Immigration Detainer Enforcement Act of 2019
This bill expands statutory provisions to authorize the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to request a law enforcement agency to detain an individual who has been arrested for violating any law (if the individual is believed to be an unlawfully present alien), where current provisions only explicitly authorize detainer requests for individuals arrested for violating controlled substances laws. The bill also modifies other related provisions.
A law enforcement agency that has received a detainer request may hold the targeted individual for up to 48 hours. DHS may enter into agreements with law enforcement agencies to indemnify such agencies against claims for wrongful detention resulting from a detainer request.
No provision of federal, state, or local law may restrict any government entity from (1) providing DHS with access to databases with information relating to issued detainers, or (2) holding an individual subject to a detainer.
DHS shall periodically certify to Congress as to which state or local entities have not complied with a detainer request. Such entities shall be ineligible for compensation for costs related to honoring detainer requests.
State and local entities that comply with DHS detainer requests shall have prioritized access to (1) certain law enforcement-related grants, and (2) certain excess federal property.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4948 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4948
To provide for the effective use of immigration detainers to enhance
public safety.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 31, 2019
Mr. Bishop of North Carolina (for himself, Mr. Budd, and Mr. Meadows)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the effective use of immigration detainers to enhance
public safety.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Immigration
Detainer Enforcement Act of 2019''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Sense of Congress.
Sec. 3. Purpose.
Sec. 4. Immigration detainer authorities of the Department of Homeland
Security.
Sec. 5. Effective coordination with State, tribal, and local law
enforcement agencies.
Sec. 6. Compensating States for detaining criminal aliens.
Sec. 7. Priority for distributing Federal funding and property to State
and local law enforcement.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the removal of criminal aliens promotes public safety,
national security, border security, and the integrity of the
immigration system;
(2) detainers have proven to be a useful law enforcement
tool that serve to expedite and improve the efficiency of the
removal process by enabling the Department of Homeland Security
to assume custody in a timely manner of aliens in the custody
of Federal, State, tribal, or local law enforcement agencies;
and
(3) several States and localities have limited their
cooperation with immigration detainers issued by the Department
of Homeland Security and limited the Department of Homeland
Security's access to information regarding the release of
criminal aliens in their custody, which has resulted in the
release of dangerous criminal aliens into local communities.
SEC. 3. PURPOSE.
The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to limit recidivist criminal activity through the
removal of criminal aliens released from Federal, State,
tribal, or local custody;
(2) to facilitate cooperation between Federal, State,
tribal, and local law enforcement agencies with regard to
immigration enforcement and information sharing; and
(3) to limit the burden on Federal, State, tribal, and
local law enforcement agencies that cooperate with the
Department of Homeland Security in its prioritized immigration
enforcement.
SEC. 4. IMMIGRATION DETAINER AUTHORITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY.
Section 287 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1357)
is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ``and is likely to
escape before a warrant can be obtained for his arrest''; and
(2) by amending subsection (d) to read as follows:
``(d) Detainer of Criminal Aliens.--
``(1) In general.--If an individual is arrested by a
Federal, State, tribal, or local law enforcement official for a
violation of any criminal law, the Secretary of Homeland
Security (or his or her designee) may issue a detainer to the
arresting agency if there is reason to believe the individual
is an alien who may be removable from the United States.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no court shall have
jurisdiction to review the discretionary decision or action by
the Secretary of Homeland Security (or his or her designee) to
issue a detainer under this paragraph.
``(2) Transfer of custody.--Upon the issuance of a detainer
by the Secretary of Homeland Security (or his or her designee)
with respect to an alien described in paragraph (1), the
arresting Federal, State, tribal, or local law enforcement
agency is authorized to maintain custody of the alien for a
period not to exceed 48 hours in order to transfer custody of
the alien to the Department of Homeland Security.
``(3) Indemnification.--
``(A) In general.--Under such regulations as the
Secretary of Homeland Security shall prescribe, the
Secretary (or his or her designee) may enter into
agreements with State, tribal, and local law
enforcement agencies to indemnify such agencies against
claims (including reasonable expenses of litigation or
settlement) by third parties for wrongful detention
resulting from detainers issued without reason to
believe that the individual is an alien who may be
removable from the United States.
``(B) Limitation.--Indemnification under
subparagraph (A) does not extend to claims relating to
the negligence or willful misconduct of a Federal,
State, tribal, or local law enforcement agency or the
conditions of detention in the facility used by such
agency to detain the individual subject to the
detainer.
``(C) Additional conditions.--Each indemnification
agreement entered into pursuant to subparagraph (A)
shall--
``(i) require the State, tribal, or local
law enforcement agency to notify the United
States Government of any suit or claim against
such agency for wrongful detention;
``(ii) authorize the United States
Government, at its elections, to control or
assist in the defense of such suit or claim;
and
``(iii) limit the amount of indemnification
to a sum certified by the Secretary (or his or
her designee) that is just and reasonable.''.
SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE COORDINATION WITH STATE, TRIBAL, AND LOCAL LAW
ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.
(a) In General.--Section 642 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and
Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1373) is amended to read
as follows:
``SEC. 642. COMMUNICATION AND COOPERATION BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
AND THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY.
``(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of Federal,
State, tribal, or local law, a Federal, State, tribal, or local
government entity or official may not prohibit, or restrict in any way,
any government entity or official from sending to, or receiving from,
the Department of Homeland Security information regarding the
citizenship or immigration status (lawful or unlawful) of any
individual.
``(b) Additional Authority of Government Entities.--Notwithstanding
any other provision of Federal, State, tribal, or local law, no person
or agency may prohibit, or restrict in any way, a Federal, State,
tribal, or local government entity from--
``(1) sending information regarding the citizenship or
immigration status (lawful or unlawful) of any individual to,
or requesting or receiving such information from, the
Department of Homeland Security;
``(2) exchanging citizenship or immigration status
information described in paragraph (1) with any other Federal,
State, tribal, or local government entity;
``(3) providing the Department of Homeland Security with
access to information in Federal, State, tribal, or local
government databases regarding individuals with respect to whom
a detainer has been issued, including when such individuals
will be released from criminal custody; and
``(4) maintaining custody of an individual pursuant to
section 287(d)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1357(d)(2)).
``(c) Obligation To Respond to Inquiries.--The Secretary of
Homeland Security shall respond to an inquiry by a Federal, State,
tribal, or local government agency that seeks to verify or ascertain
the citizenship or immigration status of any individual within the
jurisdiction of the agency for any purpose authorized by law, by
providing the requested verification or status information.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for the Illegal
Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (division C
of Public Law 104-208; 8 U.S.C. 1101 note) is amended by amending the
item relating to 642 to read as follows:
``Sec. 642. Communication and cooperation between government agencies
and the Department of Homeland Security.''.
SEC. 6. COMPENSATING STATES FOR DETAINING CRIMINAL ALIENS.
Section 241 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1231(i)) is amended to read as follows:
``(i) Incarceration or Detention.--
``(1) Defined term.--In this subsection, the term
`undocumented criminal alien' means an alien who--
``(A) has been convicted of a felony or of 2 or
more misdemeanors; and
``(B)(i) entered the United States without
inspection or at any time or place other than as
designated by the Secretary of Homeland Security;
``(ii) was the subject of exclusion, deportation,
or removal proceedings at the time the alien was taken
into custody by the State or a political subdivision of
the State; or
``(iii)(I) was admitted as a nonimmigrant; and
``(II) at the time the alien was taken into custody
by the State or a political subdivision of the State--
``(aa) failed to maintain the nonimmigrant
status in which the alien was admitted or to
which it was changed under section 248; or
``(bb) failed to comply with the conditions
of any such status.
``(2) In general.--If the governor of a State (or, if
appropriate, the chief executive officer of a political
subdivision of the State), exercising authority with respect to
the incarceration or detention of an undocumented criminal
alien, submits a written request to the Attorney General, the
Attorney General may--
``(A) enter into a contractual arrangement
providing for compensation to the State or a political
subdivision of the State, as may be appropriate, with
respect to the incarceration or detention of the
undocumented criminal alien; or
``(B) take the undocumented criminal alien into the
custody of the Federal Government and incarcerate or
detain the alien.
``(3) Detention security.--In carrying out paragraph (2),
the Attorney General shall--
``(A) give priority to the Federal incarceration of
undocumented criminal aliens who have committed
aggravated felonies; and
``(B) ensure that undocumented criminal aliens
incarcerated or detained in Federal facilities pursuant
to this subsection are held in facilities that provide
a level of security appropriate to the crimes for which
they were charged or convicted.
``(4) Amount of compensation.--
``(A) In general.--Compensation provided for each
day an undocumented criminal alien is detained by a
State or a political subdivision of a State pursuant to
a contract under paragraph (2)(A) shall be equal to the
average daily cost of incarceration or detention of a
prisoner in the relevant State, as determined by the
Attorney General.
``(B) Certification requirement.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary of
Homeland Security shall--
``(I) promulgate regulations
establishing detainer compliance
criteria; and
``(II) periodically submit a
certification to the Attorney General
that identifies which States and
political subdivisions of a State have
not complied with detainer requests
received from the Department of
Homeland Security.
``(ii) Funding limitation.--Funds may only
be provided to States and political
subdivisions of States under this subsection
that--
``(I) are not identified in a
certification described in clause
(i)(II); and
``(II) are cooperating with the
Secretary with respect to each detainer
lodged against an individual in the
custody of the State or political
subdivision of the State in accordance
with section 287(d) and the regulations
promulgated pursuant to clause (i)(I).
``(C) Effect of noncompliance.--Any State or
political subdivision of a State that fails to
substantially comply with detainers issued by the
Department of Homeland Security shall be ineligible for
any funding under this subsection during the fiscal
year in which such failure occurs.
``(5) Authorization of appropriations.--
``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this subsection--
``(i) $750,000,000 for fiscal year 2020;
``(ii) $850,000,000 for fiscal year 2021;
and
``(iii) $950,000,000 for each of the fiscal
years 2022 through 2026.
``(B) Limitation.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to
subparagraph (A) that are distributed to a State or a
political subdivision of a State may only be used for
correctional purposes.''.
SEC. 7. PRIORITY FOR DISTRIBUTING FEDERAL FUNDING AND PROPERTY TO STATE
AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Annual Certification.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
annually submit a written certification to the Attorney General that
identifies the States and units of local government that are not
complying with detainers issued pursuant to section 287(d) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1357(d)).
(b) Priority for Compliant Jurisdictions.--The Attorney General
shall give priority to the jurisdictions that are not listed in the
certification described in subsection (a) when selecting recipients
of--
(1) funding from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice
Assistance Grant Program authorized under title I of the
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C.
10151 et seq.);
(2) excess Federal equipment purchased pursuant to section
281 of title 10, United States Code (commonly referred to as
the 1122 Program); and
(3) excess Federal property transferred pursuant to section
2576a of title 10, United States Code (commonly referred to as
the 1033 Program).
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.
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