Title: Help Separated Families Act of 2019
Policy area: Families

Summary:
Help Separated Families Act of 2019
This bill prohibits states from disqualifying a prospective adoptive or foster parent based on that person's immigration status. It also expands the requirements for state foster-care cases in which a parent has been detained or deported as the result of an immigration proceeding.  Specifically, states may not initiate a proceeding to terminate the parental rights of a parent who has been detained or deported unless the state has made reasonable efforts to (1) locate the parent, (2) notify the parent about the proceeding, (3) provide the parent with appropriate services, and (4) reunify the parent and child. States also must (1) ensure that case managers can communicate in separated children's native language, (2) provide assistance for separated children to accompany their parent to the family's country of origin, (3) keep information about such children confidential, and (4) publish a list of legal services available to separated children.  Further, case management plans must provide (1) the location of the child's parent who has been detained or deported, and (2) a written record of information about such child that is disclosed to government agencies or nonlegal guardians. The bill requires states to accept specified forms of foreign identification to complete background checks for prospective foster care placements. States also must notify prospective foster or adoptive relatives that such relatives' immigration status will not be requested except with respect to eligibility for certain social services.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3452 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3452

 To amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to ensure that 
immigration status alone does not disqualify a parent, legal guardian, 
  or relative from being a placement for a foster child, to authorize 
  discretion to a State, county, or other political subdivision of a 
State to delay filing for termination of parental rights in foster care 
 cases in which an otherwise fit and willing parent or legal guardian 
 has been deported or is involved in (including detention pursuant to) 
an immigration proceeding, unless certain conditions have been met, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 24, 2019

    Ms. Roybal-Allard (for herself, Mrs. Torres of California, Ms. 
Velazquez, Ms. Titus, and Mr. Espaillat) introduced the following bill; 
         which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to ensure that 
immigration status alone does not disqualify a parent, legal guardian, 
  or relative from being a placement for a foster child, to authorize 
  discretion to a State, county, or other political subdivision of a 
State to delay filing for termination of parental rights in foster care 
 cases in which an otherwise fit and willing parent or legal guardian 
 has been deported or is involved in (including detention pursuant to) 
an immigration proceeding, unless certain conditions have been met, 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 ``Help Separated Families Act of 
2019''.

SEC. 2. IMMIGRATION STATUS ALONE NOT A DISQUALIFICATION FROM BEING A 
              PLACEMENT FOR A FOSTER CHILD.

    Section 471(a)(19) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
671(a)(19)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(19) provides that the State'' and 
        inserting the following:
            ``(19) provides that--
                    ``(A) the State'';
            (2) by adding at the end the following: ``and''; and
            (3) by adding after and below the end the following:
                    ``(B) such standards shall ensure that the 
                immigration status alone of a parent, legal guardian, 
                or relative shall not disqualify the parent, legal 
                guardian, or relative from being a placement for a 
                child;''.

SEC. 3. STATE PLAN REQUIREMENT TO ACCEPT CERTAIN DOCUMENTS ISSUED BY 
              FOREIGN ENTITIES AS SUFFICIENT IDENTIFICATION FOR 
              PURPOSES OF INITIATING A CRIMINAL RECORDS CHECK OR A 
              FINGERPRINT-BASED CHECK.

    Section 471(a)(20) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
671(a)(20)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``which procedures 
        shall require the State (including the State agency, the child 
        welfare agency of any county or other political subdivision of 
        the State, and caseworkers and supervisors of any such agency) 
        to accept a foreign consulate identification card or a foreign 
        passport as sufficient identification for purposes of 
        initiating a criminal records check or a fingerprint-based 
        check,'' before ``including procedures''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (C), by inserting ``, which procedures 
        shall require the State (including the State agency, the child 
        welfare agency of any county or other political subdivision of 
        the State, and caseworkers and supervisors of any such agency) 
        to accept a foreign consulate identification card or a foreign 
        passport as sufficient identification for purposes of 
        initiating a criminal records check or a fingerprint-based 
        check'' before the semicolon.

SEC. 4. STATE PLAN REQUIREMENT TO NOTIFY RELATIVES SEEKING PLACEMENT OF 
              A CHILD THAT THEIR IMMIGRATION STATUS WILL NOT BE 
              QUESTIONED.

    Section 471(a)(29) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
671(a)(29)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (C);
            (2) by adding ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (D); and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(E) the immigration status of any such relative 
                seeking placement of the child with the relative shall 
                not be questioned, except to the extent necessary in 
                determining eligibility for relevant services or 
                programs;''.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZE STATE DISCRETION TO DELAY FILING FOR TERMINATION OF 
              PARENTAL RIGHTS IN FOSTER CARE CASES IN WHICH OTHERWISE 
              FIT AND WILLING PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN HAS BEEN REMOVED 
              OR IS INVOLVED IN AN IMMIGRATION PROCEEDING, UNLESS 
              CERTAIN CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN MET.

    Section 475(5)(E)(ii) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
675(5)(E)(ii)) is amended by striking ``; or'' and inserting the 
following: ``and a compelling reason in section 475(5)(E) for the State 
to not file (or join in the filing of such a petition) shall include 
the removal of the parent from the United States or the involvement of 
the parent in (including detention pursuant to) an immigration 
proceeding, unless the parent is unfit or unwilling to be a parent of 
the child. Before a State may file to terminate the parental rights 
under such section 475(5)(E), the State (or the county or other 
political subdivision of the State, as the case may be) shall make 
reasonable efforts--
                                    ``(I) to identify, locate, and 
                                contact (including, if appropriate, 
                                through the diplomatic or consular 
                                offices of the country to which the 
                                parent was removed or a parent or 
                                relative resides) any parent of the 
                                child, who has been removed from the 
                                United States, and where possible, any 
                                potential adult relative of the child 
                                (as described in section 471(a)(29));
                                    ``(II) to notify such a parent or 
                                legal guardian of the intent of the 
                                State (or the county or other political 
                                subdivision of the State, as 
                                applicable) to file (or join in the 
                                filing of) such a petition;
                                    ``(III) to reunify the child with 
                                any such parent or legal guardian; and
                                    ``(IV) provide and document 
                                appropriate services to the parent or 
                                legal guardian; or''.

SEC. 6. CHILD WELFARE SERVICES FOR CHILDREN SEPARATED FROM PARENTS 
              DETAINED OR REMOVED FROM THE UNITED STATES FOR 
              IMMIGRATION VIOLATIONS.

    (a) State Plan Requirements.--Section 471(a) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (34);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (35) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(36) provides that the State shall--
                    ``(A) ensure that the case manager for a separated 
                child is capable of communicating in the native 
                language of such child and of the family of such child, 
                or an interpreter who is so capable is provided to 
                communicate with such child and the family of such 
                child at no cost to the child or the family of such 
                child;
                    ``(B) coordinate with the Department of Homeland 
                Security to make every effort to ensure that parents 
                who wish for their child to accompany them to their 
                country of origin are given adequate time and 
                assistance to obtain a passport and visa, and to 
                collect all relevant vital documents such as birth 
                certificate, health, and educational records, and other 
                information;
                    ``(C) preserve, to the greatest extent possible, 
                the privacy and confidentiality of all information 
                gathered in the course of administering the care, 
                custody, and placement of, and follow-up services 
                provided to, a separated child, consistent with the 
                best interest of such child, by not disclosing such 
                information to other government agencies or persons 
                (other than a parent, legal guardian, or relative 
                caregiver of such child), except that the head of the 
                State agency (or the county or other political 
                subdivision of the State, as applicable) may disclose 
                such information, after placing a written record of the 
                disclosure in the file of the child--
                            ``(i) to a consular official for the 
                        purpose of reunification of a child with a 
                        parent, legal guardian, or relative caregiver 
                        who has been removed or is involved in an 
                        immigration proceeding, unless the child, or 
                        their parent, legal guardian, or relative has 
                        refused contact with, or the sharing of 
                        personal or identifying information with, the 
                        government of their country of origin; or
                            ``(ii) when authorized to do so by the 
                        child (if the child has attained 18 years of 
                        age) if the disclosure is consistent with the 
                        best interest of the child; and
                    ``(D) not less frequently than annually, compile, 
                update, and publish a list of entities in the State 
                that are qualified to provide legal representation 
                services for a separated child, in a language such that 
                a child can read and understand.''.
    (b) Additional Information To Be Included in Case Plan.--Section 
475(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 675(1)) is amended by adding at the end 
the following:
                    ``(H) In the case of a separated child with respect 
                to whom the State plan requires the State to provide 
                services pursuant to section 471(a)(36)--
                            ``(i) the location of the parent or legal 
                        guardian referred to in paragraph (13)(A) of 
                        this subsection from whom the child has been 
                        separated; and
                            ``(ii) a written record of each disclosure 
                        to a government agency or person (other than 
                        such a parent or legal guardian) of information 
                        gathered in the course of tracking the care, 
                        custody, and placement of, and follow-up 
                        services provided to, the child.''.
    (c) Separated Child Defined.--Section 475 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
675) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(13) The term `separated child' means an individual who--
                    ``(A) has a parent or legal guardian who has been 
                detained by a Federal, State, or local law enforcement 
                agency in the enforcement of an immigration law, or 
                removed from the United States as a result of a 
                violation of such a law; and
                    ``(B) is in the care or supervision of a State.''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on the first day of the first calendar quarter that begins after 
the 1-year period that begins with the date of the enactment of this 
Act.

SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the 
amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the first day of the 
first fiscal year beginning on or after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, and shall apply to payments under part E of title IV of the 
Social Security Act for calendar quarters beginning on or after such 
date.
    (b) Delay Permitted if State Legislation Required.--If the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that State 
legislation (other than legislation appropriating funds) is required in 
order for a State plan approved under part E of title IV of the Social 
Security Act to meet the additional requirements imposed by the 
amendments made by this Act, the plan shall not be regarded as failing 
to meet any of the additional requirements before the first day of the 
first calendar quarter beginning after the first regular session of the 
State legislature that begins after the date of the enactment of this 
Act. For purposes of the preceding sentence, if the State has a 2-year 
legislative session, each year of the session is deemed to be a 
separate regular session of the State legislature.
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