To streamline the reporting of violations against immigrant children in Federal custody, to provide protections for unaccompanied immigrant children, and to ensure safe release to sponsors, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
No timeline data available
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Protecting Unaccompanied Children Act creates comprehensive protections for immigrant children in federal custody. It establishes an independent Ombudsperson office within HHS to monitor detention facilities, investigate abuse claims, and ensure children are held in the least restrictive settings possible. The bill also guarantees government-funded legal representation for all unaccompanied children in removal proceedings.
Who Benefits and How
Unaccompanied immigrant children benefit the most through guaranteed legal representation, improved care standards, and stronger protections against abuse and trafficking. Immigration attorneys and legal services providers will see significant new revenue from government contracts to represent children. Child welfare professionals, social workers, and community-based foster care providers gain expanded business opportunities as the bill shifts placement preferences toward small-scale, family-like settings. Immigrant workers who are victims of labor violations also benefit from expanded U visa eligibility and protections against retaliation.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Federal taxpayers face significant new costs for legal representation, the Ombudsperson office, expanded post-release services, and automatic supplemental appropriations during surge periods. DHS and HHS face increased compliance burdens through new reporting requirements, interagency coordination mandates, and facility monitoring. Private detention facility operators face stricter oversight, more frequent inspections, and potential loss of contracts as the bill favors smaller community-based settings. Employers who have exploited immigrant workers through fear of deportation face higher risk as workers gain legal protections.
Key Provisions
- Creates an Office of the Ombudsperson for Immigrant Children within HHS with subpoena power and unobstructed access to all facilities
- Mandates government-funded legal representation for all unaccompanied children in removal proceedings, with specialized childrens dockets in immigration courts
- Establishes preference for placing children in small-scale settings (foster care, shelters with 25 or fewer children) over large detention facilities
- Expands U visa eligibility to cover victims of labor violations, with stays of removal for workers filing workplace claims
- Provides automatic supplemental appropriation of million for every 500 unaccompanied children above 10,000 per month
- Expands Medicaid access for special immigrant juveniles, U visa holders under 21, and DACA recipients
- Requires comprehensive background checks every 5 years for all personnel with access to children
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Establishes comprehensive protections for unaccompanied immigrant children in federal custody, including an independent ombudsperson office, guaranteed legal representation, improved care standards, and expanded immigration relief options.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Strengthen protections and oversight for unaccompanied immigrant children through independent monitoring, guaranteed legal representation, improved care standards, and expanded immigration relief pathways"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Unaccompanied immigrant children in federal custody
- Immigration legal services providers and child advocates
- Child welfare professionals and social workers
- Healthcare providers serving immigrant children
- Immigrant workers with labor grievances
Likely Burden Bearers
- Federal government (HHS, DHS, DOJ) - new oversight and compliance requirements
- U.S. taxpayers - funding for legal representation, ombudsperson office, and supplemental appropriations
- Immigration detention facility operators - increased monitoring and reporting requirements
- Private contractors operating detention facilities - stricter compliance standards
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_director"
- → Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Health and Human Services (primary) and Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_ombudsperson"
- → Ombudsperson for Immigrant Children in Federal Custody
- "the_director"
- → Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Health and Human Services
- "the_attorney_general"
- → Attorney General
- "the_director"
- → Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Health and Human Services
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Health and Human Services
Note: 'The Secretary' primarily refers to Secretary of Health and Human Services in Titles I-III and VI, but refers to Secretary of Homeland Security in Titles IV-V and in DHS-related provisions within Title I
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
The expert advisory committee established under section 104(a)
The stipulated settlement agreement filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California on January 17, 1997 (CV 85-4544-RJK)
The Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement
A location at which 1 or more immigrant children are detained by the Government or held in Government custody, including ORR facilities and DHS facilities (CBP holding facilities, ICE family detention, ICE juvenile facilities, private entities including hotels)
A facility operated by an Office of Refugee Resettlement grantee, subgrantee, contractor, or subcontractor
The ombudsperson appointed under section 102(c)
The interagency working group established under section 105(b)
A facility at which an immigrant child is placed when no in-network care provider is available to provide specialized services
An alien (as defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act) under the age of 18 years
Any claim, charge, complaint, or grievance related to workplace injury/illness or violation of labor laws including wages, hours, labor relations, FMLA, OSHA, civil rights, or nondiscrimination
An individual who presents a declaration attesting reasonable cause to believe their testimony will be relevant to a workplace claim outcome
The ability to enter facilities unannounced and obtain requested information in a timely manner with full cooperation of HHS and DHS
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology