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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8020 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8020
To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to publish data
on the Unaccompanied Children Program.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 16, 2024
Ms. Eshoo introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to publish data
on the Unaccompanied Children Program.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Transparency for Unaccompanied
Children Act''.
SEC. 2. ONLINE PUBLICATION OF DATA ON THE UNACCOMPANIED CHILDREN
PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment
of this Act, and monthly thereafter, the Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall publish, on a publicly accessible webpage of the
Department of Health and Human Services, data on the Unaccompanied
Children Program.
(b) Required Data.--The data published pursuant to subsection (a)
shall include the following:
(1) The total number of unaccompanied alien children
transferred to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) during
the previous month.
(2) The total number of unaccompanied alien children
discharged by ORR into the custody of sponsors during the
previous month, disaggregated by the number of such children
discharged to a sponsor who is--
(A) a parent or legal guardian of the discharged
child;
(B) a brother, sister, or grandparent of the
discharged child, or an aunt, uncle, or first cousin of
the discharged child who previously served as the
child's primary caregiver;
(C) an aunt, uncle, or first cousin of the
discharged child who was not previously the child's
primary caregiver; or
(D) a distant relative of the discharged child or
not related to the discharged child.
(3) The total number of unaccompanied alien children who
were discharged by ORR into the custody of sponsors during the
previous month, and who meet the requirements for a mandatory
home study under section 235(c)(3)(B) of the William
Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act
of 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1232(c)(3)(B)), disaggregated by the number
of such children discharged to a sponsor who is--
(A) a parent or legal guardian of the discharged
child;
(B) a brother, sister, or grandparent of the
discharged child, or an aunt, uncle, or first cousin of
the discharged child who previously served as the
child's primary caregiver;
(C) an aunt, uncle, or first cousin of the
discharged child who was not previously the child's
primary caregiver; or
(D) a distant relative of the discharged child or
not related to the discharged child.
(4) The average length of time spent in ORR custody by
unaccompanied alien children who were discharged from ORR
custody during the previous month.
(5) The total number of home studies conducted by ORR (or
by an ORR grantee or contractor) to assess whether potential
sponsors are able and willing to care for an unaccompanied
alien child, disaggregated by the number of such home studies
that are--
(A) mandatory under current law or existing ORR
policies; or
(B) discretionary under current law and existing
ORR policies.
(6) The total number of sponsorship applications that were
pending with ORR at any point during the previous month,
disaggregated by the number of such applications that--
(A) were approved during the previous month;
(B) were denied during the previous month; or
(C) remained pending as of the end of the previous
month.
(7) The total number of sponsorship applications that were
pending with ORR at any point during the previous month and
submitted by any individual seeking to become the sponsor of an
unaccompanied alien child who meets the requirements for a
mandatory home study under section 1232(c)(3)(B) of title 8,
United States Code, disaggregated by the number of such
applications that--
(A) were approved during the previous month;
(B) were denied during the previous month; or
(C) remained pending as of the end of the previous
month.
(8) The total number of calls received by the ORR National
Call Center during the previous month reporting instances of
trafficking, neglect, or abuse of children discharged into the
custody of sponsors by ORR.
(9) The total number of follow-up calls to discharged
children and their sponsors conducted by ORR (or by an ORR
grantee or contractor) during the previous month, disaggregated
by the number of such calls conducted--
(A) in accordance with the timeframe required by
ORR policy; or
(B) later than required by ORR policy.
(10) The total number of unaccompanied alien children
discharged from ORR custody who have received post-release
services furnished by ORR during the previous month,
disaggregated by the number of such children who have
received--
(A) one or more virtual check-ins;
(B) case management services; or
(C) intensive in-home services and engagement.
(11) The total number of unaccompanied alien children
discharged from ORR custody who have received full legal
representation furnished by ORR during the previous month.
(c) Notification of Congressional Committees.--Upon publishing new
monthly data pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary of Health and
Human Services shall notify the Chair and ranking member of--
(1) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of
Representatives;
(2) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
of the Senate;
(3) the Committee on Oversight and Accountability of the
House of Representatives; and
(4) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate.
(d) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``ORR'' means the Office of Refugee
Resettlement of the Department of Health and Human Services.
(2) The term ``sponsor'' means an individual who has been
selected by the Department of Health and Human Services to be
the custodian of an unaccompanied alien child under section
235(c)(3) of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims
Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1232(c)(3)).
(3) The term ``sponsorship application'' means the
application submitted to ORR by an individual seeking to become
the custodian of an unaccompanied alien child.
(4) The term ``unaccompanied alien child'' has the meaning
given to such term in section 462(g)(2) of the Homeland
Secretary Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 279(g)(2)).
(5) The term ``Unaccompanied Children Program'' means the
program of ORR for the care and custody of unaccompanied alien
children under section 235(b) of the William Wilberforce
Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (8
U.S.C. 1232(b)).
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
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