I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4497 
To establish terms and conditions for delivery bonds in immigration cases, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 8, 2005 
Mr. SESSIONS (for himself, Mr. POE, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. TANCREDO, and Mr. 
HAYWORTH) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To establish terms and conditions for delivery bonds in 
immigration cases, 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 ‘‘Bringing Overstay 
Numbers Down Act of 2005’’ or the ‘‘BOND Act of 
2005’’. 
SEC. 2. DELIVERY BONDS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 
(1) BONDING
AGENT.—The term ‘‘bonding 
agent’’ means any individual properly licensed, ap-
proved, and appointed by power of attorney issued 
by a qualified surety to execute or countersign sur-
ety bonds in connection with any matter governed by 
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1101, et seq.), and who receives a premium for exe-
cuting or countersigning such surety bonds. 
(2) DELIVERY
BOND.—The term ‘‘delivery 
bond’’ means a written suretyship undertaking for 
the surrender of an individual against whom the De-
partment of Homeland Security has issued an order 
to show cause or a notice to appear, the performance 
of which is guaranteed by an acceptable surety on 
Federal bonds. 
(3) PRINCIPAL.—The term ‘‘principal’’ means 
an individual who is the subject of a delivery bond. 
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ refers 
to the Secretary of Homeland Security. 
(5) SURETY.—The term ‘‘surety’’ means an en-
tity, as defined by, and that is in compliance with, 
sections 9304 through 9308 of title 31, United 
States Code, that agrees— 
(A) to guarantee the performance, where 
appropriate, of the principal under a delivery 
bond; 
(B) to perform the bond as required; and
(C) to pay the face amount of the bond as 
a penalty for failure to perform. 
(6) SURETYSHIP
UNDERTAKING.—The term 
‘‘suretyship undertaking’’ means a written agree-
ment, executed by a bonding agent on behalf of a 
surety, which binds all parties to its certain terms 
and conditions and which provides obligations for 
the principal and the surety while under the delivery 
bond and penalties for forfeiture to ensure the obli-
gations of the principal and the surety under the 
agreement. 
(b) VALIDITY, AGENT NOT CO-OBLIGOR, EXPIRA-
TION, RENEWAL, AND CANCELLATION OF BONDS.— 
(1) VALIDITY.—A delivery bond, for purposes 
of surrendering an individual against whom the De-
partment of Homeland Security has issued an order 
to show cause or a notice to appear, is valid if— 
(A) the bond states the full, correct, and 
proper name of the alien principal; 
(B) the bond states the amount of the 
bond; 
(C) the bond is guaranteed by a surety and 
countersigned by an agent who is properly ap-
pointed;
(D) the bond documents are properly exe-
cuted; and 
(E) relevant bond documents are properly 
filed with the Secretary of Homeland Security. 
(2) BONDING AGENT NOT CO-OBLIGOR, PARTY, 
OR GUARANTOR IN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, AND NO 
REFUSAL
IF
ACCEPTABLE
SURETY.—Section 
9304(b) of title 31, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Notwith-
standing any other provision of law, no bonding 
agent of a corporate surety shall be required to exe-
cute surety bonds as a co-obligor, party, or guar-
antor in an individual capacity on bonds provided by 
the corporate surety, nor shall a corporate surety 
bond be refused, if the corporate surety appears on 
the current Treasury Department Circular 570 as a 
company holding a certificate of authority as an ac-
ceptable surety on Federal bonds and attached to 
the bond is a currently valid instrument showing the 
authority of the bonding agent of the surety com-
pany to execute the bond.’’. 
(3) EXPIRATION.—A delivery bond shall expire 
at the earliest of— 
(A) one year from the date of issue;
(B) at the cancellation of the bond or sur-
render of the principal; or 
(C) immediately upon nonpayment of the 
renewal premium. 
The Secretary of Homeland Security shall cause all 
expired delivery bonds to be canceled. 
(4) RENEWAL.—Delivery bonds may be re-
newed annually, with payment of proper premium to 
the surety, if there have been no breach of condi-
tions, default, claim, or forfeiture of the bond. Not-
withstanding any renewal, when the alien is surren-
dered to the Secretary for removal, the Secretary 
shall cause the bond to be canceled. 
(5) CANCELLATION.—Delivery bonds shall be 
canceled and the surety exonerated— 
(A) for nonrenewal after the alien has been 
surrendered to the Department of Homeland 
Security for removal; 
(B) if the surety or bonding agent provides 
reasonable evidence that there was misrepresen-
tation or fraud in the application for the bond; 
(C) upon the death or incarceration of the 
principal, or the inability of the surety to 
produce the principal for medical reasons;
(D) if the principal is detained by any law 
enforcement agency of any State, county, city, 
or any political subdivision thereof; 
(E) if it can be established that the alien 
departed the United States for any reason with-
out permission of the Secretary, the surety, or 
the bonding agent; 
(F) if the foreign state of which the prin-
cipal is a national is designated for temporary 
protected status pursuant to section 244 of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1254a) after the bond is posted; or 
(G) if the principal is surrendered to the 
Department of Homeland Security for removal 
by the surety or the bonding agent. 
(6) SURRENDER
OF
PRINCIPAL; FORFEITURE 
OF BOND PREMIUM.— 
(A) SURRENDER.—At any time before a 
breach of any of the delivery bond conditions, if 
in the opinion of the surety or bonding agent 
the principal becomes a flight risk, the principal 
may be surrendered to the Department of 
Homeland Security for removal. 
(B) FORFEITURE OF BOND PREMIUM.—A 
principal may be surrendered without the re-
turn of any delivery bond premium if the prin-
cipal— 
(i) changes address without notifying 
the surety, the bonding agent, and the Sec-
retary in writing prior to such change; 
(ii) hides or is concealed from a sur-
ety, a bonding agent, or the Secretary; 
(iii) fails to report to the Secretary as 
required at least annually; or 
(iv) violates the contract with the 
bonding agent or surety, commits any act 
that may lead to a breach of the bond, or 
otherwise violates any other obligation or 
condition of the bond established by the 
Secretary. 
(7) CERTIFIED
COPY
OF
BOND
AND
ARREST 
WARRANT TO ACCOMPANY SURRENDER.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—A bonding agent or 
surety desiring to surrender the principal of a 
delivery bond— 
(i) shall have the right to petition the 
Secretary or any Federal court, without 
having to pay any fees or court costs, for 
an arrest warrant for the arrest of the 
principal;
(ii) shall forthwith be provided two 
certified copies each of the arrest warrant 
and the bond, without having to pay any 
fees or courts costs; and 
(iii) shall have the right to pursue, ap-
prehend, detain, and surrender the prin-
cipal, together with the certified copies of 
the arrest warrant and the bond, to any 
one of ten Department of Homeland Secu-
rity designated ‘‘turn-in’’ centers or any 
detention facility authorized to detain 
aliens ordered removed from the United 
States. 
(B) EFFECTS OF DELIVERY.—Upon sur-
render of a principal under subparagraph 
(A)(iii)— 
(i) the official to whom the principal 
is surrendered shall detain the principal in 
custody and issue a written certificate of 
surrender; and 
(ii) based on the certificate of sur-
render the Secretary shall immediately ex-
onerate the surety from any further liabil-
ity on the bond.
(8) FORM OF BOND.—Delivery bonds shall in 
all cases state the information described in sub-
section (c) and be secured by a corporate surety that 
is certified as an acceptable surety on Federal bonds 
and whose name appears on the current Treasury 
Department Circular 570. 
(c) INFORMATION ON DELIVERY BONDS.—The fol-
lowing shall be stated on each delivery bond: 
‘‘(1) BREACH OF DELIVERY BOND; PROCEDURE, 
FORFEITURE, NOTICE.— 
‘‘(A) If a principal violates any conditions 
of the delivery bond, or the principal is or be-
comes subject to a final administrative order of 
deportation or removal, the Secretary of Home-
land Security shall— 
‘‘(i) immediately issue a warrant for 
the principal’s arrest and enter that arrest 
warrant into the National Crime Informa-
tion Center (NCIC) computerized informa-
tion database; 
‘‘(ii) order the bonding agent and sur-
ety to take the principal into custody and 
surrender the principal to any one of ten 
designated Department of Homeland Secu-
rity ‘turn-in’ centers located nationwide in
the areas of greatest need, at any time of 
day during 15 months after mailing the ar-
rest warrant and the order to the bonding 
agent and the surety as required by clause 
(iii), and immediately enter that order into 
the National Crime Information Center 
(NCIC) computerized information data-
base; and 
‘‘(iii) mail two certified copies each of 
the arrest warrant issued pursuant to 
clause (i) and two certified copies of the 
final administrative order of deportation 
and removal issued pursuant to clause (ii) 
only to the bonding agent and surety via 
certified mail return receipt to their last 
known addresses. 
‘‘(B) Bonding agents and sureties shall im-
mediately notify the Secretary of Homeland Se-
curity of their changes of address and of their 
changes of telephone numbers. 
‘‘(C) The Secretary of Homeland Security 
shall establish, disseminate to bonding agents 
and sureties, and maintain on a current basis 
a secure nationwide toll-free list of telephone 
numbers of Department of Homeland Security
officials, including the names of such officials, 
that bonding agents, sureties, and their employ-
ees may immediately contact at any time to dis-
cuss and resolve any issue regarding any prin-
cipal or bond, to be known as ‘Points of Con-
tact’. 
‘‘(D) A bonding agent or surety shall have 
full and complete access, free of charge, to any 
and all information, electronic or otherwise, in 
the care, custody, and control of the United 
States Government or any State or local gov-
ernment or any subsidiary or police agency 
thereof regarding the principal that may be 
helpful in complying with section 2 of the 
BOND Act of 2005 that the Secretary of 
Homeland Security, by regulations, determines 
may be helpful in locating or surrendering the 
principal. Beyond the principal, a bonding 
agent or surety shall not be required to disclose 
any information, including an arrest warrant 
and order, received from any governmental 
source, any person, firm, corporation, or other 
entity. 
‘‘(E) If the principal is later arrested, de-
tained, or otherwise located outside the United
States and the outlying possessions of the 
United States (as defined in section 101(a) of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act), the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security shall immediately 
order that the surety is completely exonerated, 
and the bond canceled. If the Secretary of 
Homeland Security has issued an order under 
subparagraph (A), the surety may request, by 
written, properly filed motion, reinstatement of 
the bond. This subparagraph shall not be con-
strued to prevent the Secretary of Homeland 
Security from revoking or resetting a bond at a 
higher amount. 
‘‘(F) The bonding agent or surety must— 
‘‘(i) during the 15 months after the 
date of the arrest warrant and final ad-
ministrative order of removal or deporta-
tion were mailed pursuant to subparagraph 
(A)(iii) surrender the principal one time; 
or 
‘‘(ii)(I) provide reasonable evidence 
that producing the principal was pre-
vented— 
‘‘(II) by the principal’s illness or 
death;
‘‘(III) because the principal is de-
tained in custody in any city, State, coun-
try, or any political subdivision thereof; 
‘‘(IV) because the principal has left 
the United States or its outlying posses-
sions (as defined in section 101(a) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1101(a)); or 
‘‘(V) because required notice was not 
given to the bonding agent or surety; and 
‘‘(VI) establish by affidavit that the 
inability to produce the principal was not 
with the consent or connivance of the 
bonding agent or surety. 
‘‘(G) If compliance with the surrender 
order occurs— 
‘‘(i) more than 15 months but no 
more than 18 months after the mailing of 
the arrest warrant and the removal or de-
portation order to the bonding agent and 
the surety required under subparagraph 
(A)(iii), an amount equal to 25 percent of 
the face amount of the bond shall be as-
sessed as a penalty against the surety;
‘‘(ii) more than 18 months but no 
more than 21 months after the mailing of 
the arrest warrant and the removal or de-
portation order to the bonding agent and 
the surety required under subparagraph 
(A)(iii), an amount equal to 50 percent of 
the face amount of the bond shall be as-
sessed as a penalty against the surety; 
‘‘(iii) more than 21 months but no 
more than 24 months after the mailing of 
the arrest warrant and the removal or de-
portation order to the bonding agent and 
the surety required under subparagraph 
(A)(iii), an amount equal to 75 percent of 
the face amount of the bond shall be as-
sessed as a penalty against the surety; and 
‘‘(iv) 24 months or more after the 
mailing of the arrest warrant and the re-
moval or deportation order to the bonding 
agent and the surety required under sub-
paragraph (A)(iii), an amount equal to 100 
percent of the face amount of the bond 
shall be assessed as a penalty against the 
surety.
‘‘(H) If any surety surrenders any prin-
cipal to the Secretary of Homeland Security at 
any time and place after the period for compli-
ance has passed, the Secretary of Homeland Se-
curity shall cause to be issued to that surety an 
amount equal to 50 percent of the face amount 
of the bond. If a surety owes any penalties on 
bonds to the United States Government, the 
amount that surety would otherwise receive 
shall be offset by and applied as a credit 
against the amount of penalties on bonds it 
owes the United States, and then that surety 
shall receive the remainder of the amount to 
which it is entitled under this subparagraph, if 
any. 
‘‘(I) All penalties assessed against a surety 
on a bond, if any, shall be paid by the surety 
no more than 27 months after the mailing of 
the arrest warrant and order to the bonding 
agent and the surety required under subpara-
graph (A)(iii). 
‘‘(2) WAIVER OF PENALTIES.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security may waive penalties or extend 
the period for payment or both, if—
‘‘(A) a written request is filed with the 
Secretary of Homeland Security; and 
‘‘(B) the bonding agent or surety provides 
an affidavit that diligent efforts were made to 
effect compliance of the principal. 
‘‘(3) COMPLIANCE; EXONERATION; LIMITATION 
OF LIABILITY.— 
‘‘(A) COMPLIANCE.—A bonding agent or 
surety shall have the absolute right to locate, 
apprehend, arrest, detain, and surrender any 
principal, wherever the principal may be found, 
who violates any of the terms and conditions of 
the bond involved. 
‘‘(B) EXONERATION.—Upon satisfying any 
of the requirements of the bond, the surety 
shall be completely exonerated. 
‘‘(C) LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.—Notwith-
standing any other provision of law, the total li-
ability on any suretyship undertaking shall not 
exceed the face amount of the bond.’’. 
(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The provisions of this sec-
tion shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this 
Act and shall apply to delivery bonds executed before, on, 
or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 3. RELEASE OF ALIENS IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 236(a)(2) of the Immi-
gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1226(a)(2)) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(2) subject to such reasonable regulations as 
the Secretary of Homeland Security may prescribe, 
shall permit agents, servants, and employees of cor-
porate sureties to visit in person with individuals de-
tained by the Secretary and, subject to section 
241(a)(8), may release the alien on a delivery bond 
of at least $10,000, with security approved by the 
Secretary, and containing conditions and procedures 
prescribed by section 2 of the BOND Act of 2005 
and by the Secretary, but the Secretary shall not re-
lease the alien on or to the alien’s own recognizance 
unless an order of an immigration judge expressly 
finds and states in a signed order to release the 
alien to the alien’s own recognizance that the alien 
is not a flight risk and is not a threat to the United 
States; but’’. 
(b) BREACHED BOND/DETENTION FUND.—Section 
286(r) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1356(r)) is amended in paragraph (2), by striking 
$8,000,000 and inserting $80,000,000.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) and (b) shall take effect on the date of the 
enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 4. DETENTION OF ALIENS DELIVERED BY BONDSMEN. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 241(a) of the Immigra-
tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(a)) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(8) EFFECT
OF
PRODUCTION
OF
ALIEN
BY 
BONDSMAN.—Notwithstanding any other provision 
of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 
take into custody any alien subject to a final order 
of removal, and cancel any bond previously posted 
for the alien, if the alien is produced within the pre-
scribed time limit by the obligor on the bond wheth-
er or not the Department of Homeland Security ac-
cepts custody of the alien. The obligor on the bond 
shall be deemed to have substantially performed all 
conditions imposed by the terms of the bond, and 
shall be released from liability on the bond, if the 
alien is produced within such time limit.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act and shall apply to all immigration bonds 
posted before, on, or after such date. 
Æ