What This Bill Does
This bill requires the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to let people being questioned at border ports of entry or at U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities talk to lawyers and other supporters. The bill ensures these individuals can get legal advice during the inspection process, which includes questioning that may happen later in a different location (called deferred inspection).
Who It Affects
U.S. citizens, permanent residents returning from trips abroad, people with valid immigrant or nonimmigrant visas, refugees, asylees, and people approved for parole entering the country at ports of entry. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials who conduct inspections at ports of entry.
Key Provisions
• The Secretary of Homeland Security must make sure people being inspected get a meaningful chance to talk with a lawyer and other supporters by phone or in person within one hour after secondary inspection starts and whenever needed during the rest of the inspection (Sec. 2(a)(2)(A))
• Lawyers and supporters can help the person being inspected by giving immigration officers information, documents, and evidence that supports their case (Sec. 2(a)(2)(B))
• Border officials must try their best to let lawyers or supporters appear in person at the inspection location if the person being inspected asks them to (Sec. 2(a)(2)(C))
• Officials cannot accept a permanent resident's formal paperwork giving up their legal status unless the permanent resident first gets a chance to talk to a lawyer, unless the person agrees in writing to skip this opportunity (Sec. 2(a)(3))
What Changes
Homeland Security officials will be required to give people being questioned at borders time to contact and consult with lawyers or other representatives. People can no longer be forced to sign paperwork abandoning their permanent resident status without first speaking to a lawyer (unless they choose to skip this step in writing).
Important Definitions
"Counsel" means a licensed lawyer in good standing in any U.S. state or territory, or a representative of an organization that helps with immigration cases as approved by the Attorney General (Sec. 2(a)(4)(A))
"Covered individual" means a person being questioned during secondary or deferred inspection who is a U.S. citizen, permanent resident returning home, someone with a valid visa, a refugee, a returning asylee, or someone approved to enter on parole (Sec. 2(a)(4)(B))
"Interested party" means a relative of the person being inspected, the person who sponsored them for a visa, or an organization with a real connection to the person (Sec. 2(a)(4)(C))
Effective Date
This law takes effect 180 days after it is signed into law (Sec. 2(b))
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 666
To clarify the rights of certain persons who are held or detained at a
port of entry or at any facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border
Protection.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 31, 2023
Ms. JAYAPAL (for herself, Mr. AUCHINCLOSS, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mr. BLU-
MENAUER, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. CARSON, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. CHU, Mr.
CICILLINE, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Ms. CROCKETT, Mr. DAVIS of Illi-
nois, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. GALLEGO, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. GARCI´A
of Illinois, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. JACOBS, Mr. JOHNSON
of Georgia, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. KILMER, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. LEE
of California, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. MCGOVERN,
Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. NADLER, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. NORTON,
Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr.
SCHIFF, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. SWALWELL, Ms. TLAIB, Mrs.
TORRES of California, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, and Mrs.
WATSON COLEMAN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to
the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To clarify the rights of certain persons who are held or
detained at a port of entry or at any facility overseen
by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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HR 666 IH
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Access to Counsel
2
Act’’.
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SEC. 2. ACCESS TO COUNSEL AND OTHER ASSISTANCE AT
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PORTS OF ENTRY AND DURING DEFERRED
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INSPECTION.
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(a) ACCESS TO COUNSEL AND OTHER ASSISTANCE
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DURING INSPECTION.—Section 235 of the Immigration
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and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225) is amended by add-
9
ing at the end the following:
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‘‘(e) ACCESS TO COUNSEL AND OTHER ASSISTANCE
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DURING INSPECTION AT PORTS OF ENTRY AND DURING
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DEFERRED INSPECTION.—
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‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland
14
Security shall ensure that a covered individual has
15
a meaningful opportunity to consult with counsel
16
and an interested party during the inspection proc-
17
ess.
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‘‘(2) SCOPE OF ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of
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Homeland Security shall—
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‘‘(A) provide the covered individual a
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meaningful opportunity to consult (including
22
consultation via telephone) with counsel and an
23
interested party not later than one hour after
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the secondary inspection process commences
25
and as necessary throughout the remainder of
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HR 666 IH
the inspection process, including, as applicable,
1
during deferred inspection;
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‘‘(B) allow counsel and an interested party
3
to advocate on behalf of the covered individual,
4
including by providing to the examining immi-
5
gration officer information, documentation, and
6
other evidence in support of the covered indi-
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vidual; and
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‘‘(C) to the greatest extent practicable, ac-
9
commodate a request by the covered individual
10
for counsel or an interested party to appear in-
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person at the secondary or deferred inspection
12
site.
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‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE FOR LAWFUL PERMANENT
14
RESIDENTS.—
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‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in
16
subparagraph (B), the Secretary of Homeland
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Security may not accept a Form I–407 Record
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of Abandonment of Lawful Permanent Resident
19
Status (or a successor form) from a lawful per-
20
manent resident subject to secondary or de-
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ferred inspection without first providing such
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lawful permanent resident a meaningful oppor-
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tunity to seek advice from counsel.
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HR 666 IH
‘‘(B)
EXCEPTION.—The
Secretary
of
1
Homeland Security may accept Form I–407
2
Record of Abandonment of Lawful Permanent
3
Resident Status (or a successor form) from a
4
lawful permanent resident subject to secondary
5
or deferred inspection if such lawful permanent
6
resident knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily
7
waives, in writing, the opportunity to seek ad-
8
vice from counsel.
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‘‘(4) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
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‘‘(A)
COUNSEL.—The
term
‘counsel’
11
means—
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‘‘(i) an attorney who is a member in
13
good standing of the bar of any State, the
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District of Columbia, or a territory or a
15
possession of the United States and is not
16
under an order suspending, enjoining, re-
17
straining, disbarring, or otherwise restrict-
18
ing the attorney in the practice of law; or
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‘‘(ii) an individual accredited by the
20
Attorney General, acting as a representa-
21
tive of an organization recognized by the
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Executive Office for Immigration Review,
23
to represent a covered individual in immi-
24
gration matters.
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HR 666 IH
‘‘(B) COVERED
INDIVIDUAL.—The term
1
‘covered individual’ means an individual subject
2
to secondary or deferred inspection who is—
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‘‘(i) a national of the United States;
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‘‘(ii) an immigrant, lawfully admitted
5
for permanent residence, who is returning
6
from a temporary visit abroad;
7
‘‘(iii) an alien seeking admission as an
8
immigrant in possession of a valid unex-
9
pired immigrant visa;
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‘‘(iv) an alien seeking admission as a
11
nonimmigrant in possession of a valid un-
12
expired nonimmigrant visa;
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‘‘(v) a refugee;
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‘‘(vi) a returning asylee; or
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‘‘(vii) an alien who has been approved
16
for parole under section 212(d)(5)(A), in-
17
cluding an alien who is returning to the
18
United States in possession of a valid ad-
19
vance parole document.
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‘‘(C) INTERESTED PARTY.—The term ‘in-
21
terested party’ means—
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‘‘(i) a relative of the covered indi-
23
vidual;
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HR 666 IH
‘‘(ii) in the case of a covered indi-
1
vidual to whom an immigrant or a non-
2
immigrant visa has been issued, the peti-
3
tioner or sponsor thereof (including an
4
agent of such petitioner or sponsor); or
5
‘‘(iii) a person, organization, or entity
6
in the United States with a bona fide con-
7
nection to the covered individual.’’.
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(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
9
subsection (a) shall take effect 180 days after the date
10
of the enactment of this Act.
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(c) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this Act, or in
12
any amendment made by this Act, may be construed to
13
limit a right to counsel or any right to appointed counsel
14
under—
15
(1)
section
240(b)(4)(A)
(8
U.S.C.
16
1229a(b)(4)(A));
17
(2) section 292 of the Immigration and Nation-
18
ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1362); or
19
(3) any other provision of law, including any
20
final court order securing such rights,
21
as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment
22
of this Act.
23
Æ
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