Save the Children Act of 2016

Summary: Save the Children Act of 2016 This bill directs the Departments of State, Justice, Homeland Security (DHS), and Health and Human Services to establish the Save the Children program to grant nonimmigrant visas to certain young minor children from Syria between the ages of 3 and 10 to enter and remain in the United States until there is a sustained reduction of civil war violence in Syria and a substantial reduction in the numbers of newly displaced Syria inhabitants. The bill establishes in the DHS Office of Refugee Resettlement a Coordinator of the Save the Children program.  The program shall terminate six months after the State Department certifies that there is a sustained reduction of civil war violence in Syria and a substantial reduction in the numbers of newly displaced Syria inhabitants.  The program provides for the admission of not more than 5,000 children in the first year and 10,000 children for each of the second and third years.  The bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish a nonimmigrant W-visa for an alien who: (1) is resident in or was born in Syria but is currently a displaced person or refugee living in another country, (2) is between 3 and 10 years old, and (3) has been approved by the State Department to temporarily reside in the United States.  Program aliens may remain in the United States until the State Department certifies that there is a sustained reduction of civil war violence in Syria and a substantial reduction in the numbers of newly displaced Syria inhabitants, with a six-month grace period for reunification efforts. 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Save the Children Act of 2016''.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) thousands of Syrian children face a humanitarian crisis 
        due to the sustained civil war violence in Syria and have been 
        displaced to refugee camps in surrounding countries where their 
        personal safety and welfare is threatened;
            (2) ample numbers of United States citizens, 
        nongovernmental organizations, and state governments and 
        instrumentalities would welcome the opportunity to provide 
        temporary support to young child refugees from Syria during the 
        ongoing humanitarian crisis;
            (3) the Secretary of State, Attorney General, Secretary of 
        Homeland Security, and Secretary of Health and Human Services 
        should make every effort to facilitate the temporary relocation 
        and immediate care of up to 25,000 young Syrian minor children 
        refugees who either are orphaned to the extent that can be 
        established by proper authorities, or whose proper guardians 
        transfer custody of the children to representatives of the 
        United States as established by its proper officials, into the 
        United States over a period of three years from the date of 
        enactment of this Act; and
            (4) the Secretary of State, Attorney General, Secretary of 
        Homeland Security, and Secretary of Health and Human Services 
        should make every effort to facilitate family reunification or 
        safe relocation of these young Syrian child refugees to Syria 
        after there is a sustained, substantial reduction of civil war 
        violence in Syria and a substantial reduction in the numbers of 
        newly displaced Syria inhabitants, such time as defined by the 
        Department of State.

SEC. 3. SAVE THE CHILDREN PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of State, Attorney General, 
Secretary of Homeland Security, and Secretary of Health and Human 
Services shall establish the Save the Children Program to grant visas 
allowing certain young minor children from Syria between the ages of 
three and ten to enter and remain in the United States until there is a 
sustained, substantial reduction of civil war violence in Syria and a 
substantial reduction in the numbers of newly displaced Syria 
inhabitants, such time as defined by the Department of State. Following 
such time as the Department of State does make this designation, there 
shall be an additional six months grace period before the visas expire, 
so that due diligence can be done to identify the proper guardians of 
these young minor children so they may be reunified with their 
families. Only such qualifying children whose established guardians are 
physically present to relinquish custody to the proper United States 
representatives, or those children who can be established to be 
orphaned, shall be eligible for such a visa.
    (b) Office of Coordination.--
            (1) Establishment.--
                    (A) There is established in the Office of Refugee 
                Resettlement of the Department of Health and Human 
                Services a Coordinator of the Save the Children Program 
                (hereinafter, ``Coordinator'').
                    (B) The Coordinator shall have the supervisory 
                authority for the operations of the Program in the 
                United States.
                    (C) The Coordinator of the Save the Children 
                Program shall be appointed by and report to the 
                Secretary of Health and Human Services.
            (2) Staff.--
                    (A) With the approval of the Office of Personnel 
                Management, the Coordinator may appoint and fix the pay 
                of additional personnel as the Coordinator considers 
                appropriate. Any such personnel may include private 
                citizens or employees of the Federal Government, 
                provided, however, that the Coordinator may not fix the 
                pay of employees of the Federal Government.
                    (B) Upon request of the Coordinator, the head of 
                any Federal department or agency may detail, on a 
                reimbursable or nonreimbursable basis, and in 
                accordance with the Intergovernmental Personnel Act of 
                1970 (5 U.S.C. 3371-3375), any of the personnel of that 
                department or agency to the Office to assist it in 
                carrying out its duties under this Act.
                    (C) The Coordinator shall use the staff and 
                resources of the Division of Unaccompanied Children's 
                Services (as described by section 462 of the Homeland 
                Security Act of 2002 (2 U.S.C. 279)).
            (3) Operations.--
                    (A) The Coordinator shall have the responsibility 
                of identifying which young minor children qualify for 
                the Program, including by properly obtaining custody of 
                the children from their proper guardians or 
                establishing that an eligible child is orphaned, and 
                implementing the temporary resettlement in the United 
                States of young minor children admitted pursuant to the 
                Program, consistent with the laws of applicable states 
                and instrumentalities of the United States, 
                international agreements, and the foreign policy and 
                domestic security interests of the United States.
                    (B) The Coordinator shall cooperate with 
                appropriate and approved nongovernmental organizations 
                and government authorities of the states and 
                instrumentalities of the United States to implement the 
                Program and to assist those admitted under the Program.
                    (C) The Coordinator shall consult with the 
                Secretary of State, Attorney General, and Secretary of 
                Homeland Security, or their designees, on the 
                operations of the Program and to ensure that all 
                operations of the Program are consistent with the laws 
                of applicable states and instrumentalities of the 
                United States, international agreements, the foreign 
                policy and domestic security interests of the United 
                States, and the goal of family reunification no more 
                than six months after there is a sustained, substantial 
                reduction of civil war violence in Syria and a 
                substantial reduction in the numbers of newly displaced 
                Syria inhabitants, such time as defined by the 
                Department of State.
    (c) Sunset.--
            (1) Except as provided by paragraph (2), the Program shall 
        terminate six months after certification by the Secretary of 
        State that there is a sustained, substantial reduction of civil 
        war violence in Syria and a substantial reduction in the 
        numbers of newly displaced Syria inhabitants.
            (2) Six months after certification by the Secretary of 
        State that there is a sustained, substantial reduction of civil 
        war violence in Syria and a substantial reduction in the 
        numbers of newly displaced Syria inhabitants, such time as 
        defined by the Department of State, the Office, in consultation 
        with the Departments of State, Justice, and Homeland Security, 
        shall make every effort to reunite minor children admitted to 
        the United States pursuant to the Program with their parents, 
        other close relatives, or appropriate caretakers, as required 
        by, and to the extent permitted by, international agreements 
        and the laws of the United States.
            (3) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the Program 
        may be suspended or terminated if the President determines that 
        such suspension or termination is warranted by the foreign 
        policy and domestic security interests of the United States.
    (d) Appropriations.--
            (1) There are authorized to be appropriated for each fiscal 
        year such sums as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of 
        this section.
            (2) Upon designation by the President, the Office is 
        authorized to use funds appropriated pursuant to the Migration 
        and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601) to carry 
        out the purposes of this section.
    (e) Reporting Requirement.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Coordinator shall submit a written 
report to Congress that contains the details of the implementation of 
the Program developed under this section.

SEC. 4. TEMPORARY NONIMMIGRANT VISA.

    (a) In General.--The Program under section (b) shall provide for 
the admission of not more than 5,000 alien minor children between the 
ages of three and ten years old, under section 101(a)(15)(W) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act in the first program year, and then 
10,000 additional alien minor children for each of the second and third 
program years, and shall give preference to those minor children 
already in the custody of the United States or any of its allies 
outside Syria on the date of enactment.
    (b) Temporary Nonimmigrant Visa.--Section 101(a)(15) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. section 1101(a)(15)) is 
amended by inserting at the end--
                    ``(W) until such time that the Secretary of State 
                certifies that there is a sustained, substantial 
                reduction of civil war violence in Syria and a 
                substantial reduction in the numbers of newly displaced 
                Syria inhabitants, such time as defined by the 
                Department of State, pursuant to Section 3(c)(1) of the 
                Syrian Civil War Minor Child Protection Act of 2016, an 
                alien who--
                            ``(i) is resident in Syria or who was born 
                        in Syria but is currently present in another 
                        country as a displaced person or refugee;
                            ``(ii) is between three and ten years of 
                        age at the time of the enactment of the Act; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) has been approved pursuant to 
                        policies promulgated by the Secretary of State, 
                        in consultation with the Secretary of Health 
                        and Human Services, Attorney General, and 
                        Secretary of Homeland Security, to reside in 
                        the United States temporarily pursuant to the 
                        Save the Children Program.''.
    (c) Ability To Remain in the United States.--Notwithstanding any 
law to the contrary, and as required by, and to the extent permitted 
by, international agreements, aliens admitted to the United States 
pursuant to the Save the Children Act of 2016 may remain in the United 
States until the Secretary of State certifies that there is a 
sustained, substantial reduction of civil war violence in Syria and a 
substantial reduction in the numbers of newly displaced Syria 
inhabitants, such time as defined by the Department of State, pursuant 
to Section 3(c)(1) of the Act, and providing a six month grace period 
for efforts at reunification as established herein.