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Read. Follow. Verify.The SECURE Act of 2023: Tracking Unaccompanied Migrant Children
Last action · September 12, 2023: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Appropriations, 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.Sponsor: Christopher Smith
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What This Bill Would Do
This bill requires federal agencies to locate and report on the status of approximately 85,000 unaccompanied migrant children who were released to sponsors in the U.S. but have since lost contact with the government. It mandates regular status updates and imposes financial penalties on the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Homeland Security, and the FBI if these reports are submitted late.
This bill would force federal agencies to account for the safety and location of 85,000 migrant children, with a potential loss of up to $30 million annually in agency operating funds if reporting deadlines are missed.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Unaccompanied migrant children
The bill mandates federal investigation into their current location, living conditions, and safety status.
Department of Health and Human Services
The agency must conduct tracking and reporting and faces potential budget rescissions for delays.
Sponsors of migrant children
Sponsors may be subject to increased government contact and background check requirements as part of the status reporting process.
Key Facts
- Requires a joint status report from HHS, DHS, and the FBI on all unaccompanied children in ORR custody since January 1, 2021, within 75 days of enactment.
- Mandates that reports include child location, sponsor relationship, home environment, and assessments of child well-being and trafficking risk.
- Requires reports to include whether adults in the child's home have passed fingerprint-based criminal background checks.
- Mandates updated reports every 60 days until children are accounted for or three years have passed.
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- Imposes a $100,000 daily fine per agency (HHS, DHS, FBI) for late reports, totaling $300,000 per day.
- Caps the total annual rescission of funds at $10 million per agency.
- States that at least 345,000 children have crossed the southern border unaccompanied since early 2021.
- States that the government has lost contact with approximately 85,000 of these children after placement with sponsors.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if the agencies fail to submit the reports on time?
How long will these reports continue?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Financial Accountability Mechanism
The bill uses a specific 'per-day' financial penalty mechanism to force inter-agency cooperation, which is a more aggressive oversight tool than standard reporting requirements.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.congress.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance85How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy75Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment40Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz60Current news / social attention level
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