[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 14, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S157-S158]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 48. Mr. BLUMENTHAL submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
by him to the bill S. 5, to require the Secretary of Homeland Security
to take into custody aliens who have been charged in the United States
with theft, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the
table; as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
SEC. 4. PROTECTING SENSITIVE LOCATIONS.
(a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the
``Protecting Sensitive Locations Act''.
(b) Powers of Immigration Officers and Employees at
Sensitive Locations.--Section 287 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1357) is amended by adding at the
end the following:
``(i)(1) In this subsection:
``(A) The term `appropriate committees of Congress' means--
``(i) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
``(ii) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate;
``(iii) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
``(iv) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives;
``(v) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of
Representatives; and
``(vi) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives.
``(B) The term `early childhood education program' has the
meaning given the term under section 103 of the Higher
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1003).
``(C) The term `enforcement action'--
``(i) means an apprehension, arrest, interview, request for
identification, search, or surveillance for the purposes of
immigration enforcement; and
``(ii) includes an enforcement action at, or focused on, a
sensitive location that is part of a joint case led by
another law enforcement agency.
``(D) The term `exigent circumstances' means a situation
involving--
``(i) the imminent risk of death, violence, or physical
harm to any person or property, including a situation
implicating terrorism or the national security of the United
States;
``(ii) the immediate arrest or pursuit of a dangerous
felon, terrorist suspect, or other individual presenting an
imminent danger; or
``(iii) the imminent risk of destruction of evidence that
is material to an ongoing criminal case.
``(E) The term `prior approval' means--
``(i) in the case of officers and agents of U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, prior written approval
to carry out an enforcement action involving a specific
individual or individuals authorized by--
``(I) the Assistant Director of Operations, Homeland
Security Investigations;
``(II) the Executive Associate Director of Homeland
Security Investigations;
``(III) the Assistant Director for Field Operations,
Enforcement and Removal Operations; or
``(IV) the Executive Associate Director for Field
Operations, Enforcement and Removal Operations;
``(ii) in the case of officers and agents of U.S. Customs
and Border Protection, prior written approval to carry out an
enforcement action involving a specific individual or
individuals authorized by--
``(I) a Chief Patrol Agent;
``(II) the Director of Field Operations;
``(III) the Director of Air and Marine Operations; or
``(IV) the Internal Affairs Special Agent in Charge; and
``(iii) in the case of other Federal, State, or local law
enforcement officers, to carry out an enforcement action
involving a specific individual or individuals authorized
by--
``(I) the head of the Federal agency carrying out the
enforcement action; or
``(II) the head of the State or local law enforcement
agency carrying out the enforcement action.
``(F) The term `sensitive location' includes all of the
physical space located within 1,000 feet of--
``(i) any medical treatment or health care facility,
including any hospital, health care practitioner's office,
accredited health clinic, alcohol or drug treatment center,
emergent or urgent care facility, or community health center;
``(ii) public and private schools (including preschools,
primary schools, secondary schools, and postsecondary schools
(including colleges and universities), sites of early
childhood education program facility, sites of after school
programs, other institutions of learning (including
vocational or trade schools), or other site at which
individuals who are unemployed or underemployed may apply for
or receive workforce training;
``(iii) any scholastic or education-related activity or
event, including field trips and interscholastic events;
``(iv) any school bus or school bus stop during periods
when school children are present on the bus or at the stop;
``(v) a location at which emergency service providers
distribute food or provide shelter;
``(vi) any organization that--
``(I) assists children, pregnant women, victims of crime or
abuse, or individuals with significant mental or physical
disabilities; or
``(II) provides--
``(aa) disaster or emergency social services and
assistance; or
``(bb) services for individuals experiencing homelessness,
including food banks and shelters;
``(vii) any church, synagogue, mosque, or other place of
worship, including buildings rented for the purpose of
religious services, retreats, counseling, workshops,
instruction, and education;
``(viii) any Federal, State, or local courthouse, including
the office of an individual's legal counsel or
representative, and a probation, parole, or supervised
release office;
``(ix) the site of a funeral, wedding, or other religious
ceremony or observance;
``(x) any public demonstration, such as a march, rally, or
parade;
``(xi) any domestic violence shelter, rape crisis center,
supervised visitation center, family justice center, or
victim services provider;
``(xii) any congressional district office;
``(xiii) any public assistance office, including Federal,
State, and municipal locations at which individuals may apply
for or receive unemployment compensation or report violations
of labor and employment laws;
``(xiv) any office of the Social Security Administration;
``(xv) any indoor or outdoor premises of a State Department
of Motor Vehicles;
``(xvi) any public library; or
``(xvii) any other location specified by the Secretary of
Homeland Security for purposes of this subsection.
``(2)(A) An enforcement action may not take place at, or be
focused on, a sensitive location unless--
``(i) the action involves exigent circumstances; or
``(ii) prior approval for the enforcement action was
obtained from the appropriate official.
``(B) If an enforcement action is initiated pursuant to
subparagraph (A) and the exigent circumstances permitting the
enforcement action cease, the enforcement action shall be
discontinued until such exigent circumstances reemerge.
``(C) If an enforcement action is carried out in violation
of this subsection--
``(i) no information resulting from the enforcement action
may be entered into the record or received into evidence in a
removal proceeding resulting from the enforcement action; and
``(ii) the alien who is the subject of such removal
proceeding may file a motion for the immediate termination of
the removal proceeding.
``(3)(A) This subsection shall apply to any enforcement
action by officers or agents of the Department of Homeland
Security, including--
``(i) officers or agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement;
``(ii) officers or agents of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection; and
``(iii) any individual designated to perform immigration
enforcement functions pursuant to subsection (g).
``(B) While carrying out an enforcement action at a
sensitive location, officers and agents referred to in
subparagraph (A) shall make every effort--
``(i) to limit the time spent at the sensitive location;
``(ii) to limit the enforcement action at the sensitive
location to the person or persons for whom prior approval was
obtained; and
``(iii) to conduct themselves as discreetly as possible,
consistent with officer and public safety.
``(C) If, while carrying out an enforcement action that is
not initiated at or focused on a sensitive location, officers
or agents are led to a sensitive location, and no exigent
circumstance and prior approval with respect to the sensitive
location exists, such officers or agents shall--
``(i) cease before taking any further enforcement action;
``(ii) conduct themselves in a discreet manner;
``(iii) maintain surveillance; and
``(iv) immediately consult their supervisor in order to
determine whether such enforcement action should be
discontinued.
``(D) The limitations under this paragraph shall not apply
to the transportation of an individual apprehended at or near
a land or sea border to a hospital or health care provider
for the purpose of providing medical care to such individual.
``(4)(A) Each official specified in subparagraph (B) shall
ensure that the employees under his or her supervision
receive annual training on compliance with--
``(i) the requirements under this subsection in enforcement
actions at or focused on sensitive locations and enforcement
actions that lead officers or agents to a sensitive location;
and
``(ii) the requirements under section 239 of this Act and
section 384 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant
Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1367).
[[Page S158]]
``(B) The officials specified in this subparagraph are--
``(i) the Chief Counsel of U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement;
``(ii) the Field Office Directors of U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement;
``(iii) each Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration
and Customs Enforcement;
``(iv) each Chief Patrol Agent of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection;
``(v) the Director of Field Operations of U.S. Customs and
Border Protection;
``(vi) the Director of Air and Marine Operations of U.S.
Customs and Border Protection;
``(vii) the Internal Affairs Special Agent in Charge of
U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and
``(viii) the chief law enforcement officer of each State or
local law enforcement agency that enters into a written
agreement with the Department of Homeland Security pursuant
to subsection (g).
``(5) The Secretary of Homeland Security shall modify the
Notice to Appear form (I-862)--
``(A) to provide the subjects of an enforcement action with
information, written in plain language, summarizing the
restrictions against enforcement actions at sensitive
locations set forth in this subsection and the remedies
available to the alien if such action violates such
restrictions;
``(B) so that the information described in subparagraph (A)
is accessible to individuals with limited English
proficiency; and
``(C) so that subjects of an enforcement action are not
permitted to verify that the officers or agents that carried
out such action complied with the restrictions set forth in
this subsection.
``(6)(A) The Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement and the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection shall each submit an annual report to the
appropriate committees of Congress that includes the
information set forth in subparagraph (B) with respect to the
respective agency.
``(B) Each report submitted under subparagraph (A) shall
include, with respect to the submitting agency during the
reporting period--
``(i) the number of enforcement actions that were carried
out at, or focused on, a sensitive location;
``(ii) the number of enforcement actions in which officers
or agents were subsequently led to a sensitive location; and
``(iii) for each enforcement action described in clause (i)
or (ii)--
``(I) the date on which it occurred;
``(II) the specific site, city, county, and State in which
it occurred;
``(III) the components of the agency and the names of the
agents involved in the enforcement action;
``(IV) whether the enforcement action took place with prior
approval or if the enforcement action was the result of
exigent circumstances, and--
``(aa) if prior approval was granted, documentation
confirming conditions of approval; or
``(bb) if under exigent circumstances, a description of
those circumstances;
``(V) a description of the enforcement action, including
the nature of the criminal activity of its intended target;
``(VI) the number of individuals, if any, arrested or taken
into custody;
``(VII) the number of collateral arrests, if any, and the
reasons for each such arrest;
``(VIII) a certification whether the location administrator
was contacted before, during, or after the enforcement
action; and
``(IX) the percentage of all of the staff members and
supervisors reporting to the officials listed in paragraph
(4)(B) who completed the training required under paragraph
(4)(A).
``(7) Nothing in the subsection may be construed--
``(A) to affect the authority of Federal, State, or local
law enforcement agencies--
``(i) to enforce generally applicable Federal or State
criminal laws unrelated to immigration; or
``(ii) to protect residents from imminent threats to public
safety; or
``(B) to limit or override the protections provided in--
``(i) section 239; or
``(ii) section 384 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and
Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1367).''.
______