Reimagining Asylum Processing Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.5618 | Sponsor: Rep. Escobar, Veronica (D-TX)
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Reimagining Asylum Processing Act of 2021
This bill modifies the processing of asylum seekers, including by establishing humanitarian processing centers along the southern border.
The Department of Homeland Security must establish at least five humanitarian processing centers to process adult asylum seekers who arrive at the southern border and did not arrive as part of a family unit with minor children. The bill imposes certain requirements on these processing centers, including by (1) requiring a rest period of at least 72 hours from the asylum seeker's arrival before an asylum officer may conduct an interview to determine whether there is a credible fear of persecution, (2) limiting an asylum seeker's detention at a processing center to no longer than 15 days, (3) requiring the processing center to provide legal counsel and interpreters, and (4) requiring that appropriate nongovernmental organizations are authorized to monitor the processing centers for human rights abuses.
The bill also changes the processing of asylum seekers generally, including by (1) removing provisions requiring the mandatory detention of an asylum seeker after the credible fear interview; (2) prohibiting the use of information obtained from the interview for immigration enforcement; and (3) requiring an asylum officer conducting the interview to consider whether an asylum seeker is eligible for other forms of relief, such as special immigrant juvenile status.

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish humanitarian 
processing centers for asylum seekers along the southern border of the 
                 United States, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reimagining Asylum Processing Act of 
2021''.

SEC. 2. HUMANITARIAN PROCESSING CENTERS FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS.

    The Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) is 
amended--
            (1) in section 235(b)(1)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by adding at the end 
                the following: ``In the case of a covered asylum seeker 
                (as such term is defined in section 235B), the officer 
                shall transfer the alien to a humanitarian processing 
                center in accordance with section 235B not later than 
                12 hours after the covered asylum seeker is in the 
                custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (B)--
                            (i) in clause (i), by inserting after ``a 
                        port of entry'' the following: ``, at a 
                        humanitarian processing center (in the case of 
                        a covered asylum seeker (as such term is 
                        defined in section 235B)),'';
                            (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ``the 
                        alien shall be detained for further 
                        consideration of the application for asylum.'' 
                        and inserting ``the officer shall release the 
                        alien on their own recognizance or with a 
                        referral to a nonprofit case management 
                        service, or impose the least restrictive 
                        alternative to detention if the Secretary 
                        determines that the alien poses a security 
                        threat.'';
                            (iii) in clause (iii)--
                                    (I) in subclause (III)--
                                            (aa) by inserting after 
                                        ``an opportunity for the alien 
                                        to be heard'' the following: 
                                        ``, including by being 
                                        questioned by counsel for the 
                                        alien,''; and
                                            (bb) by adding at the end 
                                        the following: ``If the alien 
                                        is represented by counsel or 
                                        seeks representation by counsel 
                                        and requests the appearance 
                                        such counsel for purposes of 
                                        the review under this clause, 
                                        the hearing shall be 
                                        rescheduled so that counsel can 
                                        appear.''; and
                                    (II) by striking subclause (IV);
                                    (III) by adding at the end the 
                                following:
                                    ``(IV) Requests for 
                                reconsideration.--An alien may request 
                                reconsideration of an asylum officer's 
                                determination under subclause (I), and 
                                removal shall be stayed until the 
                                request has been fully considered. If 
                                the request for reconsideration is not 
                                granted, a written, detailed reasoning 
                                for the denial shall be provided.
                                    ``(V) Interviews not conducted in 
                                cbp custody.--Interviews of aliens 
                                conducted under this subparagraph may 
                                not be conducted of a covered asylum 
                                seeker (as such term is defined in 
                                section 235B) in the custody of U.S. 
                                Customs and Border Protection or the 
                                agents thereof.
                                    ``(VI) Limitation on consideration 
                                of certain factors.--Interviews 
                                conducted under this subparagraph shall 
                                be limited to whether the alien has a 
                                credible fear of persecution and to the 
                                factors described in clause (vii). In 
                                making such determination, the asylum 
                                officer may not consider any of the 
                                bars to asylum described in section 
                                208(b)(2).''; and
                                    (IV) by adding at the end the 
                                following:
                            ``(vi) Limitation on use of information 
                        obtained during interview.--Information 
                        obtained during an interview conducted under 
                        this subparagraph may not be disclosed or used 
                        for the purpose of immigration enforcement.
                            ``(vii) Consideration of eligibility for 
                        additional forms of relief.--In conducting an 
                        interview under this subparagraph, the asylum 
                        officer shall consider, in addition to whether 
                        the alien has a credible fear of persecution, 
                        whether the alien may be prima facie eligible 
                        for any other form of relief from removal, 
                        including--
                                    ``(I) withholding of removal under 
                                section 241(b)(3) or any cause or claim 
                                under the United Nations Convention 
                                Against Torture and Other Forms of 
                                Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment 
                                or Punishment;
                                    ``(II) status under subparagraph 
                                (T) or (U) of section 101(a)(15);
                                    ``(III) special immigrant juvenile 
                                status;
                                    ``(IV) family reunification 
                                pursuant to an approved I-130 petition;
                                    ``(V) any other basis for relief 
                                from removal under the immigration 
                                laws.'';
                    (C) in subparagraph (E)--
                            (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by 
                        inserting after ``means an immigration 
                        officer'' the following: ``employed in the 
                        Refugee, Asylum and International Operations 
                        Directorate of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 
                        Services'';
                            (ii) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' at 
                        the end;
                            (iii) by redesignating clause (ii) as 
                        clause (iii);
                            (iv) by inserting after clause (i) the 
                        following:
                            ``(ii) has had professional training in 
                        eligibility criteria for the forms of relief 
                        described in subparagraph (B)(vii), and''; and
                            (v) in clause (iii), as so redesignated, by 
                        striking ``the condition described in clause 
                        (i) and has had substantial experience 
                        adjudicating asylum applications'' and 
                        inserting ``the conditions described in clauses 
                        (i) and (ii) and has had substantial experience 
                        adjudicating asylum applications and 
                        determining prima facie eligibility for the 
                        forms of relief described subparagraph 
                        (B)(vii)'';
            (2) by inserting after section 235A the following:

``SEC. 235B. HUMANITARIAN PROCESSING CENTERS FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS.

    ``(a) Establishment of Humanitarian Processing Centers.--Not later 
than one year after the date of enactment of this section, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish 5 humanitarian 
processing centers along the southern border of the United States, at 
which a covered asylum seeker shall--
            ``(1) be interviewed by an asylum officer to determine 
        whether the alien has a credible fear of persecution;
            ``(2) receive legal orientation and case-management 
        referral services; and
            ``(3) receive a medical and mental health screening.
    ``(b) Covered Asylum Seeker.--In the section, the term `covered 
asylum seeker' means an alien who--
            ``(1) arrives at the southern border of the United States 
        (whether or not at a designated port of arrival and including 
        an alien who is brought to the United States after having been 
        interdicted in international or United States waters);
            ``(2) is 18 years of age or older and does not arrive at 
        the souther border of the United States as part of a family 
        unit with minor children; and
            ``(3) indicates either an intention to apply for asylum 
        under section 208 or a fear of persecution.
    ``(c) Applicable Time Periods.--
            ``(1) Mandatory rest period.--An asylum officer may not 
        conduct an interview of a covered asylum seeker to determine 
        whether the alien has a credible fear of persecution until at 
        least 72 hours after the alien arrives at the humanitarian 
        processing center.
            ``(2) Notice to counsel.--Not later than 48 hours after a 
        covered asylum seeker arrives at a humanitarian processing 
        center, the asylum officer shall notify by email any counsel 
        for the alien who filed a notice of entry of appearance, using 
        the email address that is on such notice of entry of 
        appearance, of the impending interview to determine whether the 
        alien has a credible fear of persecution.
            ``(3) Limitation on detention at humanitarian processing 
        center.--A covered asylum seeker shall be detained at a 
        humanitarian processing center, for not longer than 15 days, 
        pending an interview by an asylum officer to determine whether 
        the alien has a credible fear of persecution. In the case that 
        an asylum officer has not conducted an interview of a covered 
        asylum seeker to determine whether the alien has a credible 
        fear of persecution prior to the expiration of the 15-day 
        period after the alien arrives at the humanitarian processing 
        center, the alien shall be released from the humanitarian 
        processing center and given a notice to appear under section 
        239 for the purpose of such interview.
    ``(d) Notice to Appear.--If the asylum officer determines that the 
covered asylum seeker has a credible fear of persecution, the covered 
asylum seeker shall be released from the humanitarian processing center 
not later than 24 hours after such determination is made, and given a 
notice to appear under section 239 at the immigration court that is 
closest in proximity to the city in which the alien intends to 
relocate. Prior to releasing an alien under this subsection, the asylum 
officer shall provide advanced notice to, and shall coordinate with, 
nonprofit shelters in or closest to the jurisdiction in which the alien 
intends to relocate. An alien may only be released under this 
subsection between normal business hours, unless the asylum officer 
made special accommodations for the release of the alien outside of 
those hours.
    ``(e) Repatriation.--If the asylum officer determines that the 
covered asylum seeker does not have a credible fear of persecution, the 
alien shall be removed in accordance with section 235(b)(1)(B)(iii). 
The asylum officer shall provide the covered asylum seeker with 
specific findings and a written decision supporting their decision, as 
well as information on pursuing a reconsideration or judicial review of 
the asylum officer's negative determination, in a language that the 
covered individual can understand.
    ``(f) Ensuring Access to Interpreters.--Prior to conducting an 
interview of a covered asylum seeker to determine whether the alien has 
a credible fear of persecution, an asylum officer shall ascertain from 
the alien the alien's primary language, and shall make an interpreter 
available to the alien for such interview and for preparation for such 
interview. In the case that an interpreter in the alien's primary 
language is not available prior to the expiration of the 15-day period 
described in subsection (c)(3), the alien shall be released and given a 
notice to appear in accordance with such subsection.
    ``(g) Services.--The Secretary shall provide to covered asylum 
seekers at humanitarian processing centers the following:
            ``(1) Orientation about the asylum seeking process.
            ``(2) Legal counsel and other materials to prepare for the 
        interview described in subsection (a).
            ``(3) Referrals to community-based case management 
        services.
            ``(4) Interpreters.
            ``(5) Medical and mental health screening.
    ``(h) Staff.--Each humanitarian processing center shall be staffed 
and operated by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services personnel and 
Office of Refugee Resettlement personnel. Immigration and Customs 
Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection agents shall not staff 
the center, except that Customs and Border personnel may be present for 
limited administrative and data entry purposes.
    ``(i) Additional Service Providers.--The Secretary shall enter into 
contracts with nonprofit legal service providers, medical providers, 
and other nongovernmental organizations and community-based services to 
provide services to covered asylum seekers at humanitarian processing 
centers, who shall have access to such services at no cost.
    ``(j) Grants for Legal Service Providers.--
            ``(1) Authorization.--The Secretary of Homeland Security is 
        authorized to make grants to legal service providers to provide 
        legal counsel to covered asylum seekers at humanitarian 
        processing centers.
            ``(2) Eligibility.--In order to be eligible for a grant 
        under this section a legal service provider shall have 
        demonstrated experience--
                    ``(A) communicating with clients in Spanish, 
                English, and such other languages as the Secretary 
                determines appropriate; and
                    ``(B) providing legal counsel to asylum seekers.
            ``(3) Application.--The chief executive of a legal service 
        provider seeking a grant under this section shall submit to the 
        Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and 
        containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably 
        require.
            ``(4) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized 
        to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out 
        this section.
    ``(k) External Human Rights Monitoring.--The Secretary shall ensure 
that appropriate nongovernmental organizations that have expertise in 
monitoring immigration detention facilities for human rights abuses, 
and other appropriate nongovernmental organizations, are provided with 
regular and unannounced access to humanitarian processing centers.'';
            (3) in section 241(a)(5)--
                    (A) by striking ``If the Attorney General'' and 
                inserting ``(A) in general--Except as provided in 
                subparagraphs (B) and (C), the Secretary of Homeland 
                Security''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Intention to apply for asylum.--The Secretary 
                shall not reinstate a prior order of removal if an 
                alien indicates either an intention to apply for asylum 
                under section 208 or a fear of persecution
                    ``(C) Requirement to vacate certain reinstated 
                orders of removal.--If an alien with a prior order of 
                removal that has been reinstated by the Secretary is 
                determined to have a credible fear of persecution, or 
                to be prima facie eligible for a form of relief 
                described in section 235(b)(1)(B)(vii), the Secretary 
                shall vacate the reinstated order of removal and issue 
                a notice to appear for removal proceedings under 
                section 240.''; and
            (4) in section 242, by repealing subsection (e).

SEC. 3. STUDY ON EXPANSION OF MODEL.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall conduct a 
study on the effect of this Act, and the amendments made by this Act, 
on migration by covered asylum seekers (as such term is defined in 
section 235B of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended by this 
Act) and make recommendations with respect to expanding the 
humanitarian processing centers model to other noncitizens entering the 
United States.
    (b) Noncitizen Defined.--In this section, the term ``noncitizen'' 
has the meaning given the term ``alien'' in section 101 of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).
                                 <all>