CBP Guidance on Personal Belongings Act

Bill: 118-s-5389
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT]
Introduced: 2024-11-21
Policy area: Immigration
Latest action: action_date: 2024-11-21
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Summaries:

tv_txt: II 118th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 5389 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES November 21, 2024 Mr. Welch (for himself, Mr. Durbin , and Ms. Duckworth ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs A BILL To require the Commissioner for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to develop and disseminate guidance for handling the personal property of individuals who are under arrest, restrained, or confined by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the CBP Guidance on Personal Belongings Act . 2. U.S. Customs and Border Protection guidance for handling personal property (a) Definitions In this section: (1) Appropriate congressional committees The term appropriate congressional committees means— (A) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate ; and (B) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives . (2) CBP The term CBP means U.S. Customs and Border Protection. (3) Essential medical property The term essential medical property means any medical item that has been validated by a qualified medical professional as being— (A) in working order; (B) medically necessary; and (C) (i) prescription eyewear, including glasses and contacts; (ii) a prosthetic device or durable medical equipment; or (iii) dentures (whether full or partial) or an orthodontic device. (4) Personal property The term personal property means the belongings (not including contraband) found on or carried by an individual who is under arrest, restrained, or confined by CBP. (b) In general Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner for CBP shall— (1) develop guidance for the handling of the personal property of individuals who are under arrest, restrained, or confined by CBP; and (2) disseminate such guidance to— (A) the appropriate congressional committees; and (B) all CBP personnel who come into contact with individuals referred to in paragraph (1). (c) Consultation required The Commissioner for CBP shall consult with nongovernmental organizations and the Immigration Detention Ombudsman of the Department of Homeland Security to inform the development and dissemination of the guidance under subsection (b). (d) Contents The guidance developed under subsection (b) shall— (1) allow individuals to keep as much of their personal property as CBP’s physical capacity, safety considerations, transportation limitations, and personnel availability permit; (2) ensure that CBP, to the greatest extent operationally feasible, returns all personal property stored by CBP on behalf of an individual who is under arrest, restrained, or confined by CBP directly to such individual immediately upon release from CBP custody; (3) describe the types of personal property considered essential that shall remain in an individual detainee’s possession (or be otherwise stored by CBP in accordance with paragraph (4)) to the greatest extent operationally feasible, including, at a minimum— (A) religious articles; (B) personal contact information of family members and loved ones; and (C) essential medical property that does not pose a threat or hazard to CBP personnel, detainees, or other personnel inside a CBP facility; (4) describe the types of essential personal property that CBP is required to store if it does not pose a threat or hazard to CBP personnel, detainees, or other personnel inside a CBP facility, including, at a minimum— (A) legal and identification documents that are not determined to be fraudulent or counterfeit; (B) cell phones and electronic devices; (C) health-related documents; and (D) currency; (5) describe the reasons and circumstances under which the amount of property described in paragraph (4) could be restricted; (6) include specific procedures for managing essential personal property described in paragraphs (3) and (4), which shall— (A) comply with Federal law and all applicable CBP policies; and (B) require that individuals who are arrested, restrained, or confined by CBP are provided a written receipt of any stored personal property; (7) describe the circumstances which would necessitate discarding the personal property of an individual who is arrested, restrained, or confined by CBP, including the circumstances under which collecting, transporting or storing such property would not be operationally feasible; (8) describe the circumstances under which the personal property of an individual who has been arrested, restrained, or confined by CBP may be considered a hazard or threat; (9) include a protocol for CBP personnel to manage the transfer of personal property when an individual who has been arrested, restrained, or confined by CBP is transferred into the custody of another agency; (10) include a protocol for providing written instructions to each individual released from CBP custody that explain how such individual may retrieve any personal property remaining in CBP facilities; (11) include a protocol for handling medical property that directs CBP personnel to ensure detainees’ medications remain available to such detainees unless— (A) a specific safety concern is identified; or (B) a non-United States prescribed medication has been replaced with a United States equivalent medication; and (12) describe the mechanism for monitoring the compliance of CBP personnel with the guidance described in this subsection. (e) Monitoring At the time of the dissemination of the guidance developed under subsection (b), the Commissioner for CBP shall implement the mechanism referred to in subsection (d)(12) to monitor the extent to which CBP personnel comply with such guidance. (f) Report Not later than 1 year after the date on which the guidance developed under subsection (b) is disseminated, and annually thereafter for the following 5 years, the Commissioner for CBP shall submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees and to the Comptroller General of the United States that— (1) describes the development and implementation of such guidance; and (2) includes information regarding the discarded essential personal property of individuals who were arrested, restrained, or confined by CBP during the reporting period, including— (A) the number of times, and an identification of the locations at which, CBP officers discarded essential personal property, including such property disposed of outside of CBP facilities; (B) the reasons for discarding such property; and (C) the efforts of CBP to reduce such instances. (g) Comptroller General review and report Not later than 1 year after receipt of each report required under subsection (f), the Comptroller General of the United States shall— (1) conduct a review of the guidance developed by the Commissioner for CBP; and (2) submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that includes the results of such review, including— (A) the effectiveness with which such guidance was implemented; (B) the effects of such guidance on CBP operations; and (C) the level of compliance of CBP personnel with such guidance.