Protecting UACs Through Enhanced Sponsor Vetting Act of 2017

Summary: Protecting UACs Through Enhanced Sponsor Vetting Act of 2017 This bill establishes additional sponsor vetting requirements for placement of unaccompanied alien children (UACs) who are in federal custody because of their immigration status. UACs are children under the age of 18 with no lawful immigration status who either have no parent or legal guardian in the United States, or have no parent or legal guardian in the United States available to provide care and physical custody. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended to require the Department of Health and Human Service's Office of Refugee Resettlement, as part of its UAC placement determinations, to:   notify the governor and the chief executive of the county in which a sponsor resides of a prospective placement;  include the Federal Bureau of Investigation and state and local law enforcement officials in consultations regarding UAC adherence to hearing requirements and safety from criminal or exploitive elements, including protection from members of a transnational criminal organization.  Prior to making a placement determination the office shall:   coordinate with the Department of Justice to use the Next Generation Identification System to check the criminal background of prospective sponsors; and  consult with federal, state, and local law enforcement entities.   The office shall also:   notify state and local governments of a placement determination, including notifying the governor and mayor of the locality in which the sponsor resides; and  provide the Terrorist Screening Center with any information uncovered during the placement process that establishes the child's or sponsor's membership or affiliation with a transnational criminal organization.  

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting UACs Through Enhanced 
Sponsor Vetting Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL PROCEDURES FOR PLACEMENT DECISIONS FOR UNACCOMPANIED 
              ALIEN CHILDREN.

    Section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 279) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(1)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (K), by striking ``; and'' at 
                the end;
                    (B) in subparagraph (L), by striking the period at 
                the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(M) providing notification of the prospective 
                placement of an unaccompanied alien child with a 
                sponsor to the Governor of the State and the chief 
                executive of the county in which the sponsor 
                resides.'';
            (2) in subsection (b)(2), by amending subparagraph (A) to 
        read as follows:
                    ``(A) shall coordinate with appropriate juvenile 
                justice professionals, the Director of the Bureau of 
                Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Assistant 
                Secretary of the Bureau of Border Security, the 
                Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and 
                appropriate State and local law enforcement officials 
                to ensure that such determinations ensure that 
                unaccompanied alien children described in such 
                subparagraph--
                            ``(i) are likely to appear for all hearings 
                        or proceedings in which they are involved;
                            ``(ii) are protected from smugglers, 
                        traffickers, members of a designated 
                        transnational criminal organization, or others 
                        who might seek to victimize or otherwise engage 
                        them in criminal, harmful, or exploitive 
                        activity, including by conducting a thorough 
                        criminal history background check utilizing the 
                        Next Generation Identification System or its 
                        successor system on prospective sponsors;
                            ``(iii) are placed in a setting in which 
                        they are not likely to pose a danger to 
                        themselves or others; and'';
            (3) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (h) and--
                    (A) in paragraph (1) of such subsection, by 
                striking ``and'' at the end;
                    (B) in paragraph (2) of such subsection, by 
                striking the period at the end and inserting ``; and''; 
                and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) the term `transnational criminal organization' means 
        a criminal organization that has been designated as a 
        transnational criminal organization by the Office of Foreign 
        Assets Control at the Department of the Treasury.''; and
            (4) by inserting after subsection (f) the following:
    ``(g) Additional Procedures for Making Placement Determinations.--
            ``(1) Criminal records checks.--The Director shall 
        coordinate with the Attorney General to conduct a thorough 
        criminal history background check utilizing the Next Generation 
        Identification System or its successor system for all 
        prospective sponsors before placement of an unaccompanied alien 
        child.
            ``(2) Consultation with relevant law enforcement 
        entities.--The Director shall consult with relevant law 
        enforcement entities, including Federal, State, and local law 
        enforcement, prior to making a determination on whether it is 
        appropriate to place an unaccompanied alien child with a 
        prospective sponsor. This consultation will examine any 
        criminal activity in which the prospective sponsor may have 
        been, or is currently, involved.
            ``(3) Notification to state and local governments.--The 
        Director shall notify relevant State and local governments of 
        the decision to place an unaccompanied alien child with a 
        sponsor. This notification will include the Governor of the 
        state where the sponsor resides, as well as the mayor or 
        equivalent officeholder of the locality where the sponsor 
        resides.
            ``(4) Transnational criminal organization intelligence 
        sharing.--The Director shall provide to the Terrorist Screening 
        Center information uncovered during the placement process of an 
        unaccompanied alien child that establishes membership in, or 
        affiliation with, a designated transnational criminal 
        organization of either an unaccompanied alien child or a 
        prospective sponsor.''.