Sponsors (2)
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Last progress June 9, 2025 (8 months ago)
Introduced on June 9, 2025 by Ashley Brooke Moody
Deletes a specific regulatory paragraph related to sponsors for unaccompanied minors and directs the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to track unaccompanied alien children who are released from Department of Homeland Security custody while they are in the United States and involved in immigration proceedings, and to coordinate with States to locate placements for those children. The bill references the statutory definition of “unaccompanied alien child.” The text does not specify the content of the removed regulatory paragraph or provide an effective date or new funding.
The Secretary of Homeland Security must amend 45 C.F.R. 410.1201(a) by striking (removing) paragraph (6). The section gives no additional instructions about timing, content of the removed paragraph, or implementation steps .
The Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement must track each unaccompanied alien child (as defined in 6 U.S.C. 279(g)) who has been released from Department of Homeland Security custody while that child is in the United States and is involved in ongoing immigration proceedings. (Includes the two conditions: the child is in the United States; and the child is involved in ongoing immigration proceedings.)
The Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement must work with States to find placements for those unaccompanied alien children released from Department of Homeland Security custody.
Primary impacts: unaccompanied alien children who are released from DHS custody will be subject to an explicit tracking requirement by ORR, and ORR must coordinate with State governments to find placements for them. This could improve official awareness of where such children are located during immigration proceedings and may standardize coordination between federal and State placement systems. For ORR, the measure creates a statutory obligation to maintain tracking and to engage States — increasing administrative recordkeeping, case management, and intergovernmental coordination responsibilities. For State governments and placement providers (including foster and adoptive families), it could mean increased contact from ORR and potential new placement requests; practical workload and resource impacts depend on implementation. For DHS, the required regulatory removal could alter sponsor-related processes depending on the removed text; because the substance of the deleted paragraph is not provided, the operational effect on DHS intake, release, or sponsor screening cannot be determined from the bill alone. The bill does not appropriate funds or specify timelines, so agencies and States may need to absorb costs within existing budgets unless Congress provides additional resources. Legal definitions and protections tied to the statutory definition of “unaccompanied alien child” remain relevant to how tracking and placements are carried out.
Updated 1 week ago
Last progress July 10, 2025 (7 months ago)