found in the United States shall, in accordance with sec-
tions 202 and 203 of this Act, be promptly paroled into
the United States for urgent humanitarian reasons under
section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
(b) CUSTODY
OF UNACCOMPANIED ALIEN CHIL-
DREN.—
(1) ESTABLISHMENT
OF
JURISDICTION.—The
custody of all unaccompanied alien children, includ-
ing responsibility for their detention, where appro-
priate, shall be under the jurisdiction of the Office.
(2) NOTIFICATION.—Upon apprehension of an
unaccompanied alien child, the Attorney General
shall promptly notify the Office.
(3) PHYSICAL TRANSFER OF UNACCOMPANIED
ALIEN CHILDREN.—Not later than 72 hours after
apprehension of an unaccompanied alien child, the
physical custody of such child shall be transferred to
the Office.
SEC. 202. FAMILY REUNIFICATION FOR UNACCOMPANIED
ALIEN CHILDREN WITH RELATIVES IN THE
UNITED STATES.
(a) PLACEMENT AUTHORITY.—
(1) ORDER OF PREFERENCE.—Subject to At-
torney General’s discretion under paragraph 4 and
§ 203(a)(2), an unaccompanied alien child paroled
into the United States under section 201(a) shall be
promptly placed with one of the following individuals
in the following order of preference:
(A) A parent.
(B) A legal guardian.
(C) An adult relative.
(D) An entity designated by the parent or
legal guardian that is capable and willing to
care for the child’s well-being.
(E) A State-licensed juvenile shelter, group
home, or foster home willing to accept legal cus-
tody of the child.
(F) An adult or entity seeking custody of
the child when it appears that there is no other
likely alternative to long-term detention and
family reunification does not appear to be a
reasonable alternative.
(2) HOME STUDY.—Notwithstanding the provi-
sions of paragraph (1), no unaccompanied alien child
shall be placed with a person or entity unless a valid
home-study conducted by an agency of the State of
the child’s proposed residence, by an agency author-
ized by that State to conduct such a study, or by an
appropriate voluntary agency contracted with the
Office to conduct such studies has found that the
person or entity is capable of providing for the
child’s physical and mental well-being.
(3) RIGHT OF PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN TO
CUSTODY OF UNACCOMPANIED ALIEN CHILD.—If an
unaccompanied alien child is placed with any person
or entity other than a parent or legal guardian, but
subsequent to that placement a parent or legal
guardian seeks to establish custody, the Director
shall assess the suitability of placing the child with
the parent or legal guardian and shall make a writ-
ten determination on the child’s placement within 30
days.
(4) PROTECTION FROM SMUGGLERS.—The Di-
rector shall take steps to ensure that unaccompanied
alien children are protected from smugglers or oth-
ers seeking to victimize or otherwise engage such
children in criminal, harmful, or exploitative activity.
(5) GRANTS AND CONTRACTS.—The Director is
authorized to make grants to, and enter into con-
tracts with, voluntary agencies to carry out the pro-
visions of this section.
(6) REIMBURSEMENT OF STATE EXPENSES.—
The Director is authorized to reimburse States for
any expenses they incur in providing assistance to
unaccompanied alien children who are served pursu-
ant to this Act.
(b) CONFIDENTIALITY.—All information relating to
the immigration status of a person listed in subsection (a)
shall remain confidential and may be used only for the
purposes of determining such person’s qualifications under
subsection (a)(1).
SEC. 203. APPROPRIATE CONDITIONS FOR DETENTION OF
UNACCOMPANIED ALIEN CHILDREN.
(a) STANDARDS FOR PLACEMENT.—
(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), an un-
accompanied alien child shall not be placed in an
adult detention facility or a facility housing delin-
quent children.
(2) An unaccompanied alien child who has ex-
hibited a pattern of violent or serious criminal be-
havior that endangers himself or others may be de-
tained in conditions appropriate to the behavior in a
facility appropriate for delinquent children.
(3) In the case of a placement of a child with
an entity described in section 202(a)(1)(e), the enti-
ty must be licensed by an appropriate State agency
to provide residential, group, child welfare, or foster
care services for dependent children.
(4) The conditions of such placements must be
in keeping with the bests interests of the child. At
a minimum, the Director shall develop standards for
conditions of detention in such placements that pro-
vide for—
(A) educational services appropriate to the
child;
(B) medical care;
(C) mental health care, including treat-
ment of trauma;
(D) access to telephones;
(E) access to legal services;
(F) access to interpreters;
(G) supervision by professionals trained in
the care of children, taking into account the
special cultural, linguistic, and experiential
needs of children in immigration proceedings;
(H) recreational programs and activities;
(I) spiritual and religious needs; and
(J) dietary needs.
(b) PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN PRACTICES.—The Di-
rector shall develop procedures prohibiting the unreason-
able use of—
(1) shackling, handcuffing, or other restraints
on children;
(2) solitary confinement; or
(3) pat or strip searches.
(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-
tion shall be construed to supersede procedures favoring
release of children to appropriate adults or entities or
placement in the least secure setting possible, as defined
in the August 12, 1996, Stipulated Settlement Agreement
under Flores v. Reno. The Director shall ensure that such
practices are in accordance with this section to ensure that
children are promptly placed with appropriate parties or
placed in appropriate shelter or foster care in keeping with
the best interests of the child.
SEC. 204. REPATRIATED UNACCOMPANIED ALIEN CHIL-
DREN.
(a) ASSESSMENT BEFORE REPATRIATION.—No un-
accompanied alien child may be repatriated to a country
unless an appropriate voluntary agency has conducted an
assessment of the country conditions and the Office has
conducted an assessment of the suitability of the place-
ment of the child to ensure that the child can be repatri-
ated in a manner deemed appropriate for the child’s well
being.
(b) REPORT ON THE FATE OF REPATRIATED UNAC-
COMPANIED CHILDREN.—Beginning not later than 18
months after the date of enactment of this Act, and annu-