What This Bill Does
This bill requires the federal government to notify state governors before detaining or housing certain non-asylum-seeking immigrants in their state or transferring responsibility for them to state entities. The bill gives state governors final authority to approve or reject these placements and requires background checks before any placement happens.
Who It Affects
- State governors
- The Secretary of Homeland Security (the federal official leading the Department of Homeland Security)
- Immigrants admitted through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program
- Immigrants allowed into the country on a case-by-case basis for humanitarian reasons
- Unaccompanied immigrant children
- State and local officials (city mayors, county executives, law enforcement leaders and city/county council members)
- Public and private facilities in states where immigrants might be detained or housed
Key Provisions
- The Secretary of Homeland Security must notify a state's governor at least 10 business days before detaining or housing an immigrant in the state or transferring financial responsibility for an immigrant to any state entity (Sec. 2(a))
- The federal government must collect fingerprints and DNA from each immigrant and share that information with the state before placement (Sec. 2(b)(1))
- The federal government must cross-check each immigrant's fingerprints and DNA against the FBI crime database, national crime databases and counterterrorism databases, and confirm the immigrant does not appear in any of these databases (Sec. 2(b)(2))
- The federal government must cross-check each immigrant against international law enforcement and counterterrorism databases and confirm the immigrant does not appear in these databases (Sec. 2(b)(3))
- State governors have final authority to approve or reject any proposal to detain, house or transfer financial responsibility for an immigrant in their state, after consulting with local officials (Sec. 3(a) and (b))
- No federal court can review decisions made by state governors under this law or any requirements and procedures established by this law (Sec. 2(d) and Sec. 3(d))
- The Secretary of Homeland Security and other federal officials cannot waive any requirements of this act (Sec. 4)
What Changes
State governors gain the power to refuse federal placement of certain immigrants in their states. The federal government must perform specific background checks and share results with states before attempting any placement. Federal courts cannot review or challenge governor decisions about whether to accept these placements.
Important Definitions
- Unaccompanied alien child: Not specified in bill text (the bill references the definition from another law but does not define it here)
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 402
To provide for the mandatory detention of aliens who are security risks
or present insufficient or false credentials, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 20, 2023
Mr. ARRINGTON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To provide for the mandatory detention of aliens who are
security risks or present insufficient or false credentials,
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.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protect Communities
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from a Porous Border Act of 2023’’.
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SEC. 2. NOTIFICATION OF IN-STATE DETENTION, HOUSING,
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OR TRANSFER OF NON-ASYLUM APPLICANT
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ALIENS.
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(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu-
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rity shall notify the Governor of a State of the Secretary
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•HR 402 IH
of Homeland Security’s intent to detain or house an alien
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in any public or private facility in that State, or transfer
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financial or other responsibility for an alien to any public
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or private entity in that State, and provide the certifi-
4
cation required by subsection (b) no fewer than 10 busi-
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ness days prior to the proposed date of detention, housing,
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or transfer.
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(b) REQUIRED CERTIFICATION AND INFORMATION
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FOR ALIEN FITNESS.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu-
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rity shall provide the following certification and informa-
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tion simultaneous to the alien detention, housing, or trans-
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fer notification required in subsection (a):
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(1) That appropriate biographic and biometric
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information, including fingerprints and DNA, has
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been collected from each alien, and that such bio-
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graphic and biometric information has been shared
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with the State government.
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(2) That each alien’s biographic and biometric
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information has been cross-checked with the Federal
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Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Database
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(UCR) and Combined DNA Index System (CODIS),
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the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), and
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other appropriate Federal and non-Federal domestic
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law enforcement and counterterrorism databases,
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•HR 402 IH
and that such alien was not detected in any of those
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databases.
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(3) That each alien’s biographic and biometric
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information has been cross-checked with the Inter-
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national Criminal Police Organization’s INTERPOL
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database and other appropriate international law en-
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forcement and counterterrorism databases, and that
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such alien was not detected in any of those data-
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bases.
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(4) Any information pertaining to the alien that
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was detected during a database check described in
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this subsection.
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(c) GENERAL APPLICABILITY TO ALIENS.—The re-
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quirements of subsections (a) and (b) shall be required
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for the attempted detention, housing, or transfer of—
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(1) any alien who is admitted pursuant to the
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U.S. Refugee Admissions Program or any other
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Federal refugee relief or resettlement program;
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(2) any alien who is paroled by any Federal of-
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ficial into the United States or humanitarian or
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other reason; and
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(3) any alien who is deemed by any Federal of-
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ficial to be an unaccompanied alien child (as such
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term is defined in section 462 of the Homeland Se-
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curity Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 279)).
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(d) NO FEDERAL COURT JURISDICTION.—No Fed-
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eral court shall have jurisdiction to review any of the re-
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quirements or procedures established either pursuant to
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this section or pursuant to any regulation promulgated
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under the authority of this section.
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SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON IN-STATE DETENTION, HOUSING,
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OR TRANSFER OF NON-ASYLUM APPLICANT
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ALIENS.
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(a) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of a State shall
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have plenary and final authority to determine whether to
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permit the Secretary of Homeland Security to detain or
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house an alien in any public or private facility in that
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State, or transfer financial or other responsibility for an
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alien to any public or private entity in that State.
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(b) PROHIBITION
ON DETENTION, HOUSING, OR
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TRANSFER.—Upon the notification required by section 3,
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the Governor of a State may, at the Governor’s discretion
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and subsequent to consultation with local officials (includ-
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ing city or county chief executives, city or county law en-
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forcement agency heads, and city or county council mem-
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bers), decline the Secretary’s proposal to detain or house
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an alien in any public or private facility in that State, or
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transfer financial or other responsibility for an alien to
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any public or private entity in that State.
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•HR 402 IH
(c) PARAMETERS OF REGULATIONS GOVERNING IN-
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STATE DETENTION, HOUSING, AND TRANSFER OF NON-
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ASYLUM APPLICANT ALIENS.—Regulations pursuant to
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this section shall not in any way limit or restrict the provi-
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sions of this section, but shall be limited to the following
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areas:
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(1) The format and method of the Secretary’s
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notification to a Governor regarding the Secretary’s
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intent to place an alien in any public or private facil-
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ity in that State.
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(2) The use of additional Federal, non-Federal,
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and international law enforcement and counterter-
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rorism databases for pre-placement alien screening.
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(d) NO FEDERAL COURT JURISDICTION.—No Fed-
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eral court shall have jurisdiction to review any decision
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made by the Governor of a State pursuant to this section.
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SEC. 4. NO WAIVER AUTHORITY.
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Neither the Secretary of Homeland Security nor any
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other Federal official shall have the authority to waive any
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of the requirements established in this Act.
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Æ
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