HELP Separated Children Act

Summary: Humane Enforcement and Legal Protections for Separated Children Act or the HELP Separated Children Act - Sets forth apprehension procedures for immigration enforcement-related activities engaged in by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and cooperating entities, Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) require DHS detention facilities to implement procedures to ensure that child custody and family interests can be considered in any immigration detention action, (2) develop memoranda of understanding with child welfare agencies and community organizations that protect the best interests of children of detained individuals, and (3) provide DHS personnel with appropriate training.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Humane Enforcement and Legal 
Protections for Separated Children Act'' or the ``HELP Separated 
Children Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Apprehension.--The term ``apprehension'' means the 
        detention or arrest by officials of the Department of Homeland 
        Security or cooperating entities.
            (2) Child.--The term ``child'' means an individual who has 
        not attained 18 years of age.
            (3) Child welfare agency.--The term ``child welfare 
        agency'' means a State or local agency responsible for child 
        welfare services under subtitles B and E of title IV of the 
        Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).
            (4) Cooperating entity.--The term ``cooperating entity'' 
        means a State or local entity acting under agreement with the 
        Secretary.
            (5) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
        Department of Homeland Security.
            (6) Detention facility.--The term ``detention facility'' 
        means a Federal, State, or local government facility, or a 
        privately owned and operated facility, that is used, in whole 
        or in part, to hold individuals under the authority of the 
        Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including 
        facilities that hold such individuals under a contract or 
        agreement with the Director.
            (7) Immigration enforcement action.--The term ``immigration 
        enforcement action'' means the apprehension of one or more 
        individuals whom the Department has reason to believe are 
        removable from the United States by the Secretary or a 
        cooperating entity.
            (8) NGO.--The term ``NGO'' means a nongovernmental 
        organization that provides social services or humanitarian 
        assistance to the immigrant community.
            (9) Parent.--The term ``parent'' means a biological or 
        adoptive parent of a child, whose parental rights have not been 
        relinquished or terminated under State law or the law of a 
        foreign country, or a legal guardian under State law or the law 
        of a foreign country.
            (10) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Homeland Security.

SEC. 3. APPREHENSION PROCEDURES FOR IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT-RELATED 
              ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Apprehension Procedures.--In any immigration enforcement 
action, the Secretary and cooperating entities shall--
            (1) as soon as possible, but generally not later than 2 
        hours after an immigration enforcement action, inquire whether 
        an individual is a parent or primary caregiver of a child in 
        the United States and notify any such individual, in a language 
        that he or she understands, that he or she is entitled to--
                    (A) the opportunity to make a minimum of 2 
                telephone calls to arrange for the care of such child 
                in the individual's absence; and
                    (B) contact information for--
                            (i) child welfare agencies and family 
                        courts in the same jurisdiction as the child; 
                        and
                            (ii) consulates, attorneys, and legal 
                        service providers capable of providing free 
                        legal advice or representation regarding child 
                        welfare, child custody determinations, and 
                        immigration matters;
            (2) notify the child welfare agency with jurisdiction over 
        the child if the child's parent or primary caregiver is unable 
        to make care arrangements for the child or if the child is in 
        imminent risk of serious harm;
            (3) ensure that personnel of the Department and cooperating 
        entities do not, absent medical necessity or extraordinary 
        circumstances, interview individuals in the immediate presence 
        of children over the age of 2 unless the parent or primary 
        caregiver gives permission, or compel or request children to 
        interpret or translate for interviews of their parents or of 
        other individuals who are encountered as part of an immigration 
        enforcement action;
            (4) ensure that any parent or primary caregiver of a child 
        in the United States--
                    (A) absent medical necessity or extraordinary 
                circumstances, is not transferred from his or her area 
                of apprehension until the individual--
                            (i) has made arrangements for the care of 
                        such child; or
                            (ii) if such arrangements are unavailable 
                        or the individual is unable to make such 
                        arrangements, is informed of the care 
                        arrangements made for the child and of a means 
                        to maintain communication with the child;
                    (B) absent medical necessity or extraordinary 
                circumstances is placed in a detention facility 
                either--
                            (i) proximate to the location of 
                        apprehension; or
                            (ii) proximate to the individual's habitual 
                        place of residence; and
                            (iii) absent medical necessity or 
                        extraordinary circumstances, is not transferred 
                        from such facility unless necessary to 
                        facilitate participation in child welfare 
                        proceedings; and
                    (C) receives due consideration of the best 
                interests of such child in any decision or action 
                relating to his or her detention, release, or transfer 
                between detention facilities; and
            (5) issue guidance prohibiting personnel of the Department 
        and cooperating entities from apprehending persons on the 
        premises or in the immediate vicinity of day care centers, head 
        start centers, schools, school bus stops, recreation centers, 
        legal service providers, courts, funeral homes, cemeteries, 
        colleges, victim services agencies, social service agencies, 
        hospitals, health care clinics, community centers, and places 
        of worship, absent exceptional circumstances.
    (b) Requests to Local and State Entities.--If the Secretary 
requests a State or local entity to hold in custody an individual who 
the Department has reason to believe is removable pending transfer of 
that individual to the custody of the Secretary or to a detention 
facility, the Secretary shall also request that the State or local 
entity provide the individual the protections specified in paragraphs 
(1) and (2) of subsection (a), if that individual is found to be the 
parent or primary caregiver of a child in the United States.
    (c) Protections Against Trafficking Preserved.--The provisions of 
this section shall not be construed to impede, delay, or in any way 
limit the obligations of the Secretary, the Attorney General, or the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 235 of the William 
Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 
(8 U.S.C. 1232) or section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 
U.S.C. 279).

SEC. 4. ACCESS TO CHILDREN, STATE AND LOCAL COURTS, CHILD WELFARE 
              AGENCIES, AND CONSULAR OFFICIALS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall ensure that all detention 
facilities operated by or under agreement with the Department implement 
procedures to ensure that the best interest of the child, including a 
preference for family unity wherever appropriate, can be considered in 
any decision and action relating to the custody of children whose 
parent, legal guardian, or primary caregiver is detained as the result 
of an immigration enforcement action.
    (b) Detention Procedures.--At all detention facilities, the 
Secretary shall--
            (1) prominently post in a manner accessible to detainees 
        and visitors and include in detainee handbooks information on 
        the protections of this Act as well as information on potential 
        eligibility for parole or release;
            (2) absent extraordinary circumstances, ensure that 
        individuals who are detained by the Department and are parents 
        of children in the United States are--
                    (A) permitted regular phone calls and contact 
                visits with their children;
                    (B) provided with contact information for child 
                welfare agencies and family courts in the relevant 
                jurisdictions;
                    (C) able to participate fully, and to the extent 
                possible in-person, in all family court proceedings and 
                any other proceedings that may impact their right to 
                custody of their children;
                    (D) granted free and confidential telephone calls 
                to relevant child welfare agencies and family courts as 
                often as is necessary to ensure that the best interest 
                of their children, including a preference for family 
                unity whenever appropriate, can be considered in child 
                welfare agency or family court proceedings;
                    (E) able to fully comply with all family court or 
                child welfare agency orders impacting custody of their 
                children;
                    (F) provided access to United States passport 
                applications or other relevant travel document 
                applications for the purpose of obtaining travel 
                documents for their children;
                    (G) afforded timely access to a notary public for 
                the purpose of applying for a passport for their 
                children or executing guardianship or other agreements 
                to ensure the safety of their children; and
                    (H) granted adequate time before removal to obtain 
                passports, apostilled birth certificates, travel 
                documents, and other necessary records, including 
                health and school records, on behalf of their children 
                if such children will accompany them on their return to 
                their country of origin or join them in their country 
                of origin; and
            (3) where doing so would not impact public safety or 
        national security, facilitate the ability of detained alien 
        parents and primary caregivers to reunify with their children 
        by sharing information regarding travel arrangements with their 
        consulate, children, child welfare agencies, or other 
        caregivers in advance of the detained alien individual's 
        departure from the United States.

SEC. 5. MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING.

    The Secretary, in consultation with the Department of Health and 
Human Services, shall develop and implement memoranda of understanding 
or protocols with child welfare agencies and NGOs regarding the best 
ways to cooperate and facilitate ongoing communication between all 
relevant entities in cases involving a child whose parent, legal 
guardian, or primary caregiver has been apprehended or detained in an 
immigration enforcement action to protect the best interests of the 
child, including a preference for family unity whenever appropriate.

SEC. 6. MANDATORY TRAINING.

    The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services, the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and 
independent child welfare and family law experts, shall develop and 
provide training on the protections required under sections 3 and 4 to 
all personnel of the Department, cooperating entities, and detention 
facilities operated by or under agreement with the Department who 
regularly engage in immigration enforcement actions and in the course 
of such actions come into contact with individuals who are parents or 
primary caregivers of children in the United States.

SEC. 7. RULEMAKING.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary shall promulgate regulations to implement sections 3 
and 4 of this Act.

SEC. 8. SEVERABILITY.

    If any provision of this Act or amendment made by this Act, or the 
application of a provision or amendment to any person or circumstance, 
is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act and 
amendments made by this Act, and the application of the provisions and 
amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be affected by the 
holding.

SEC. 9. REPORT ON PROTECTIONS FOR CHILDREN IMPACTED BY IMMIGRATION 
              ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Requirement for Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary 
shall submit to Congress a report that describes the impact of 
immigration enforcement activities on children, including children who 
are citizens of the United States.
    (b) Content.--The report submitted under subsection (a) shall 
include for the previous 1-year period an assessment of--
            (1) the number of individuals removed from the United 
        States who are the parent of a child who is a citizen of the 
        United States;
            (2) the number of occasions in which both parents or the 
        primary caretaker of such a child was removed from the United 
        States; and
            (3) the number of children who are citizens of the United 
        States who leave the United States with parents who are 
        removed.