I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8799 

To prohibit transfers of individuals between ICE facilities and Federal, State, 

and local facilities, to ensure physical distancing inside ICE facilities, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 20, 2020 

Mr. CROW (for himself, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, and Ms. ESCOBAR) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To prohibit transfers of individuals between ICE facilities 

and Federal, State, and local facilities, to ensure physical 

distancing inside ICE facilities, 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 ‘‘End Transfers of De5 tained Immigrants Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON TRANSFERS FROM ICE DETENTION 

7 FACILITIES. 

8 (a) TRANSFERS BETWEEN ICE FACILITIES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub2 section (c), no person in the custody of U.S. Immi3 gration and Customs Enforcement (referred to in 

4 this Act as ‘‘ICE’’) may be transferred between ICE 

5 facilities during the period beginning on the date of 

6 the enactment of this Act and ending on the date on 

7 which the public health emergency declared by the 

8 Department of Health and Human Services on Jan9 uary 27, 2020, has concluded. 

10 (2) DETERMINATION OF CONCLUSION OF PUB11 LIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.—For purposes of para12 graph (1), the public health emergency referred to in 

13 such paragraph shall be deemed to conclude when 

14 the daily transmission rate of the novel coronavirus 

15 (2019–nCoV) that causes COVID–19 has been suffi16 ciently contained so that the daily transmission rate 

17 of the virus in the United States is at or below 1 

18 per 1,500,000 individuals during a 2-week period. 

19 (3) TRANSFERS DESCRIBED.—The restriction 

20 under subsection (a)(1) shall apply to any transfer 

21 between any 2 ICE facilities utilized for the purpose 

22 of civil immigration detention, including— 

23 (A) service processing centers; 

24 (B) contract detention facilities; 


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1 (C) facilities operating under intergovern2 mental service agreements (whether dedicated 

3 or nondedicated with ICE); 

4 (D) juvenile facilities; and 

5 (E) family residential centers. 

6 (b) TRANSFERS BETWEEN FEDERAL, STATE, OR

7 LOCAL FACILITIES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2) or subsection (c), an ICE officer may not 

10 apprehend or transfer any individual to or from any 

11 ICE detention facility and— 

12 (A) a Federal prison, including any facility 

13 operated by the Bureau of Prisons or the 

14 United States Marshals Service and any other 

15 facility used for the detention of Federal pris16 oners; 

17 (B) a detention facility operated by a State 

18 or local law enforcement agency; 

19 (C) a shelter or facility, whether perma20 nent or temporary in nature, housing unaccom21 panied minors in the custody of the Office of 

22 Refugee Resettlement; or 

23 (D) a State or local prison or jail. 

24 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—Notwithstanding para25 graph (1), a medical professional may authorize the 


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1 transfer of an individual between an ICE detention 

2 facility and a State or local prison or jail for medical 

3 purposes or at the request of the individual if the 

4 medical professional— 

5 (A) administers a COVID–19 test; and 

6 (B) quarantines the individual in a non7 punitive medical unit immediately before or 

8 after conducting the transfer— 

9 (i) for a period of 14 consecutive 

10 days; or 

11 (ii) until the test comes back negative. 

12 (3) DEFINED TERM.—As used in paragraph 

13 (2)(B), the term ‘‘nonpunitive medical unit’’ ex14 cludes any punitive holding area, including isolation, 

15 solitary confinement, and administrative segregation. 

16 (c) RELEASE OF DETAINEES.—Nothing in sub17 sections (a) and (b) may be construed to prohibit— 

18 (1) the transfer of any individual solely for the 

19 purpose of necessary processing related to the indi20 vidual’s release from custody; or 

21 (2) the transfer of a minor from the custody of 

22 ICE to the custody of the Office of Refugee Reset23 tlement. 


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1 SEC. 3. PHYSICAL DISTANCING INSIDE ICE FACILITIES. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—If, at any time, the Department 

3 of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General, the 

4 Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Preven5 tion, State or local public health officials, court-appointed 

6 investigators, or the Director of ICE determine that ICE 

7 cannot ensure adherence to guidelines issued by the Cen8 ters for Disease Control and Prevention to mitigate 

9 against the spread of COVID–19 at any ICE facility, in10 cluding maintaining physical distance between individuals 

11 in custody at all times, due to population levels or facility 

12 structures that necessitates housing and sleeping large 

13 groups of people in a single room, the Director shall— 

14 (1) immediately conduct a custody review of all 

15 the individuals detained at such facility; and 

16 (2) release all individuals who are determined 

17 eligible for release, with priority given to individuals 

18 who are most medically vulnerable to the effects of 

19 COVID–19. 

20 (b) EFFECT OF FAILURE TO MAINTAIN PHYSICAL

21 DISTANCING.—If the Director of ICE is unable to ensure 

22 physical distancing between all individuals in ICE custody 

23 at all times by the end of the 30-day period beginning 

24 on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director 

25 shall— 


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1 (1) immediately initiate a custody review of all 

2 the individuals detained by ICE; and 

3 (2) not later than 45 days after the date of the 

4 enactment of this Act, release sufficient numbers of 

5 detainees to ensure adherence to the guidelines 

6 issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Pre7 vention regarding physical distancing to mitigate the 

8 spread of COVID–19. 

Æ 


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