Title: Central America Family Protection and Reunification Act
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Central America Family Protection and Reunification Act
This bill states that it shall be: (1) U.S. policy to not separate immigrant families as a deterrent and to reunite families that were separated due to the criminal prosecution of parents for illegal entry, and (2) Department of State policy to prioritize supporting governments and citizens to facilitate reunification of such families.
The State Department shall submit to Congress:
The State Department shall establish an office to study serious crimes committed against aliens who were removed from the United States and against U.S. citizens who left the United States because of having an alien parent who was removed from the United States.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6193 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6193

To direct the Secretary of State to help keep Central American families 
                   together, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 22, 2018

  Mr. Engel (for himself, Mrs. Torres, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Sires, Mr. 
Crowley, Mr. Gutierrez, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms. Norton, Mr. Raskin, 
 Mr. Meeks, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Deutch, Mr. Correa, Mr. Khanna, Ms. Lee, 
    Mr. Soto, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, Mr. Pallone, Ms. Velazquez, Mr. 
  Gonzalez of Texas, Mrs. Napolitano, Ms. Titus, Mr. Blumenauer, Ms. 
Rosen, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, Mr. Welch, Mr. 
Veasey, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Serrano, Mr. Gallego, Mr. 
  McGovern, Ms. Barragan, Mr. Pascrell, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Kihuen, Ms. 
 Roybal-Allard, Mr. Cicilline, Ms. DeGette, Mr. Aguilar, Mr. Danny K. 
  Davis of Illinois, Mr. Walz, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Payne, Mr. 
Vela, Ms. Frankel of Florida, Ms. Lofgren, Mr. Smith of Washington, Ms. 
 Shea-Porter, Ms. Matsui, Mr. Keating, and Mr. Vargas) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 
 and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the Secretary of State to help keep Central American families 
                   together, 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 ``Central America Family Protection 
and Reunification Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 
                of Representatives; and
                    (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
                Senate.
            (2) Northern triangle.--The term ``Northern Triangle'' 
        means the region of Central America that encompasses the 
        countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.
            (3) Northern triangle countries.--The term ``Northern 
        Triangle countries'' means the countries of Guatemala, 
        Honduras, and El Salvador.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, 
        Honduras, and Guatemala have among the highest homicide rates 
        in the world. In 2017, there were 60 homicides per 100,000 
        people in El Salvador, 43.6 homicides per 100,000 people in 
        Honduras and 26.1 homicides per 100,000 people in Guatemala.
            (2) According to a Small Arms Survey report from 2016, 
        Central America ranks high among regions of the world for 
        femicides. The rate of women who have died violent deaths as a 
        percentage of all violent deaths in El Salvador and Guatemala 
        ranks among the highest in the world.
            (3) Between 2015 and April 2018, 1,003 femicides were 
        reported in El Salvador, despite enacting a special law in 2011 
        aimed at reducing violence against women that specifically 
        includes the crime of femicide.
            (4) A United States Agency for International Development 
        (USAID) study in Honduras in 2015 found that ``40 percent of 
        women surveyed admitted to having suffered some form of Gender 
        Based Violence. This number is likely to be understated, as it 
        is common for individual respondents to deny victimization.''.
            (5) Survivors of sexual violence in Northern Triangle 
        countries do not have access to comprehensive health care. 
        According to the Department of State's 2016 Country Report on 
        Human Rights Practices for El Salvador, ``Access to 
        reproductive health services outside of the capital city San 
        Salvador, however, was limited.'' In Guatemala, ``Cultural, 
        geographic, and linguistic barriers hampered access to 
        reproductive health care, particularly for indigenous women in 
        rural areas.''. Honduras prohibits the sale, distribution or 
        use of emergency contraception, per the State Department's 2016 
        Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.
            (6) According to a study conducted by the Woodrow Wilson 
        International Center for Scholars, childhood experiences with 
        domestic violence in Latin America are a major risk factor for 
        future criminal behavior. Fifty-six percent of incarcerated 
        women and 59 percent of incarcerated men surveyed experienced 
        intra-familial violence during childhood.
            (7) According to a Congressional Research Service report, 
        ``Gangs engage in sex trafficking involving women and children, 
        particularly in Honduras and in Guatemala City. Threats and 
        harassment by gangs have led thousands of youth to abandon 
        school, including some 39,000 in El Salvador in 2015.''.
            (8) According to the nongovernmental organization Kids in 
        Need of Defense, ``As gangs have increased their control in El 
        Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala over the past several years, 
        they have systematically used sexual violence as a principal 
        tactic for establishing and maintaining dominance over the 
        communities and territories in which they operate, similar to 
        violent tactics used in other contexts of armed conflict.''.
            (9) The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre estimates 
        that at least 1,000,000 people had been displaced by criminal 
        violence associated with drug trafficking and gang activity in 
        El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico as of December 
        2015. Multiple reports have shown that when women are 
        internally displaced, they are often at greater risk and more 
        vulnerable to sexual and gender-based violence.
            (10) Pervasive gender-based violence in the Northern 
        Triangle countries and the inability of justice systems to hold 
        accountable the perpetrators of these crimes due to extremely 
        high rates of impunity creates a credible fear for individuals 
        to return to their home countries after migrating to the United 
        States.
            (11) The American Academy of Pediatrics notes that the 
        stress caused by the Trump Administration's policy of family 
        separation could impede children's development and lead to 
        serious health problems, like heart disease, later in life.

SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) Attorney General of the United States Jeff Sessions's 
        decision to reverse an immigration appeals court ruling 
        granting asylum to a Salvadoran woman who was sexually, 
        physically and emotionally abused by her husband with El 
        Salvador failing to provide her protection sets a dangerous and 
        irresponsible precedent which does not take into account the 
        facts on the ground in the Northern Triangle; and
            (2) the Trump Administration's decision to separate 
        children from their parents at the United States-Mexico border 
        will cause psycho-social damage to children and families that 
        will take years to repair.

SEC. 5. STATEMENT OF POLICY ON DEPARTMENT OF STATE ROLE IN IMMEDIATE 
              FAMILY REUNIFICATION.

    (a) In General.--It shall be the policy of the United States to not 
separate immigrant families as a deterrent, and to immediately reunite 
any families that were separated due to the criminal prosecution of 
parents for illegal entry or re-entry.
    (b) Support.--It shall be the policy of the Department of State, 
including through its embassies in the Northern Triangle countries, to 
prioritize supporting governments and citizens of such countries to 
help facilitate reunification of any families who were separated by 
United States authorities due to the criminal prosecution of parents 
for illegal entry into the United States.
    (c) Report by Secretary of State.--Not later than 30 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall report 
to the appropriate congressional committees on efforts to carry out the 
policies described in subsections (a) and (b).
    (d) Report by GAO.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 
shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on 
efforts to carry out the policies described in subsections (a) and (b).

SEC. 6. REPORTING ON GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE IN THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter for the following five 
years, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report on gender-based violence in the 
Northern Triangle.
    (b) Elements.--Each report required under subsection (a) shall 
include the following elements:
            (1) Data disaggregated by age on the overall rates of 
        gender-based violence in the Northern Triangle countries, 
        including by using victimization surveys, regardless of whether 
        or not these acts of violence are reported to government 
        authorities.
            (2) Data on incidences of gender-based violence cases 
        reported to the authorities in the Northern Triangle countries 
        and the percentage of perpetrators investigated, apprehended, 
        prosecuted, and convicted.
            (3) Descriptions of the obstacles (including capacity gaps 
        within the criminal justice system) to resolving gender-based 
        violence cases and deterring violence against women and 
        children in the Northern Triangle countries.
            (4) Descriptions of gender-based violence trends in each of 
        the Northern Triangle countries.
            (5) Information regarding the incidence of violence, 
        including domestic abuse, against indigenous women.
            (6) A breakout of data on and descriptions of domestic 
        violence in each of the aforementioned categories.
            (7) Information on the availability of trauma-informed 
        legal and social services for victims of gender-based violence 
        in Northern Triangle countries, including in shelters.
            (8) Data on the number of police officers, prosecutors, 
        court personnel, and specialized units trained in violence 
        against women and children in Northern Triangle countries.
            (9) Data on the time period from first report of crime to 
        official verdict in gender-based violence crimes in Northern 
        Triangle countries.
            (10) Data on the availability of restoration services 
        (including shelter, trauma care, and economic support) for 
        women and child victims of gender-based violence in Northern 
        Triangle countries.
            (11) Data on the capacity of child welfare systems in each 
        Northern Triangle country to protect unaccompanied children, 
        including runaways and refugee returnees in Northern Triangle 
        countries.
            (12) Descriptions of barriers to comprehensive health care, 
        including reproductive health care, for survivors of gender-
        based violence in Northern Triangle countries.
    (c) Public Availability.--Each report required under subsection (a) 
shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department of 
State in English and Spanish.

SEC. 7. STRATEGY TO REDUCE GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE IN THE NORTHERN 
              TRIANGLE.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the 
Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues, the Senior Coordinator 
for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment at the United States Agency 
for International Development, and the President and Chief Executive 
Officer of the Inter-American Foundation, shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees a strategy to use a portion of 
amounts appropriated or otherwise made available to carry out the U.S. 
Strategy for Engagement in Central America to combat gender-based 
violence in the Northern Triangle.
    (b) Consultation.--In developing the strategy required under 
subsection (a), the Secretary of State shall consult with 
nongovernmental organizations focused on gender-based violence in the 
Northern Triangle and the United States.
    (c) Public Availability.--The strategy required under subsection 
(a) shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department 
of State in English and Spanish.

SEC. 8. REPORTING ON GANG AND ORGANIZED-CRIME RELATED VIOLENCE IN THE 
              NORTHERN TRIANGLE.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter for the following five 
years, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report on gang and organized-crime related 
violence in the Northern Triangle.
    (b) Elements.--Each report required under subsection (a) shall 
include the following elements:
            (1) Data disaggregated by age on the overall rates of gang 
        and organized-crime related violence in the Northern Triangle 
        countries, including by using victimization surveys, regardless 
        of whether or not these acts of violence are reported to 
        government authorities.
            (2) Data on sexual slavery scenarios carried out by gangs 
        and other organized criminal groups.
            (3) Data on children and young adults forcibly recruited by 
        gangs and other criminal groups, including the extent to which 
        the authorities received reports of forced recruitement.
            (4) Data on internal displacement due to gang-related 
        violence and insecurity, and services provided to those 
        displaced by violence, including temporary shelters.
            (5) Data on the rates of extortion and cases investigated, 
        prosecuted and convicted.
            (6) Data on cases of abuse, including extrajudicial 
        executions, committed by members of the Northern Triangle 
        countries' security forces and collusion between members of the 
        security forces and gangs and other criminal groups, and 
        percentage of perpetrators investigated, prosecuted, and 
        convicted.
            (7) Descriptions of the strategies being implemented by the 
        Northern Triangle governments to address forced recruitment of 
        children and youth by gangs and other criminal groups.
            (8) Data on incidences of gang and organized-crime related 
        violence cases reported to the authorities in the Northern 
        Triangle countries and the percentage of perpetrators 
        investigated, apprehended, prosecuted, and convicted.
            (9) Descriptions of the obstacles (including capacity gaps 
        within the criminal justice system) to resolving gang and 
        organized-crime related violence cases and deterring violence 
        from these groups.
            (10) Data on the time period from first report of serious 
        crime to official verdict in gang and organized-crime related 
        violence crimes in Northern Triangle countries.
    (c) Public Availability.--Each report required under subsection (a) 
shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department of 
State in English and Spanish.

SEC. 9. OFFICE OF VICTIMS OF CRIME COMMITTED AGAINST INDIVIDUALS 
              REMOVED FROM THE UNITED STATES.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of State shall establish within the Department of 
State an office to study serious crimes, including homicide, rape, 
kidnapping, domestic violence and extortion, committed against--
            (1) aliens who were removed from the United States, during 
        the first 365 days after being so removed; and
            (2) citizens of the United States who departed the United 
        States as a result of having an alien parent who was removed 
        from the United States, during the first 365 days after such 
        departure.

SEC. 10. STRATEGY TO ADDRESS HEALTH IMPACT OF FAMILY SEPARATION.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the 
Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
Development, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a 
strategy to use a portion of amounts appropriated or otherwise made 
available to carry out the U.S. Strategy for Engagement in Central 
America to address the damage to the health, development, and well-
being of children and caregivers caused by the policy of separating 
children from their families at the United States-Mexico border.
    (b) Consultation.--In developing the strategy required under 
subsection (a), the Secretary of State shall consult with 
nongovernmental organizations focused on the damage to the health, 
development, and well-being of children and caregivers caused by child 
separation both in the Northern Triangle and the United States.
    (c) Public Availability.--The strategy required under subsection 
(a) shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department 
of State in English and Spanish.
                                 <all>