II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 3323 

To establish the Office of the Ombudsperson for Immigrant Children in 

Immigration Custody, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 15, 2023 

Mrs. GILLIBRAND (for herself, Mr. MERKLEY, Ms. WARREN, Mr. 

BLUMENTHAL, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mr. DURBIN, and Mr. BOOKER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To establish the Office of the Ombudsperson for Immigrant 

Children in Immigration Custody, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protection of Kids in 

5 Immigrant Detention Act’’ or the ‘‘PROKID Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 


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1 (1) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Committee’’ 

2 means the expert advisory committee established 

3 under section 5(a). 

4 (2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

5 the Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. 

6 (3) FACILITY.—The term ‘‘facility’’— 

7 (A) means a location at which 1 or more 

8 immigrant children are detained by the Govern9 ment or held in immigration custody; and 

10 (B) includes— 

11 (i) an Office of Refugee Resettlement 

12 facility; and 

13 (ii) a Department of Homeland Secu14 rity facility, including— 

15 (I) a U.S. Customs and Border 

16 Protection temporary holding facility 

17 and transportation contractor; 

18 (II) a U.S. Immigration and Cus19 toms Enforcement family detention 

20 facility; 

21 (III) a U.S. Immigration and 

22 Customs Enforcement juvenile facility; 

23 (IV) a location operated by a pri24 vate entity, including a hotel room; 

25 and 


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1 (V) any other location at which 

2 the Department of Homeland Security 

3 or the Department of Health and 

4 Human Services detains or holds in 

5 custody an immigrant child. 

6 (4) IMMIGRATION CUSTODY.—The term ‘‘immi7 gration custody’’ means the physical custody of the 

8 Secretary of Health and Human Services or the Sec9 retary of Homeland Security (or the head of any 

10 successor agency of the Department of Health and 

11 Human Services or the Department of Homeland 

12 Security). 

13 (5) INFLUX FACILITY.—The term ‘‘influx facil14 ity’’ means any facility established to provide tem15 porary emergency shelter and services for unaccom16 panied immigrant children during an influx or emer17 gency. 

18 (6) FLORES SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.—The 

19 term ‘‘Flores settlement agreement’’ means the stip20 ulated settlement agreement filed in the United 

21 States District Court for the Central District of 

22 California on January 17, 1997 (CV 85–4544– 

23 RJK). 

24 (7) IMMIGRANT CHILD.—The term ‘‘immigrant 

25 child’’ means an alien (as defined in section 101(a) 


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1 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

2 1101(a))) under the age of 18 years. 

3 (8) IN-NETWORK FACILITY.—The term ‘‘in-net4 work facility’’ means a facility operated by an Office 

5 of Refugee Resettlement grantee, subgrantee, con6 tractor, or subcontractor. 

7 (9) OFFICE OF REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT FA8 CILITY.—The term ‘‘Office of Refugee Resettlement 

9 facility’’— 

10 (A) means— 

11 (i) a shelter operated by an Office of 

12 Refugee Resettlement grantee, subgrantee, 

13 contractor, or subcontractor to hold immi14 grant children; 

15 (ii) staff secure, secure care, or transi16 tional foster care housing or long term fos17 ter care so operated; or 

18 (iii) any other location operated by 

19 the Office of Refugee Resettlement to hold 

20 immigrant children; and 

21 (B) includes an in-network facility and an 

22 out-of-network facility. 

23 (10) OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSPERSON.—The 

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1 fice of the Ombudsperson for Immigrant Children in 

2 Government Custody established by section 3(a). 

3 (11) OMBUDSPERSON.—The term 

4 ‘‘Ombudsperson’’ means the ombudsperson ap5 pointed under section 3(c). 

6 (12) OUT-OF-NETWORK FACILITY.—The term 

7 ‘‘out-of-network facility’’ means a facility at which 

8 an immigrant child is placed as a result of an Office 

9 of Refugee Resettlement determination that there is 

10 no care provider available among in-network facili11 ties to provide specialized services required by the 

12 immigrant child, such as medical or mental health 

13 support. 

14 (13) UNOBSTRUCTED ACCESS.—The term ‘‘un15 obstructed access’’ means— 

16 (A) with respect to a facility, the ability to 

17 enter the facility, including unannounced, to 

18 tour and physically visit all areas of the facility; 

19 and 

20 (B) with respect to information, the ability 

21 to obtain requested information in a timely 

22 manner with the full cooperation of the Direc23 tor, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or the 

24 Secretary of Health and Human Services, as 

25 applicable. 


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1 (14) WORKING GROUP.—The term ‘‘Working 

2 Group’’ means the interagency working group estab3 lished under section 6(b). 

4 SEC. 3. OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSPERSON FOR IMMIGRANT 

5 CHILDREN IN IMMIGRATION CUSTODY. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established, within 

7 the Department of Health and Human Services, an Office 

8 of the Ombudsperson for Immigrant Children in Immigra9 tion Custody— 

10 (1) to endorse and support the principle that 

11 family separation and detention are generally not in 

12 a child’s best interest; and 

13 (2) in cases in which detention or immigration 

14 custody is required— 

15 (A) to ensure that immigrant children are 

16 only detained or held in immigration custody in 

17 the least restrictive setting; 

18 (B) to advocate for the quick, safe, and ef19 ficient release of immigrant children from de20 tention or immigration custody whenever pos21 sible; and 

22 (C) in any case in which an immigrant 

23 child is held in Department of Homeland Secu24 rity custody together with his or her family 

25 unit, to advocate for the release of the child and 


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1 concurrent release of the parent or legal guard2 ian of the child not later than 72 hours after 

3 the time at which such child and parent or legal 

4 guardian were apprehended. 

5 (b) INDEPENDENCE.—The Office of the 

6 Ombudsperson shall be an impartial, confidential resource 

7 fully independent of— 

8 (1) the Office of Refugee Resettlement of the 

9 Department of Health and Human Services; and 

10 (2) the Department of Homeland Security. 

11 (c) OMBUDSPERSON.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Office of the 

13 Ombudsperson shall be headed by an 

14 Ombudsperson, who shall be appointed by, and re15 port directly to, the Secretary of Health and Human 

16 Services. 

17 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—The individual ap18 pointed as Ombudsperson shall have demonstrated 

19 experience in— 

20 (A) immigration law; and 

21 (B) child advocacy or child welfare. 

22 (3) DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES.— 

23 (A) MONITORING.— 

24 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Ombudsperson 

25 shall monitor, including by making freVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:25 Nov 22, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3323.IS S3323

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1 quent site visits, for compliance with all 

2 applicable Federal and State laws, regula3 tions, and standards relating to immigrant 

4 children in immigration custody. 

5 (ii) INCLUSIONS.—The laws, regula6 tions, and standards referred to in clause 

7 (i) include— 

8 (I) the Flores settlement agree9 ment; 

10 (II) section 235 of the William 

11 Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Pro12 tection Reauthorization Act of 2008 

13 (8 U.S.C. 1232); 

14 (III) the applicable provisions of 

15 the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 

16 2003 (34 U.S.C. 30301 et seq.); 

17 (IV) the standards of U.S. Cus18 toms and Border Protection entitled 

19 ‘‘National Standards on Transport, 

20 Escort, Detention, and Search’’ issued 

21 in October 2015; and 

22 (V) internal Office of Refugee 

23 Resettlement policy guidance, includ24 ing the guidance entitled ‘‘ORR Policy 

25 Guide: Children Entering the United 


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1 States Unaccompanied’’ issued on 

2 January 30, 2015. 

3 (iii) ONSITE VISITS FOR INFLUX FA4 CILITIES AND UNLICENSED FACILITIES.— 

5 (I) IN GENERAL.—Not less fre6 quently than monthly during the pe7 riod in which an influx facility or an 

8 unlicensed facility is in operation, the 

9 Ombudsperson shall conduct a com10 prehensive onsite visit at such facility 

11 to monitor for compliance with appli12 cable Federal and State law (includ13 ing regulations), including— 

14 (aa) the Flores settlement 

15 agreement; and 

16 (bb) section 235 of the Wil17 liam Wilberforce Trafficking Vic18 tims Protection Reauthorization 

19 Act of 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1232). 

20 (II) CERTAIN UNLICENSED FA21 CILITIES.—The onsite visits required 

22 by subclause (I) shall include visits to 

23 any unlicensed facility. 

24 (B) INVESTIGATIONS.— 


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1 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Ombudsperson 

2 shall investigate issues including— 

3 (I) claims or reports of abuse, 

4 neglect, or mistreatment of immigrant 

5 children, by the Government or any 

6 other entity, while in immigration cus7 tody; 

8 (II) complaints against foster 

9 care providers, including foster care 

10 providers under State oversight; 

11 (III) a lack of timely, confidential 

12 access to professionals such as legal 

13 counsel, legal services providers, child 

14 advocates, and medical professionals; 

15 and 

16 (IV) complaints with respect to— 

17 (aa) the conditions of cus18 tody or length of time in custody 

19 in any facility; and 

20 (bb) sexual abuse or sexual 

21 harassment, including potential 

22 violations of part 411 of title 45, 

23 Code of Federal Regulations (re24 lating to standards to prevent, 

25 detect, and respond to sexual 


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1 abuse and sexual harassment in2 volving unaccompanied children). 

3 (ii) STATE LICENSING VIOLATIONS.— 

4 If in the course of an investigation under 

5 clause (i) the Ombudsperson discovers a 

6 State licensing violation, the 

7 Ombudsperson shall report the violation to 

8 the child welfare licensing agency of the 

9 applicable State. 

10 (iii) VIOLATIONS IN UNLICENSED FA11 CILITIES.— 

12 (I) IN GENERAL.—The 

13 Ombudsperson shall investigate any 

14 potential violation of law, regulation, 

15 or standard in an influx facility or un16 licensed facility, including any such 

17 facility the license of which has been 

18 revoked by a State. 

19 (II) REPORT.—If in the course of 

20 an investigation under subclause (I), 

21 the Ombudsperson determines that a 

22 violation of law, regulation, or stand23 ard has occurred, not later than 30 

24 days after making such determination, 

25 the Ombudsperson shall report the 


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1 violation the Secretary of Health and 

2 Human Services for further action. 

3 (C) PLACEMENT REVIEW PANELS.— 

4 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Ombudsperson 

5 shall provide oversight of placement review 

6 panels (or successor review bodies or proc7 esses), convened by the Office of Refugee 

8 Resettlement. 

9 (ii) COOPERATION OF DIRECTOR.— 

10 The Director may— 

11 (I) not later than 5 days before 

12 a placement review panel (or suc13 cessor review body or process), is con14 vened by the Office of Refugee Reset15 tlement, provide the Ombudsperson 

16 with notice of the convening, including 

17 the location of the immigrant child 

18 concerned; 

19 (II) allow the Ombudsperson to 

20 attend the convening of such a panel 

21 (or successor review body or process), 

22 if the immigrant child concerned or 

23 the legal counsel or child advocate of 

24 such child requests the presence of the 

25 Ombudsperson; and 


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1 (III) notify the Ombudsperson of 

2 the decision of each such panel (or 

3 successor review body or process). 

4 (iii) CIVIL ACTION NOT PRE5 CLUDED.—Any review conducted by the 

6 Ombudsperson under this subparagraph of 

7 a decision by a placement review panel or 

8 equivalent review body shall not preclude 

9 an immigrant child, or the legal counsel, 

10 child advocate, parent, or prospective spon11 sor of the immigrant child, from com12 mencing a civil action in any appropriate 

13 district court of the United States. 

14 (D) STAKEHOLDER MEETINGS.—Not less 

15 frequently than quarterly, the Ombudsperson 

16 shall invite community stakeholders, Flores set17 tlement agreement class counsel, and the Flores 

18 settlement agreement court-appointed monitor 

19 to participate in a meeting— 

20 (i) to ensure that the Ombudsperson 

21 is aware of stakeholder concerns and prior22 ities; and 

23 (ii) to provide feedback on stakeholder 

24 requests. 


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1 (E) REGIONAL OFFICES.—The 

2 Ombudsperson shall establish regional offices of 

3 the Office of the Ombudsperson— 

4 (i) to ensure the inclusion of pertinent 

5 local and regional issues, trends, and chal6 lenges for consideration by the 

7 Ombudsperson; 

8 (ii) to strengthen State oversight; 

9 (iii) to coordinate with State licensing 

10 entities; and 

11 (iv) to identify and address differences 

12 among State child protection laws. 

13 (F) INDIVIDUAL CASE ASSISTANCE.— 

14 (i) IN GENERAL.—With respect to an 

15 immigration child in immigration custody, 

16 after consultation with the child’s attorney 

17 or legal service provider contracted to pro18 vide legal services, the Ombudsperson may 

19 offer individual case assistance to the child 

20 if the case of the immigrant child is long21 pending or otherwise requires expedited 

22 processing or elevated attention, as deter23 mined by the Ombudsperson. 

24 (ii) COMMUNICATION.— 


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1 (I) IN GENERAL.—To ensure a 

2 complete understanding of the status 

3 of a case described in clause (i), the 

4 Ombudsperson may communicate 

5 with— 

6 (aa) the immigrant child 

7 concerned; 

8 (bb) the family members 

9 and potential sponsor of such 

10 child; and 

11 (cc) the child advocate, legal 

12 counsel, Office of Refugee Reset13 tlement case manager and Fed14 eral field specialist, the General 

15 Dynamics Information Tech16 nology case coordinator, and any 

17 other relevant individual charged 

18 with case management of such 

19 child. 

20 (II) NOTIFICATION.—In any 

21 communication with an individual de22 scribed in items (aa) through (cc), the 

23 Ombudsperson shall— 

24 (aa) inform such individual 

25 that the individual may refuse to 


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1 continue communication with the 

2 Ombudsperson; and 

3 (bb) disclose the purpose of 

4 the communication and the scope 

5 of the role of the Ombudsperson. 

6 (G) SUBPOENA AUTHORITY.— 

7 (i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the ap8 proval of the Secretary of Health and 

9 Human Services, the Ombudsperson 

10 may— 

11 (I) issue a subpoena to require 

12 the production of all information, re13 ports, and other documentary evidence 

14 necessary to carry out the duties of 

15 the Ombudsperson; and 

16 (II) invoke the aid of any appro17 priate court of the United States. 

18 (ii) TIMELINE FOR PRODUCTION OF

19 INFORMATION.—To prevent undue delay of 

20 the placement of an immigrant child, re21 quirements set forth in a subpoena under 

22 clause (i)(I) shall be satisfactorily fulfilled 

23 not later than 7 days after the date on 

24 which the Ombudsperson issues the sub25 poena. 


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1 (H) REPORTING MECHANISMS.— 

2 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Ombudsperson 

3 shall establish and maintain— 

4 (I) a toll-free telephone number 

5 to receive complaints and reports of 

6 matters for investigation; and 

7 (II) an email address to receive 

8 complaints, such reports, and requests 

9 for review of placement decisions. 

10 (ii) AVAILABILITY.—The 

11 Ombudsperson shall ensure that— 

12 (I) such telephone number is 

13 made available, and a telephone is ac14 cessible, to each immigrant child in a 

15 facility; and 

16 (II) such email address is made 

17 available to sponsors, Flores settle18 ment agreement class counsel, and 

19 legal services providers and child ad20 vocates who serve such immigrant 

21 children. 

22 (I) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

23 (i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than Sep24 tember 30 each year, the Ombudsperson 

25 shall submit to Congress a report on the 


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1 accomplishments and challenges of the Of2 fice of the Ombudsperson during the fiscal 

3 year ending on that date. 

4 (ii) ELEMENTS.—Each report re5 quired by clause (i) shall include the fol6 lowing: 

7 (I) For the preceding fiscal 

8 year— 

9 (aa) a description of the ac10 complishments and challenges re11 lating to implementation and 

12 compliance with this Act; and 

13 (bb) a summary of— 

14 (AA) each site visit 

15 conducted; 

16 (BB) any interview 

17 with an immigrant child or 

18 facility staff; 

19 (CC) facility audits and 

20 corrective actions taken or 

21 recommended; 

22 (DD) appeals made to 

23 the Ombudsperson; and 


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1 (EE) any other infor2 mation the Ombudsperson 

3 considers relevant. 

4 (II) A summary of complaints 

5 made and investigations carried out 

6 during the preceding fiscal year, in7 cluding— 

8 (aa) the number of com9 plaints and number and nature 

10 of other contacts; 

11 (bb) the number of com12 plaints made, including the type 

13 and source; 

14 (cc) the number of investiga15 tions carried out; 

16 (dd) the trends and issues 

17 that arose in the course of inves18 tigating complaints; and 

19 (ee) the number of pending 

20 complaints. 

21 (III) A detailed analysis of the 

22 data collected under section 4. 

23 (IV) Recommendations— 


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1 (aa) for improving imple2 mentation and compliance with 

3 this Act; and 

4 (bb) as to whether the Di5 rector should renew or cancel 

6 contracts with particular Office 

7 of Refugee Resettlement grant8 ees. 

9 (V) A description of the priorities 

10 for the subsequent fiscal year. 

11 (J) RECOMMENDATIONS TO OFFICE OF

12 REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT.— 

13 (i) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently 

14 than every 180 days, the Ombudsperson 

15 shall make written recommendations to the 

16 Director with respect to the proposed and 

17 established policies and procedures of the 

18 Office of Refugee Resettlement relating to 

19 the protection of unaccompanied immigra20 tion children in the care of the Office of 

21 Refugee Resettlement. 

22 (ii) RESPONSE.—Not later than 90 

23 days after the date on which the Director 

24 receives recommendations under clause (i), 


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1 the Director shall respond to the 

2 Ombudsperson in writing. 

3 (iii) ROLE OF SECRETARY OF HEALTH

4 AND HUMAN SERVICES.—In the case of a 

5 recommendation under clause (i) that is 

6 not addressed and resolved by the Direc7 tor, the Ombudsperson may elevate the 

8 recommendation to the Secretary of Health 

9 and Human Services for resolution. 

10 (K) ADDITIONAL DUTIES.—The 

11 Ombudsperson shall— 

12 (i) conduct a review of data collection, 

13 as described in section 4(a); 

14 (ii) establish the Committee, as de15 scribed in section 5; and 

16 (iii) enter into a memorandum of un17 derstanding, as described in section 6(a). 

18 (d) ACCESS TO FACILITIES.—The Secretary of 

19 Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Home20 land Security shall ensure— 

21 (1) unobstructed access by the Ombudsperson 

22 to any facility; and 

23 (2) the ability of the Ombudsperson— 

24 (A) to monitor any facility; and 

25 (B) to meet confidentially with— 


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1 (i) staff of any facility; 

2 (ii) employees and contractors of the 

3 Office of Refugee Resettlement and the 

4 Department of Homeland Security; and 

5 (iii) any immigrant child in immigra6 tion custody, after notification of the immi7 grant child’s counsel, as applicable. 

8 (e) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—The Secretary of 

9 Health and Human Services shall ensure unobstructed 

10 and timely access by the Ombudsperson to— 

11 (1) the case files, records, reports, audits, docu12 ments, papers, recommendations, or any other perti13 nent information relating to the care and custody of 

14 an immigrant child; and 

15 (2) the written policies and procedures of all 

16 Office of Refugee Resettlement facilities. 

17 SEC. 4. DATA COLLECTION. 

18 (a) INDEPENDENT REVIEW BY OMBUDSPERSON.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Ombudsperson shall 

20 regularly review data collected by the Secretary of 

21 Health and Human Services and the Secretary of 

22 Homeland Security relating to immigrant children in 

23 facilities. 

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1 retary of Homeland Security shall provide the 

2 Ombudsperson unobstructed access to— 

3 (A) real-time custody and detention data 

4 for each immigrant child detained by the Gov5 ernment or held in immigration custody, includ6 ing— 

7 (i) the location and level of placement; 

8 (ii) biographical information, includ9 ing full name, date of birth, country of citi10 zenship, race, and alien number; 

11 (iii) all locations at which the immi12 grant child has been detained or held in 

13 custody; 

14 (iv) the dates and times the immi15 grant child is booked in and booked out of 

16 any facility; and 

17 (v) transfer and discharge informa18 tion; and 

19 (B) Department of Homeland Security and 

20 Department of Health and Human Services 

21 data personnel for the purpose of reviewing 

22 data collection and integrity issues. 

23 (b) OFFICE OF REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT DATA

24 COLLECTION SYSTEM.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—To support the data collec2 tion and monitoring duties of the Ombudsperson and 

3 to facilitate public monitoring, the Director shall de4 velop a data collection system that collects and 

5 maintains the following information: 

6 (A) The total number of immigrant chil7 dren held in custody by the Director, 

8 disaggregated by placement level, specific Office 

9 of Refugee Resettlement facility, country of citi10 zenship, race, and age. 

11 (B) The average and median number of 

12 days immigrant children remain in such cus13 tody, disaggregated by placement level, specific 

14 Office of Refugee Resettlement facility, and 

15 age. 

16 (C) For all immigrant children in the cus17 tody of the Secretary of Health and Human 

18 Services, the median time-to-release, 

19 disaggregated by— 

20 (i) children released to parents or 

21 legal guardians; 

22 (ii) children released to other spon23 sors; 

24 (iii) children who have home studies 

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1 ficking Victims Protection Reauthorization 

2 Act of 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1232); 

3 (iv) children granted home studies 

4 through the discretion of the Director; and 

5 (v) all other children. 

6 (D) The average and median number of 

7 days immigrant children stay in an Office of 

8 Refugee Resettlement facility, disaggregated by 

9 placement level, specific Office of Refugee Re10 settlement facility, and age. 

11 (E) The number of immigrant children dis12 charged to sponsors, disaggregated by sponsor 

13 category, placement level, specific Office of Ref14 ugee Resettlement facility, and age. 

15 (F) The sponsor category and age of each 

16 immigrant child held at each Office of Refugee 

17 Resettlement facility. 

18 (G) The average and median number of 

19 days immigrant children stay in an Office of 

20 Refugee Resettlement facility, disaggregated by 

21 sponsor category. 

22 (H) The number and percentage of immi23 grant children held in an Office of Refugee Re24 settlement facility with more than 25 immiVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:25 Nov 22, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3323.IS S3323

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1 grant children, disaggregated by placement level 

2 and age. 

3 (I) The percentage of filled capacity across 

4 all Office of Refugee Resettlement facilities, 

5 disaggregated by placement level. 

6 (J) The total number of children held at 

7 out-of-network facilities, disaggregated by 

8 placement level and age. 

9 (K) For each Office of Refugee Resettle10 ment facility— 

11 (i) the percentage of filled capacity; 

12 (ii) the maximum number of available 

13 beds; 

14 (iii) the number and percentage of im15 migrant children with special needs or dis16 abilities (as defined in section 3 of the 

17 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 

18 (42 U.S.C. 12102)), disaggregated by 

19 placement level and age; and 

20 (iv) the number and percentage of im21 migrant children receiving mandatory 

22 home studies, discretionary home studies, 

23 and tier 1, tier 2, and tier 3 post-release 

24 services, disaggregated by placement level 

25 and age. 


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1 (2) PUBLICATION.—Not later than the 15th of 

2 each month, the Director shall make the data col3 lected under paragraph (1) for the preceding month 

4 available to the public on the internet website of the 

5 Office of Refugee Resettlement. 

6 (c) PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN USES OF DATA.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The data collected under 

8 this section may not be used for immigration en9 forcement or law enforcement purposes, and the Of10 fice of the Ombudsperson may not— 

11 (A) use or disclose such data for any pur12 pose other than carrying out the duties of the 

13 Office of the Ombudsperson; 

14 (B) publish or share individually identifi15 able information; 

16 (C) transmit individually identifiable infor17 mation, including to a local, State, or Federal 

18 law enforcement agency, for any purpose other 

19 than carrying out the duties of the Office of the 

20 Ombudsperson; or 

21 (D) allow any individual, other than an of22 ficer or employee of the Office of the 

23 Ombudsperson who is subject to this sub24 section, to access or examine such individually 

25 identifiable information. 


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1 (d) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—Any data collected, 

2 stored, received, or published under this Act shall be— 

3 (1) collected, stored, received, or published in a 

4 manner that protects the privacy of individuals 

5 whose information is included in such data; 

6 (2) de-identified or anonymized in a manner 

7 that protects the identity of all individuals whose in8 formation is included in such data; and 

9 (3) limited in use for the purpose of carrying 

10 out the duties of the Office of the Ombudsperson 

11 and be protected from all other internal use by any 

12 entity that collects, stores, or receives the data, and 

13 from any other inappropriate uses. 

14 SEC. 5. EXPERT ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ombudsperson 

17 shall establish an expert advisory committee to assist the 

18 Ombudsperson in— 

19 (1) identifying relevant trends relating to immi20 grant children in immigration custody; 

21 (2) conducting fact-finding missions and inves22 tigations of facilities; and 

23 (3) ensuring Government and private contractor 

24 compliance with applicable law and standards for fa25 cilities. 


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1 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The members of the Committee 

2 shall— 

3 (1) be appointed by the Ombudsperson; 

4 (2) represent various geographical regions; and 

5 (3) be comprised of subject matter experts, in6 cluding— 

7 (A) legal advocates or specialists in the 

8 fields of child and family welfare, immigration, 

9 and human rights; 

10 (B) pediatricians or other appropriate pe11 diatric health care experts; 

12 (C) child or adolescent psychiatrists or 

13 psychologists; 

14 (D) social workers; 

15 (E) data analysis experts; and 

16 (F) any other relevant subject matter ex17 pert. 

18 (c) MEETINGS.—The Committee shall meet not less 

19 frequently than quarterly. 

20 (d) DUTIES.—The Committee shall regularly— 

21 (1) review facility compliance with applicable 

22 law and standards relating to Government detention 

23 and custody of immigrant children, including the 

24 Flores settlement agreement and section 235 of the 


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1 William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection 

2 Reauthorization Act of 2008 (8 U.S.C. 1232); and 

3 (2) submit to the Ombudsperson recommenda4 tions for improvement. 

5 (e) ONSITE MONITORING VISITS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently than 

7 monthly, 1 or more individuals designated by the 

8 Committee shall conduct a comprehensive onsite 

9 monitoring visit of each facility for the purpose of 

10 interviewing immigrant children held in immigration 

11 custody, after notification of counsel, as applicable. 

12 (2) ELEMENTS.—Each onsite monitoring visit 

13 conducted under paragraph (1) shall include— 

14 (A) an evaluation of the compliance of the 

15 facility with— 

16 (i) all applicable laws and standards; 

17 and 

18 (ii) the facility standards under the 

19 Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (34 

20 U.S.C. 30301 et seq.); 

21 (B) an assessment of the delivery of, and 

22 immigrant children’s access to, health care and 

23 mental health care services; 

24 (C) an assessment of immigrant children’s 

25 access to counsel and legal services; and 


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1 (D) private, confidential interviews with 

2 immigrant children housed in the facility. 

3 SEC. 6. COORDINATION WITH DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

4 SECURITY. 

5 (a) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—On the date of the enact7 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Secu8 rity and the Ombudsperson shall enter into a memo9 randum of understanding to coordinate oversight be10 tween the Department of Homeland Security and 

11 the Department of Health and Human Services. 

12 (2) ELEMENTS.—The memorandum of under13 standing required by paragraph (1) shall do the fol14 lowing: 

15 (A) Require the Secretary of Homeland 

16 Security to provide information, on a real-time 

17 basis, to the Ombudsperson with respect to 

18 each immigrant child detained by U.S. Customs 

19 and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and 

20 Customs Enforcement, or who is otherwise in 

21 the custody of the Secretary of Homeland Secu22 rity, including— 

23 (i) the location of the immigrant child; 


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1 (ii) biographical information, includ2 ing full name, date of birth, country of citi3 zenship, race, and alien number; 

4 (iii) all locations at which the immi5 grant child has been so detained or held in 

6 Department of Homeland Security cus7 tody; 

8 (iv) exact times at which the immi9 grant child was booked in and booked out 

10 of such custody; 

11 (v) the date on which the immigrant 

12 child is released from such custody or 

13 transferred to the custody of the Secretary 

14 of Health and Human Services; 

15 (vi) in the case of an immigrant child 

16 who remains in Department of Homeland 

17 Security custody for more than 72 hours, 

18 the reason for such continued custody; and 

19 (vii) any other information the 

20 Ombudsperson considers relevant to the 

21 oversight and monitoring duties described 

22 in section 3(c)(3). 

23 (B) Establish the right of the 

24 Ombudsperson and the Committee to monitor 

25 Department of Homeland Security facilities for 


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1 compliance with applicable standards of cus2 tody. 

3 (C) Provide the Ombudsperson and the 

4 Committee full and unobstructed access to— 

5 (i) Department of Homeland Security 

6 facilities for regular site visits; and 

7 (ii) the written policies and procedures 

8 of Department of Homeland Security fa9 cilities. 

10 (3) LIMITATION.—The memorandum of under11 standing may only allow the Ombudsperson to share 

12 information with the Secretary of Homeland Secu13 rity on a case-by-case basis, and with the informed 

14 consent of the immigrant child concerned, if the 

15 Ombudsperson determines that such information 

16 sharing may facilitate the release of the immigrant 

17 child from custody. 

18 (4) EVALUATION.—Not later than 2 years after 

19 the Ombudsperson and the Secretary of Homeland 

20 Security enter into the memorandum of under21 standing required by this subsection, the Comp22 troller General of the United States shall evaluate 

23 the coordination between the Ombudsperson and the 

24 Secretary to determine whether such memorandum 


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1 of understanding is sufficient to ensure the oversight 

2 and monitoring required by this Act. 

3 (5) RECOMMENDATIONS.—If the Comptroller 

4 General makes a determination under paragraph (4) 

5 that the memorandum of understanding is insuffi6 cient, the Comptroller General shall recommend ac7 tionable steps to be implemented— 

8 (A) to improve coordination between the 

9 Ombudsperson and the Secretary of Homeland 

10 Security; and 

11 (B) to ensure effectiveness of the mandate 

12 of the Ombudsperson. 

13 (b) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.— 

14 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established an 

15 interagency working group to identify and discuss 

16 concerns relating to immigrant children in facilities. 

17 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Working Group shall 

18 be composed of representatives of— 

19 (A) the Department of Justice; 

20 (B) the Department of Health and Human 

21 Services, including the Director or a senior rep22 resentative of the Office of Refugee Resettle23 ment; 

24 (C) U.S. Customs and Border Protection; 


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1 (D) U.S. Immigration and Customs En2 forcement; 

3 (E) relevant oversight offices, including— 

4 (i) the Immigration Detention Om5 budsman of the Department of Homeland 

6 Security; and 

7 (ii) the Inspectors General of the De8 partment of Justice, the Department of 

9 Health and Human Services, U.S. Cus10 toms and Border Protection, and U.S. Im11 migration and Customs Enforcement; and 

12 (F) any other relevant Federal agency or 

13 office. 

14 (3) MEETINGS.—The Working Group shall— 

15 (A) hold meetings not less frequently than 

16 quarterly; 

17 (B) invite representatives of nongovern18 mental organizations that provide services to 

19 immigrant children to participate in such meet20 ings as the Ombudsperson considers appro21 priate; and 

22 (C) provide to the Ombudsperson a sum23 mary of each such meeting. 


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1 SEC. 7. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

2 Nothing in the Act shall be construed to preclude or 

3 limit Flores settlement agreement class counsel from con4 ducting independent investigations or seeking enforcement 

5 actions relating to violations of the Flores settlement 

6 agreement in any appropriate district court of the United 

7 States. 

Æ 


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