues have been begging the
House majority, begging them to deliver badly needed relief to our
agencies on the southern border that are overwhelmed by a record number
of migrants.
For over 50 days, the majority has remained silent while our agencies
ran out of resources and migrant children suffered from a lack of
sufficient resources to properly care for them.
The Speaker talked about keeping America safe. Hardly. She said that
this is a vote for the children, the children, the children. At the
same time, she is asking us to vote for a bill that withholds resources
from the very agencies that are responsible for the care, custody, and
control of those who are suffering at the border.
I am really glad, Madam Speaker, that, finally, my colleagues across
the aisle have recognized this is a crisis at the southern border. It
is not a manufactured crisis, as they claimed it was for over 2 months.
But this bill does nothing to solve that crisis.
It is nothing more than a political messaging bill for a large-scale
disinformation campaign about that humanitarian crisis, which my
colleagues across the aisle, again, once called a manufactured crisis.
Specifically, this bill restricts DHS from sending additional
employees to the southern border. Congress is now going to tell DHS how
to deploy their staffing. That is amazing.
It withholds overtime funds for exhausted officers. It provides money
to inspect DHS but provides nothing--can't use a dime--to investigate
human trafficking. When we know that these children who are suffering
are being trafficked across that southern border, there is not a dime
to go after those traffickers.
ICE has asked for 54,000 beds to handle this surge and alleviate the
overcrowding, but the majority only gives them, in the previous
underlying bill in appropriations, 34,000 beds, not the 54,000 that
they asked for, 34,000 with another 7,000 contingent.
The Speaker and the majority want to listen to the United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees, but they do not want to listen to our
own DHS agencies that are on that border and responsible for care,
custody, and control of those individuals.
Finally, there is no funding for extra judges to help process more
than 100,000 migrants per month.
What we need is proper assistance, not political messaging. I spent
my entire adult career in law enforcement, and I know that giving money
with burdensome strings is not leadership. It is not the way to get
things done. We have to allow the folks on the ground the flexibility
to do their jobs, or we are simply wasting taxpayers' hard-earned money
and, more importantly, wasting precious time. We have wasted 2 months
as the situation at the southern border has only worsened.
I can assure my colleagues that the agents on the ground have a
better idea of what is needed to be done than Washington bureaucrats or
the U.N. commissioner. Unfortunately, there are many in this
legislative body who despise our President so much that they are
willing to suffocate our agencies with inadequate funding and
regulations that endanger the safety of both migrants and our
surrounding communities. Yet, they are not just poking the President in
the eye.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the
gentleman from Florida.
Mr. RUTHERFORD. With this bill, they are impairing our DHS men and
women on the ground who are trying desperately to manage this
humanitarian crisis at the border. They are poking them in the eye,
also.
ICE, DHS, and HHS employees provide care for every single man, woman,
and child who crosses into our country. They deserve our support. What
they need are the resources to do their job effectively, and this bill
does not provide that.
It is frustrating to listen to.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to
the gentleman from New York (Mr. Serrano), the distinguished chairman
of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.
Mr. SERRANO. Madam Speaker, we are now in the midst of a humanitarian
crisis at the border created by the policies of the Trump
administration.
Like many of my colleagues, I have been shocked by the conditions at
our border stations and the lack of basic services and necessities
available to migrant families and especially to minors.
This crisis has been aggravated by the anti-immigration policies of
this
[[Page H5154]]
President. He has once against created a disaster that undermines our
Nation's standing in the world and our basic American values.
No one should doubt why we are here today, but the question for me is
not who is at fault but, rather, how do we as a body, how do we as a
party, respond? We have a responsibility to these children now. We have
an obligation to these families now. They cannot wait.
That is what this bill does. It provides the resources to alleviate
the crisis and ensures that we have the money to provide migrants,
especially minors, with the shelter, food, medicine, and legal services
that they need.
The funding in this bill is not a blank check, however. The
legislation includes numerous conditions to ensure this money is used
for its intended purposes, to make sure that individuals are receiving
the care and services they need, and to prevent the administration from
creating further chaos and harm.
This bill takes the right steps to address the crisis and to stop
what the administration is doing. I urge my colleagues to support this
bill. If we cry out against the crisis, then we have a responsibility
to provide the funds to alleviate it. The bill does just that, and I
urge my colleagues' support.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
California (Mr. McCarthy).
Mr. McCARTHY. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
Madam Speaker, it has been 56 days since the Trump administration
asked for emergency funding to address the humanitarian crisis at our
southern border, 56 days.
The New York Times had two editorials--not one, but two. Mexico is
now sending 15,000 troops to the southern border. But Democrats, Madam
Speaker, have rejected a bill to provide the aid that is needed not
once, not twice, not even 10 times, but 18 times.
Madam Speaker, I was shocked when I actually heard from the other
side of the aisle that someone said there is a crisis. I guess after 56
days, they read some of those editorials. Now, after weeks of doing
nothing and denying that a crisis exists, they are offering legislation
that is misguided and is purely political.
They are, once again, taking what should be a bipartisan issue and
inserting partisan poison pills. I would say I would be shocked, but
this isn't the only issue they have done that on this year.
Madam Speaker, they took a bill that had a 100 percent vote from
Republicans and Democrats dealing with prescription drugs, and before
it got through the Speaker's Office, Madam Speaker, it became
political, a poison pill.
They took a bill that was in Ways and Means that got every Republican
and every Democrat to vote for it, but, again, before it came to the
floor, another poison pill.
I guess we might have to get used to this, but the American public
should not.
Madam Speaker, that isn't how it is being used on the other side of
this building. In the Senate, they actually took up this issue. They
passed it out of committee 30-1.
I know my colleagues might be shocked because I said that went
through committee. I know my colleagues might be shocked because I said
it was bipartisan. I know my colleagues might be shocked because they
actually let the Senators read the bill.
Madam Speaker, when we were on this floor being sworn in, there were
a lot of promises made, and a lot of promises have been broken.
There was a rule change, 72 hours. It actually marked the number of
hours.
{time} 2015
Last night, I watched the Rules Committee. They were going to come
before the Rules Committee with a bill that we did not see in
committee.
But do you know what? They couldn't get the votes. So we had to say
no to the Rules Committee.
They will come back at 10. So I eagerly waited at 10. No, we could
not come back.
It is going to be at 11. I eagerly waited for 11. It did not happen.
But, luckily, politically, they got in the back of the room and they
were able to buy off some more, Madam Speaker, in a political nature
and rush something to the floor.
I wondered if they were going to keep that rule that they championed
so hard about 72 hours. Well, I don't know, maybe 5 equals 72. I am not
sure what math they keep nowadays.
But let's talk about how they make this problem even worse, because I
am not sure anybody has read the bill. I am not sure even if those on
the other side know what is in it.
Now, here is how it is worse. Departments of Homeland Security and
Health and Human Services cannot share information about the sponsors
of children.
Think about that for one moment. They are making sure two departments
cannot share information within their own government.
Now, this is necessary to ensure that children are not placed with
human traffickers or with predators. Maybe if they had a little time
and maybe if they didn't care about politics, they would have allowed a
little sharing of information for the children.
Organizations like Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the
Department of Justice are underfunded. Requests for pay and overtime
costs for Border Patrol agents are denied. Think about that.
In the last month, 144,000 people were apprehended coming across the
border illegally. These are unbelievable numbers that we have not seen
in decades.
So what do the Democrats rush? Deny overtime and deny the ability for
those who are serving us the ability to work.
Immigration judges do not get the resources they needed for
additional staff or courtroom space or equipment. America is a country
that believes in the rule of law, but I guess on this floor it is not
the case. The majority wants to deny it.
Now, I wonder that maybe, Madam Speaker, on the other side they say:
Well, it is just a rush to judgment; it is such a big bill, I didn't
get to read it.
But do you know what? Earlier today, everyone in this Chamber had the
ability to vote for more funding for judges just to deal with this
crisis, because I have heard, Madam Speaker, on the other side of the
aisle, they actually now use the word ``crisis.''
It only took 56 days, but, lo and behold, when they had that moment
not to be confused, not to have a big bill but only that subject, every
single Democrat on the other side of the aisle, except seven, said
``no.'' So the majority made sure they put in this political bill as
well.
Deny overtime during a crisis, because you said it was a crisis, but
make sure nobody can work. You have a crisis, but make sure, Madam
Speaker, that we can't have the judges down there, because somehow, I
guess, maybe you don't believe in the rule of law; and additional
funding to investigate human traffickers who you know are smuggling
these children across the border is not included.
Maybe, Madam Speaker, that is why you want to rush this bill to the
floor. Maybe that is why you don't want to give people an opportunity
to read it.
How will you answer that? How will you answer that additional funding
to investigate human traffickers who are smuggling children you do not
want to include, Madam Speaker?
Did you read the editorials? Is it wrong to prevent the
administration from improving the welfare of unaccompanied children, as
this bill will do?
Democrats are far more interested in appearing to help children than
in actually helping them. The pace and volume at which children have
crossed our border over the last year have completely overwhelmed our
existing resources.
Madam Speaker, you are making sure that nobody could work overtime
during this. In the first half of 2019, more than 56,000 unaccompanied
children were apprehended by Customs and Border Protection. That is a
74 percent increase from last year and higher than the yearly totals
for the last 5.
Luckily, someone finally realized that is a crisis--but make sure
there is no money to deal with it. Health and Human Services shelters
are full and out of money. They cannot care for the children if
Congress does not pass solutions.
Now, HHS Secretary Alex Azar sent us a very clear message. Madam
Speaker, this is what he said: ``I can't put a
[[Page H5155]]
kid in a bed that does not exist and I cannot make a bed that Congress
doesn't fund.
Madam Speaker, to think that you would knowingly pass something that
causes this problem.
Madam Speaker, Democrats are proud that their bill, unlike the
Senate, does not help our overstretched law enforcement officers. That
is shameful to take pride in making sure they do not get the help.
Border Patrol agents now spend half of their time processing claims
and caring for families in custody, including making trips to hospitals
and clinics. They are going beyond the call of duty every day and
deserve our support, whether you like them or not. If the children who
come across our southern border are to be properly cared for, Madam
Speaker, Democrats' distrust of our national law enforcement officers
must stop.
Madam Speaker, it has been 56 days, but all Democrats threw together
is a sham bill more than 3 hours ago. It does not adequately fund what
needed to be funded and would only make the crisis worse. Democrats are
holding another vote late in the night on legislation that has no
chance of becoming law.
Madam Speaker, we are better than this.
Madam Speaker, it is not very far if you walk out these doors; you
look down that hall; you will see the other Chamber.
Do you know what happened in the other Chamber? They worked a bill
through committee. They worked a bipartisan bill through committee.
They didn't run it to the floor in 3 hours. They didn't tell the Rules
Committee to be ready and wait and wait and wait and then quickly
after, they cut a deal, on one side. They took something that is
critical, something that is serious, and they acted that way.
History will write about what happens on this floor. Madam Speaker,
you may get emotional; you may be proud of your actions; but the
question will be: Will history be kind to you? The question will be:
When you voted that day, when you were sworn in, did you really mean 72
hours?
Madam Speaker, when you stand on the floor and you speak of a crisis
and you speak of caring for children, why would you not fund to make
sure people are not trafficking them?
Madam Speaker, when you spoke about there was a crisis on the border,
why would you not fund the men and women who work for our government?
Why would you try to deny them overtime?
Madam Speaker, I know the Fourth of July is soon, and I know Members
want to get out of here, but America is more than a country. America is
an idea, an idea of self-governance, an idea that the rule of law
matters.
This is not one of our finest moments. This is not one that I am
proud of. What is so shameful, Madam Speaker, is, just a few yards
away, they are showing us an example.
Are you rushing because you are afraid the Senate is going to send us
something that is bipartisan? Are you rushing because you are afraid
the Senate will actually make law?
Madam Speaker, there are a lot of things we could play political
games with, but I never thought children would be the one you wanted to
use. We are better than this.
There is a moment in time where you should stand up to your own
leadership. There is a moment in time that you should stand up for this
country. There is a moment in time, Madam Speaker, and this is it.
Madam Speaker, you don't have to follow and be rushed. You can say:
No, I watched what the Senate has done. I watched people with my own
philosophical belief who belong to my own party work together with the
other side and actually come with a bill that could become law. It is
not perfect. It is not what I would agree with 100 percent. But do you
know what? I understand our government is designed to find compromise.
I don't know what compromise is in this. I don't know who ever worked
with another side. I don't even know who rushed it to the Rules
Committee just to do some manager's amendment because you bought off a
few people.
This is not our finest moment by far, but, Madam Speaker, there is a
moment in time when individuals can stand up, and I am hoping that the
moment is tonight, that we actually stand for what this country
believes and what we will celebrate on the Fourth of July.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to address their
remarks to the Chair.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I have great respect for the minority
leader, but I ask Mr. Minority Leader: If not this bill, what bill can
provide aid to these children?
Where is this Senate bill, Madam Speaker? It is being held up by a
Republican Senator from the same State as the majority leader.
Mr. McCARTHY. Will the gentlewoman yield?
Mrs. LOWEY. Just let me finish, and then I will be delighted to
yield.
So I want to ask again: This bill is being held up by a Republican
Senator from the same State as the majority leader.
So, Madam Speaker, a ``no'' vote on this bill by any Member will
ensure that children remain in absolute squalor. Stop hiding behind the
Senate bill that has not passed.
I yield to the gentleman from California.
Mr. McCARTHY. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I
appreciate that.
I have spoken to the leader on the Senate side, and they will bring
it up tomorrow. They had passed this bill in committee 30-1.
I ask the gentlewoman: What would be the problem--and I know we have
only had 3 hours with this bill. Why would we not take up the Senate
bill when it is bipartisan and the President would sign it?
Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Minority Leader, I have to reclaim my time.
Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Cuellar), who is a member of the Appropriations Committee.
Mr. CUELLAR. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her
leadership and the rest of the appropriators and the staff who are
working very hard to get this emergency bill on the floor.
This bill is important. I live on the border. I don't just go visit
the border. I have been to the CBP processing facilities. I have been
to the nonprofit shelters for the immigrant children.
I speak with the brave and compassionate men and women who are
responsible for managing this humanitarian crisis. These men and women
are my neighbors, and we have their back. They have expressed to me the
urgency of getting this funding to enable them to protect the life and
the safety of the migrants in their custody.
But we must also keep in mind the communities that are also providing
the food, the housing, and the assistance that they need, communities
like Laredo, like McAllen, Texas, like San Antonio, and so many other
communities across the southwest border. So we must pass this bill to
provide that funding.
But there are two particular provisions that I d want to mention,
also. One is the humanitarian reimbursement for communities, and the
other is the one-stop processing centers that I had requested and have
been added on this particular bill itself.
Let me talk about the humanitarian care.
Madam Speaker, you have cities, you have counties, you have churches,
and you have nonprofits that have really stepped up for many years. In
fact, they started this work in 2014 when the first wave of children
started coming up here. This bill includes $60 million for the direct
reimbursement for local communities and nonprofits in Texas, New
Mexico, Arizona, and California.
This funding will now use a different model. One, we set up a new pot
of money to make sure that we get that funding. The second thing is
this model provides direct funding where the local communities can now
ask for these requested moneys.
We had a different model back in 2014, and, unfortunately, you had
Governors, like my own State of Texas, that got over $100 million and
only provided $400,000 in the last 4 years, 5 years.
So this new funding will get the money directly to them. In fact,
this funding will now be distributed through the Emergency Food and
Shelter Program National Board, and they
[[Page H5156]]
are required to distribute that money within 30 days after this board
gets this money.
So we have to provide that assistance to them because, again, they
have to be reimbursed for food, water, medicine, medical supplies,
temporary housing, and transportation. So that assistance has to be
provided to the local entities.
The second provision is this one-stop center, $200 million to make
sure that this multiagency, integrated, migration process gets this.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield the gentleman from Texas an
additional 30 seconds.
Mr. CUELLAR. Madam Speaker, we have to provide this because, again,
the Border Patrol agency cannot handle this, and, therefore, we need
this particular processing center.
Again, it is a good bill. Why should we wait for the Senate? We are
the House of Representatives, and we have a right to pass our own bills
and not wait for the Senate.
For those reasons, I say let's support this bill.
{time} 2030
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Collins).
Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, yes, we have the right to pass
a bill here in the House, as the gentleman just said. But we have the
right to actually pass a good bill, not a political stunt.
Why should we do this? I remember back in 2014--we are getting
nostalgic in this place--when the crisis began. President Obama said
there was a crisis. We all agreed.
In fact, the majority stayed an extra week because we couldn't craft
a bill. We finally crafted that bill, and it was a bipartisan bill that
passed with both parties voting for it. The money was delivered because
we knew that it mattered.
It was amazing to me, just a few weeks ago on this floor, one of my
colleagues came across, Madam Speaker, from Texas and said: We can't
vote for the funding that the President has asked for. Give us some
time to work it out and begin to work to make sure we get a good bill.
Well, we had a 5-hour bill. Is that time to work it out, Madam
Speaker? Was that putting it all together and getting it right? Or was
it lining up every constituency group and saying, ``Did we get a little
piece of this?'' so we could go back home and show that we are standing
for something while, at the same time, Madam Speaker, ignoring our
Border Patrol agents, ignoring those who put their lives on the line
every day?
Here is the problem. It is amazing that we ignore--though, I have to
admit that I have to say one thing is good: I came to the floor tonight
and heard there is a crisis on the border. Amazing. We have had
progress. Let's all stand up and cheer. There is a crisis on the
border.
We have been saying it for months. The New York Times and other media
said it. Finally, it sunk through, and now we are saying there is a
crisis on the border.
I guess 132,000 people were apprehended last month--84,000 family
unit members, 11,000 unaccompanied children, and 37,000 single adults
apprehended. Maybe it shows the time. The sheer volume increasing is
amazing.
There are ways we can fix this. We can give money. We can throw money
at a problem and attach so many restrictions to it, Madam Speaker.
The unfortunate part is that this ain't funny. These are kids. These
are families who are being perversely brought here by immigration laws
that are broken. I can't get anybody to talk about that.
I can't get the fact that our Flores settlement is forcing us into
situations like those the CBP and our Border Patrol agents are having
to deal with because ICE doesn't have the beds.
The majority leader pointed it out. We can't put people in beds that
don't exist. We also can't keep encouraging them to come across the
border, which is exactly what we are doing by having a Flores decision
that they know to just get here.
This bill will not let us look after the safety of those who are
coming across because we can't share information.
There is no safety. Do not vote for this bill thinking that we are
putting safety in here because we are not, because over 3,000 simple
members, Madam Speaker, 3,000 family units have been found to be
fraudulent.
There is common knowledge that they are borrowing, renting, and
buying children. It is there. Yet, that is what we want to do.
We won't fix Flores. We won't fix our Trafficking Victims Protection
Act. We won't work on asylum and credible fear.
After months of claiming there were no problems, we offer this as an
excuse. We offer this bill. It is something that won't fix it. It won't
become law because it is not working. We put every bit of what we want
to do into not helping children but putting restrictions on those who
want to help.
CBP does not want to keep these children and these unaccompanied
minors where they are. They don't want to keep asylum seekers from Cuba
bottled up because they can't get their asylum here because they are
having to process others. They don't want to do this. That is not their
job.
But this body and this job, we don't do ours because we simply keep
overlooking the perverse incentive to come here. We are encouraging
them. In fact, this body, 2 weeks ago, made another incentive with a
Dreamer bill that has no hope of becoming law but sends a clear signal
to Central America and anywhere else: Get here, and you will be fine.
Get past the border, and you will be fine.
It is frustrating to know that a bill that is humanitarian aid could
not even come to the floor within the last 24 hours without having to
be rewritten and rewritten and rewritten because we didn't have enough
nonenforcement in there, and we didn't have enough of other things in
there that really doesn't make this applicable.
H.R. 3401 even imposes so many conditions on the Office of Refugee
Resettlement to care for children that they can't even operate
temporary influx shelters as more and more unaccompanied aliens come
into the country.
They put severe limits on facilities, such as being licensed by the
State, although the shelters have to be in compliance with Federal
safety standards. They are the only emergency situation we have right
now. But we are ignoring that because we have to please somebody.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the
gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I will end with this. Some
people will come down here tonight and vote, and they are going to feel
good about themselves, Madam Speaker. But I will tell my colleagues
this, and I have said it before from this well: What makes them feel
good does not heal them.
Don't pretend, Madam Speaker, or anyone else who wants to vote for
this, that it has solved something, that it has accomplished something
until my colleagues take the situation and ask: Why are they coming?
How do we fix it? How do we give the men and women what they need to
fix this?
If my colleagues walk away feeling good about themselves, it may be
time tonight, Madam Speaker, before we go to bed, to look at ourselves
in the mirror and ask why.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished
gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the chairwoman of the Energy and
Water Subcommittee.
Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I thank our able chairwoman, Nita Lowey
from New York, for yielding me this time. I come to the floor to urge
my colleagues to support this emergency supplemental request to address
the humanitarian cry on our southern border.
It aims to save lives and health. All people of conscience know it is
urgently needed. These funds are vital to ensure the health and safety
of these migrant refugees and migrant children.
A record number of desperate families and unaccompanied children have
crossed into the United States, and our Border Patrol, Immigration and
Customs Enforcement, and Office of Refugee Resettlement are simply
overwhelmed.
Just this week, we learned that four toddlers being held in a Border
Patrol
[[Page H5157]]
station in McAllen, Texas, had to be hospitalized because of dangerous
neglect.
The AP reported last week that children have been locked up in Border
Patrol facilities for as many as 27 days without adequate food, water,
and sanitation, for heaven's sake.
This administration has failed to provide detained children with
soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and beds, and it doesn't have the
resources to adequately address flu and lice epidemics in these
facilities.
News reports say children are caring for other children. Five
children have died in Customs and Border Protection custody since late
last year.
The situation is getting worse. Our Nation needs a comprehensive and
continental diplomatic solution that acknowledges the economic and
political conditions pushing Central American and Mexican communities
to the brink. The only option, in desperation, for these people is to
flee north.
We need comprehensive immigration reform that respects all
continental laborers and migrants. President John F. Kennedy had a name
for it. He called it the Alliance for Progress.
Today, this Congress must meet the immediate need to provide
financial support to end the humanitarian neglect confronting these
travel-weary migrants.
This $4.5 billion emergency spending will provide adequate support
for key priorities, including legal assistance, food, water, medical
services, support services for unaccompanied children, alternatives to
detention, and refugee services.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the
gentlewoman from Ohio.
Ms. KAPTUR. Most importantly, this spending correctly includes
restrictions to hold this administration accountable on how it spends
taxpayer dollars in a capacity that protects the rights and dignity of
desperate people who happen to be migrants.
Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Lowey for working so hard to bring
this bill to the floor, and I urge all of my colleagues to support this
lifesaving supplemental.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
Alabama (Mr. Rogers).
Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to
this bill.
For months, Republicans on and off the Homeland Security Committee
have been highlighting the grave humanitarian crisis at our southwest
border and pleading with House Democrats to take action.
The Democrats' initial response was to deny a crisis even existed.
When that failed, they began to try to blame the President.
The truth is that they have spent the past several months fighting
amongst themselves on a way forward. Even as late as today, the Speaker
had to intervene to stop the radical left in her Caucus from sinking
the bill.
Meanwhile, the crisis has worsened. Madam Speaker, in May alone,
144,000 immigrants were detained, a 622 percent increase over the same
month in 2017.
Innocent children are being exploited by human smugglers.
Border Patrol stations are overcrowded with thousands of migrants
staying in poor conditions. These are in stations, Border Patrol
processing centers, that have a maximum capacity of 4,000 people. We
have 20,000 people in these facilities.
For 8 weeks, the House Republicans have been trying to move my
legislation to provide $4.5 billion in emergency aid requested by our
President, but Democrats have blocked my bill from consideration on 18
separate occasions.
Instead, they bring forward a bill today that isn't serious and has
no chance of becoming law. To appease the radical left, this bill is
stuffed with poison pills.
For example, it includes nothing to stop innocent children from being
exploited by human smugglers and nothing to continue DOD assistance,
which has been essential for managing the crisis. It includes drastic
restrictions on the Secretary's authority to surge personnel and assets
to the border and update policies to improve conditions for migrant
children.
These poison pills will only exacerbate the crisis. They will ensure
that dangerous catch-and-release policies continue unabated. Meanwhile,
migrant families will continue to suffer at the hands of ruthless
smugglers.
Democrats had a real opportunity to work in a bipartisan manner to
address this humanitarian crisis. Unfortunately, once again, they chose
to appease the radical left and reject bipartisan consensus.
Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to vote against this bill. Then,
let's work together to craft a bipartisan border supplemental that can
become law.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentleman from New York (Mr. Jeffries), the chairman of the Democratic
Caucus.
Mr. JEFFRIES. Madam Speaker, there is a humanitarian crisis at the
southern border that should shock the conscience of every single
American.
These are migrant children being subjected to cruel and unusual
punishment by our government. This is not Iran. This is not North
Korea. This is not Venezuela. This is the United States of America.
Shame on us.
There are children who are without food. They are without medicine.
They are without water. They are without soap. They are without
diapers. They are without toothpaste.
Shame on us.
These are not alien children. They are God's children. This
administration should stop using them as political pawns for some sick,
xenophobic game.
Madam Speaker, vote ``yes,'' and let's begin the process of ending
this humanitarian crisis now.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Hice).
Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, we have been hearing for quite
some time Democrats saying that the President and Republicans have not
been coming to the table on this issue. What nonsense.
For months, we have watched Democrats absolutely deny that there is a
crisis. Actually, I have, on my desk, a list of page after page after
page of quotes from my colleagues who are denying a crisis at the
border.
Not only have Republicans for nearly 40 years been ringing the alarm
on this issue, but we have been highlighting caravan after caravan
after caravan coming to our southern border.
In May, we had 144,000 apprehended, nearly 700,000 to date, and that
number is expected to go well over a million.
Do we have a humanitarian crisis at the border? Yes. Do we have a
border security crisis? Yes.
But this bill does not even adequately fund ICE. It does not pay
overtime for border personnel.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 15 seconds to the
gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, it does not have any means to
investigate human traffickers. It lacks funding for the Department of
Justice immigration courts. It ties the hands of the President to take
action on securing our borders.
Madam Speaker, it is time for Democrats to come to the table. Let's
address this issue the way it ought to be addressed.
{time} 2045
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Roy).
Mr. ROY. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Texas for her
leadership on this issue and dealing with this important legislation.
Madam Speaker, I am always perplexed when listening to the arguments
on this topic that we are not talking about the actual problem. So when
we are talking about the facilities that need to have more supplies and
more dollars for support, I agree. I don't think anybody in this room
disagrees at all. But nothing we are going to do today is going to
actually solve the problem.
I have got an exchange here with a group of Border Patrol agents who
texted me to say, about this legislation: This does nothing but
perpetuate the catch-and-release magnet.
[[Page H5158]]
While there are some good pieces to the bill, why are we not
increasing ICE beds? Why are we providing taxpayer funding to educate
border crossers on the asylum process?
Why do we keep providing money to let people go that violate our
immigration laws? This just provides more incentives for people to
cross the border illegally.
If this were to pass, why would anyone stop crossing?
They said, this is what I refer to as completing the human smuggling
cycle. Cartels drop off people at our borders, UACs, family units.
Border Patrol takes them, then delivers them, engages with the NGOs.
The NGOs aid these folks who are here, so they can reach their family
members that are in the United States waiting for them. So the family
members in the U.S. are the ones paying the cartels their smuggling
fees.
And the NGOs are then reimbursed, and the whole process, it is
completing the entire cycle.
This legislation will perpetuate the problem because we are not
actually going to address the situation with ICE beds. We are not going
to do anything to stop the flow, and we are going to empower the
cartels who have operational control of our border, full operational
control of our border.
If you talk to anybody on the border who knows what is actually going
on--we should reject this legislation in favor of legislation that will
actually solve the problem.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Espaillat).
Mr. ESPAILLAT. Madam Speaker, like many Americans, like many of my
colleagues, I am deeply troubled by the way the Trump administration
has handled the treatment of migrants, particularly children, at the
border.
But I stand here to say tonight, Madam Speaker, that if, by passing
this emergency supplemental bill, we will save one child's life, just
one child's life, then it is worth it, and we should vote for it.
We speak about the moneys as being allocated in the budget. But the
only number that is really important in this debate is the six children
that have died at the border. And we will continue to hold this
administration accountable for its treatment of migrants, particularly
young children.
Madam Speaker, every time we deny help to the triangle countries,
this crisis is aggravated. Every time we stop a mom and her children at
the border and they have to go through the river and drown, this crisis
is worsened. Every time we deny children the basic human services that
they need, this crisis becomes tragic.
Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
We must reject this bill today and develop a bipartisan solution to
address the crisis at our border. Workers, and children, and
caretakers, and Border Patrol have been waiting almost 2 months for the
resources they need to do their jobs and receive our care.
This bill turns our backs on these people and ties the President's
hands. I implore Members to stop this and vote ``no'' on this measure.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
The humanitarian crisis at the border demands action. This bill funds
a compassionate response, while doing our utmost to protect the rights
and dignity of migrants. I urge my colleagues, join me. Let's pass this
bill.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, as a senior member of the Committees
on the Judiciary and Homeland Security, I rise in strong support of
H.R. 3401, the ``Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Humanitarian
Assistance and Security at the Southern Border Act of 2019.''
I support this legislation because it provides the humanitarian
assistance needed to address the inhumane conditions and treatment of
immigrants, especially immigrant children, that this Administration has
created and allowed to persist.
The scenes emanating from the Southern border are heartbreaking, and
they have been for a very long time.
I remember when I was at the border, visiting with children separated
from their families.
I remember young baby Roger, a very young child, who was separated
from his family.
We are learning of children living in squalid conditions.
A chaotic scene of sickness and filth is unfolding in an overcrowded
border station in Clint, Texas, my homestate, where hundreds of young
people who have recently crossed the border are being held, according
to lawyers who visited the facility this week.
Some of the children have been there for nearly a month.
Children as young as 7 and 8, many of them wearing clothes caked with
human excrement and tears, are caring for infants they've just met.
Toddlers without diapers are relieving themselves in their pants.
Teenage mothers are wearing clothes stained with breast milk.
Most of the young detainees have not been able to shower or wash (
their clothes since they arrived at the facility, those who visited
said.
And it is inexplicable, indefensible, and inhumane that they are not
even being provided toothbrushes, toothpaste or soap.
Just reflect on that for a moment; innocent children and toddlers are
being denied soap and toothpaste at the very same time that similar
treatment to a prisoner of war would violate Article 26 of the 1949
Geneva Convention:
The Detaining Power shall be bound to take all sanitary
measures necessary to ensure the cleanliness and
healthfulness of camps and to prevent epidemics . . . . Also,
apart from the baths and showers with which the camps shall
be furnished, prisoners of war shall be provided with
sufficient water and soap for their personal toilet and for
washing their personal laundry; the necessary installations,
facilities and time shall be granted them for that purpose.
The arrival of thousands of migrants at a time, overflowing the
border patrol facilities of the Customs and Border Patrol, Immigration
and Customs Enforcement and Health and Human Services, has created a
humanitarian crisis that has resulted in unsafe, unsanitary conditions
and tragic deaths.
It is imperative that this House take decisive action to provide the
necessary resources and capabilities to mitigate the humanitarian
crisis created by this Administration and provide for the basic human
rights of everyone involved.
If Congress and the Administration fail to come to an agreement, the
situation at the border will only deteriorate.
Cutting funding to these agencies now will not punish the agencies or
the Administration: it will punish the migrants.
Congress has an urgent moral responsibility to protect children and
families, and defend the health, dignity and lives of those in need.
Conditions at Customs and Border Protection facilities along the
border have been an issue of increasing concern as officials warn that
the recent large influx of migrant families has driven many of the
facilities well past their capacities.
In May, the inspector general for the Department of Homeland Security
warned of ``dangerous overcrowding'' among adult migrants housed at the
border processing center in El Paso, with up to 900 migrants being held
at a facility designed for 125.
In some cases, cells designed for 35 people were holding 155 people.
This shameful episode in American history is capped by the
resignation announced today of John Sanders, the Acting Commissioner of
the U.S. Customs and Border Protection whose tenure at CBP included
children being kept at border stations with deplorable conditions,
including a facility that one of the independent inspectors, a medical
doctor, compared to ``torture facilities.''
This is why it is I strongly support this supplemental funding bill,
which provides:
1. $934.5 million for processing facilities, food, water, sanitary
items, blankets, medical services, and safe transportation;
2. $866 million to reduce reliance on influx shelters to house
children;
3. $200 million for an integrated, multi-agency processing center
pilot program for families and unaccompanied children, with
participation by non-profit organizations;
4. $100 million for legal services for unaccompanied children, child
advocates, and post-release services;
5. $60 million to assist jurisdictions experiencing a significant
influx of migrants and non-profit organizations serving those
communities;
6. $20 million for Alternatives to Detention;
7. $15 million for the Legal Orientation Program to educate migrants
about their rights and legal proceedings; and
8. $9 million to speed up placement of children with sponsors and
manage their cases.
In total, Madam Speaker, this legislation provides $4.5 billion in
emergency spending to address the humanitarian crisis at the border--
securing robust funding for priorities including legal assistance,
food, water, sanitary
[[Page H5159]]
items, blankets and medical services, support services for
unaccompanied children, and refugee services, which will relieve the
horrific situation of over-crowding and help prevent additional deaths.
Equally important, this supplemental protects families and does not
fund the Administration's failed mass detention policy.
Instead, the bill smartly provides funding for effective, humane
alternatives to detention which has a proven track record of success;
places strict limits on influx shelters; protects sponsors from DHS
immigration enforcement based on information collected by HHS during
the vetting process; and creates strong oversight by Congress.
Madam Speaker, the bill before addresses the roots causes of the
crisis by reversing the Administration's senseless decision to block
economic assistance that Congress has already appropriated for the
Northern Triangle countries.
It is significant that this legislation clarifies the intent of prior
year appropriations for Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador which
specifically required these governments to take steps to curb
migration, improve border security, including preventing human
smuggling and trafficking, and trafficking of illicit drugs and other
contraband; combat corruption; and support programs to reduce poverty
and promote equitable growth, particularly in areas contributing to
large number of migrants, among many other conditions.
The bill provides, however, that not less than 75 percent of any
funds that cannot be provided to the central governments of such
countries due to their failure to meet the certification requirements
shall be reprogrammed through nongovernmental organizations or local
entities in such countries and that the balance of such reprogramming
must be to countries within Latin America and the Caribbean.
Madam Speaker, I am particularly pleased that the Manager's Amendment
to this humanitarian emergency supplemental appropriations bill
includes a provision that I worked very hard to have included and which
requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to submit to the Congress a
plan for ensuring access to appropriate translation services for all
individuals encountered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services
It is simply unconscionable to subject refugee child from Honduras or
El Salvador or Guatemala to legal proceedings conducted in a language
foreign to him or her without the assistance of a translator conversant
in that child's native tongue. Also to be able to translate for new
desperate migrants from Africa and other nations.
Another reason to support this legislation is that it contains
important oversight provisions to hold the administration accountable
and to protect the rights and dignity of migrants, including:
No funding for a border wall or barriers, or for ICE detention beds;
Prohibits the use of funds for any purpose not specifically
described;
Places strict conditions on influx shelters to house children by
mandating compliance with requirements set forth in the Flores
settlement;
Protects sponsors and potential sponsors from DHS immigration
enforcement based on information collected by HHS during the sponsor
vetting process;
Ensures congressional oversight visits to facilities caring for
unaccompanied children without a requirement for prior notice;
Requires monthly reporting on unaccompanied children separated from
their families;
Requires additional reporting about the deaths of children in
government custody; and
Ensures CBP facilities funded in the bill comply with the National
Standards on Transport, Escort, Detention, and Search.
Madam Speaker, since December 2018, six minor children have died in
custody after being apprehended by U.S. border agents since December.
We cannot wait any longer to resolve the humanitarian crisis on the
southern border exacerbated by this Administration.
That is why I support H.R. 3401, and urge all members to join me in
voting to pass this critically needed legislation.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 462, the
previous question is ordered on the bill, as amended.
The question is on the engrossment and third reading of the bill.
The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was
read the third time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 1(c) of Rule XIX, further
consideration of H.R. 3401 is postponed.
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