What This Bill Does
This bill requires three federal agencies to publish quarterly reports about the money they give to organizations providing services to migrants and asylum seekers in Central and South America. The bill also prevents these agencies from funding organizations that provide abortion services to asylum seekers.
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Who It Affects
Federal agencies: Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration; Department of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor; United States Agency for International Development.
Organizations that receive government funding for migrant and asylum seeker programs in Central and South America.
Asylum seekers receiving services in Central and South America.
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Key Provisions
- The Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration must issue quarterly reports documenting all grant money spent on migrant and asylum-seeker programs in Central and South America, including why each partner organization was chosen, how much money they received, and how many asylum claims were processed. (Sec. 2(a)(1))
- The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor must issue quarterly reports documenting all grants given to migrant and asylum seeker rights programs in Central and South America, including the same information about partner organizations and claims processed. (Sec. 2(b)(1))
- The United States Agency for International Development must issue quarterly reports documenting all grants given to migrant, asylum seeker, and internally displaced persons programs in Central and South America, including information about partner organizations and claims processed. (Sec. 2(c)(1))
- No agency may give grants to organizations that provide abortion services to asylum seekers, including organizations that provide referrals for abortions, assist in obtaining abortions, perform abortions, or fund abortion services in any way. (Sec. 2(a)(2); Sec. 2(b)(2); Sec. 2(c)(2))
- The quarterly reports must begin the quarter after this legislation is enacted. (Sec. 2(d))
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What Changes
If this bill becomes law, three federal agencies must begin publishing quarterly reports about their spending on migrant and asylum seeker programs in Central and South America. These agencies lose the ability to fund organizations that provide any abortion services to asylum seekers.
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Important Definitions
None defined in bill text.
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Effective Date
The reports must begin the quarter after this legislation is enacted. The specific start date is not specified in bill text.
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1775
To require certain bureaus of the Department of State and the United
States Agency for International Development to release quarterly reviews
of certain grants, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 24, 2023
Mr. MCCORMICK introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs
A BILL
To require certain bureaus of the Department of State and
the United States Agency for International Development
to release quarterly reviews of certain grants, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Assessing Unintended
4
Drivers of Illegal Trafficking Act’’ or the ‘‘AUDIT Act’’.
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•HR 1775 IH
SEC. 2. LATIN AMERICA MIGRANT SERVICES GRANT TRANS-
1
PARENCY.
2
(a) The Department of State’s Bureau of Population,
3
Refugees, and Migration shall:
4
(1) Issue a quarterly report documenting all the
5
Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration
6
grant money spent on migrant and asylum-seeker
7
programs in Central and South America. The report
8
shall explain why each implementing partner was
9
chosen, the amount of money it received, the avail-
10
ability of asylum claim processing in the countries in
11
which those partners operate, and the number of
12
claims processed in those countries. The report shall
13
include—
14
(A) grants given to non-governmental or-
15
ganization implementing partners which are
16
building asylum shelters or creating asylum
17
processing capacity in Central and South Amer-
18
ica;
19
(B) grants given to implementing partners
20
conducting casework, counseling, or legal rep-
21
resentation for asylum seekers; and
22
(C) grants given to implementing partners
23
providing other services to asylum seekers, in-
24
cluding transportation, monetary assistance,
25
and housing.
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•HR 1775 IH
(2) Be prohibited from giving grants to imple-
1
menting partners which provide abortion services to
2
asylum seekers. This includes implementing part-
3
ners—
4
(A) providing sexual and reproductive
5
health services that include referrals to receive
6
abortions;
7
(B) providing assistance in obtaining abor-
8
tions;
9
(C) providing the abortion procedure itself;
10
and
11
(D) which directly or indirectly fund abor-
12
tions or services for obtaining abortions in any
13
manner for asylum seekers.
14
(b) The Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy,
15
Human Rights, and Labor shall:
16
(1) Issue a quarterly report documenting all the
17
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
18
grants given to migrant and asylum seeker rights
19
programs in Central and South America. The report
20
shall explain why each implementing partner was
21
chosen, the amount of money it received, the avail-
22
ability of asylum claim processing in the countries in
23
which those partners operate, and the number of
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•HR 1775 IH
claims processed in those countries. The report shall
1
include—
2
(A) direct grants from the Bureau of De-
3
mocracy, Human Rights, and Labor to migrant
4
shelters;
5
(B) grants to non-governmental organiza-
6
tion implementing partners that provide grants
7
or programming to other non-governmental or-
8
ganizations or migrants rights organizations;
9
(C) the Bureau of Democracy, Human
10
Rights, and Labor programming for building
11
local asylum processing capacity or improving
12
institutional transparency or efficiency;
13
(D) grants given to implementing partners
14
conducting casework, counseling, or legal rep-
15
resentation for asylum seekers; and
16
(E) any other programs the Bureau of De-
17
mocracy, Human Rights, and Labor funds for
18
the purpose of promoting migrant or asylum
19
seeker rights.
20
(2) Be prohibited from giving grants to imple-
21
menting partners who provide abortion services to
22
asylum seekers. This includes implementing part-
23
ners—
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•HR 1775 IH
(A) providing sexual and reproductive
1
health services that include referrals to receive
2
abortions;
3
(B) providing assistance in obtaining abor-
4
tions;
5
(C) providing the abortion procedure itself;
6
(D) who directly or indirectly fund abor-
7
tions or services for obtaining abortions in any
8
manner for asylum seekers; and
9
(E) which directly or indirectly fund abor-
10
tions in any manner for asylum seekers, provi-
11
sions, or assistance in obtaining an abortion.
12
(c) The United States Agency for International De-
13
velopment shall:
14
(1) Issue a quarterly report documenting all the
15
United States Agency for International Development
16
grants given to migrant, asylum seeker, and inter-
17
nally displaced persons programs in Central and
18
South America. The report shall explain why each
19
implementing partner was chosen, the amount of
20
money it received, the availability of asylum claim
21
processing in the countries in which those partners
22
operate, and the number of claims processed in
23
those countries. The report shall include—
24
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•HR 1775 IH
(A) direct grants from the United States
1
Agency for International Development to mi-
2
grant shelters;
3
(B) grants from the Bureau for Humani-
4
tarian Assistance to implementing partners in
5
the region working with migrants and asylum
6
seekers;
7
(C) prosperity, security, and governance
8
grants given to El Salvador, Guatemala, and
9
Honduras;
10
(D) integration grants to Belize, Costa
11
Rica, and Panama;
12
(E) grants given to resettle and integrate
13
Venezuelans outside their country and grants to
14
implementing partners operating within Ven-
15
ezuela;
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(F) grants or programs related to mes-
17
saging to citizens of Central and South Amer-
18
ica; and
19
(G) grants given for governmental institu-
20
tional capacity building.
21
(2) Be prohibited from giving grants to imple-
22
menting partners which provide abortion services to
23
asylum seekers. This includes implementing part-
24
ners—
25
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•HR 1775 IH
(A) providing sexual and reproductive
1
health services that include referrals to receive
2
abortions;
3
(B) providing assistance in obtaining abor-
4
tions;
5
(C) providing the abortion procedure itself;
6
(D) who directly or indirectly fund abor-
7
tions or services for obtaining abortions in any
8
manner for asylum seekers; and
9
(E) which directly or indirectly fund abor-
10
tions in any manner for asylum seekers, provi-
11
sions, or assistance in obtaining an abortion.
12
(d) The reports by the Bureau of Population, Refu-
13
gees, and Migration, the Bureau of Democracy, Human
14
Rights, and Labor, and the United States Agency for
15
International Development shall begin the quarter after
16
this legislation is enacted.
17
Æ
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