I 
114TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6097 
To amend section 236 of the Immigration and Nationality Act to modify 
the conditions on the detention of aliens, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 21, 2016 
Mr. SERRANO (for himself, Mr. GUTIE´RREZ, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. LOFGREN, 
Mr. CONYERS, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. TED LIEU of California, Mrs. LAW-
RENCE, Ms. NORTON, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. O’ROURKE, Mr. SMITH of 
Washington, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Ms. 
ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mrs. TORRES, Mr. PIERLUISI, Mr. 
HONDA, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. HASTINGS, Mrs. NAPOLI-
TANO, Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico, Mr. CARSON of 
Indiana, Mr. CROWLEY, Ms. LEE, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. EDWARDS, and Mr. 
KENNEDY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend section 236 of the Immigration and Nationality 
Act to modify the conditions on the detention of aliens, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Immigration Courts 
Bail Reform Act’’. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
03:59 Sep 23, 2016
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6097.IH
H6097
rfrederick on DSKBCBPHB2PROD with BILLS
SEC. 2. CONDITIONS ON DETENTION OF ALIENS. 
Section 236 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1226) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(2), by amending subpara-
graph (A) to read as follows: 
‘‘(A) bond containing conditions prescribed 
by the Secretary of Homeland Security; or’’; 
(2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(3) REVIEW
OF INITIAL CUSTODY DETERMINA-
TION.—An immigration judge may review the initial cus-
tody determination under this subsection to the extent 
permitted under subsection (f).’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(f) PROCEDURES FOR CUSTODY HEARINGS.—For 
any alien taken into custody under any provision of this 
Act, with the exception of children being transferred to, 
or in, the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement 
of the Department of Health and Human Services, the 
following rules shall apply: 
‘‘(1) The Secretary of Homeland Security shall, 
without unnecessary delay and not later than 72 
hours after the alien is taken into custody, file the 
Notice to Appear or other relevant charging docu-
ment with the immigration court having jurisdiction 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
03:59 Sep 23, 2016
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6097.IH
H6097
rfrederick on DSKBCBPHB2PROD with BILLS
over the location where the alien was apprehended, 
and serve such notice on the alien. 
‘‘(2) The Secretary shall immediately determine 
whether the alien shall remain in custody or be re-
leased and, without unnecessary delay and not later 
than 72 hours after the alien was taken into cus-
tody, serve upon the alien the custody decision speci-
fying the reasons for continued custody and the 
amount of bond, if any. Except for aliens who the 
Secretary has determined are subject to subsection 
(c) or certified under section 236A, the Secretary 
may continue to detain the alien only if the Sec-
retary determines by clear and convincing evidence 
that no conditions reasonably will assure the appear-
ance of the alien as required and the safety of any 
other person and the community. 
‘‘(3) The Attorney General shall ensure the 
alien has the opportunity to appear before an immi-
gration judge for a custody redetermination hearing 
promptly after personal service of the Secretary’s 
custody decision. The immigration judge may, on the 
Secretary’s motion and upon a showing of good 
cause, postpone a custody redetermination hearing 
for not more than 72 hours after personal service of 
the custody decision, except that in no case shall the 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
03:59 Sep 23, 2016
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6097.IH
H6097
rfrederick on DSKBCBPHB2PROD with BILLS
hearing occur more than 6 days (including weekends 
and holidays) after the alien was taken into custody. 
‘‘(4) The immigration judge shall advise the 
alien of the right to postpone the custody redeter-
mination hearing and shall, on the oral or written 
request of the individual, postpone the custody de-
termination hearing for a period of not more than 
14 days. 
‘‘(5) Except for aliens who the immigration 
judge has determined are subject to subsection (c) 
or certified under section 236A, the immigration 
judge shall review the custody determination de novo 
and may continue to detain the alien only if the Sec-
retary demonstrates by clear and convincing evi-
dence that no conditions reasonably will assure the 
appearance of the alien as required and the safety 
of any other person and the community. 
‘‘(6)(A) In making a custody determination, 
both the Secretary and the immigration judge shall 
order the release of the alien on personal recog-
nizance, or upon execution of an unsecured appear-
ance bond in an amount specified by the court, un-
less the Secretary or the immigration judge deter-
mines that such release will not reasonably assure 
the appearance of the alien as required or will en-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
03:59 Sep 23, 2016
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6097.IH
H6097
rfrederick on DSKBCBPHB2PROD with BILLS
danger the safety of any other person or the commu-
nity. 
‘‘(B) If the Secretary or immigration judge de-
termines that release under subparagraph (A) will 
not reasonably assure the appearance of the alien as 
required or will endanger the safety of any other 
person or the community, the Secretary or the immi-
gration judge shall order the release of the alien sub-
ject to the least restrictive further condition, or com-
bination of conditions, that the Secretary or immi-
gration judge determines will reasonably assure the 
appearance of the alien as required and the safety 
of any other person and the community. Such condi-
tions may include those specified under section 
3142(c)(1)(B) of title 18, United States Code. 
‘‘(C) In determining whether to impose a bond 
as a condition of release, the Secretary or immigra-
tion judge shall consider the alien’s financial ability 
to pay a bond and whether alternative conditions of 
supervision, alone or in combination with a lower 
bond amount, deposit bond, or property bond, will 
reasonably assure the appearance of the alien as re-
quired and the safety of any other person and the 
community. The Secretary or immigration judge 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
03:59 Sep 23, 2016
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6097.IH
H6097
rfrederick on DSKBCBPHB2PROD with BILLS
may not impose a financial condition that results in 
the detention of the alien. 
‘‘(D) For aliens who the immigration judge has 
determined are subject to subsection (c), the immi-
gration judge may review the custody determination, 
and consider alternatives to detention which main-
tain custody over the alien, if the immigration judge 
agrees the alien is not a danger to the community. 
‘‘(7) In the case of any alien remaining in cus-
tody after a custody determination, the Attorney 
General shall provide de novo custody redetermina-
tion hearings pursuant to paragraph (6) before an 
immigration judge every 90 days as long as the alien 
remains in custody. An alien may also obtain a de 
novo custody redetermination hearing at any time 
upon a showing of good cause. Good cause includes 
a showing that the alien has been unable to post the 
bond amount after having made good faith efforts to 
do so. 
‘‘(8) The Secretary shall inform the alien of his 
or her rights under this paragraph at the time the 
alien is first taken into custody.’’. 
Æ 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
03:59 Sep 23, 2016
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\H6097.IH
H6097
rfrederick on DSKBCBPHB2PROD with BILLS