Access to Counsel Act of 2020
Latest action · Mar 5, 2020 Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 332.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 10, 2020
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Access to Counsel Act of 2020
This bill provides various protections for covered individuals subject to secondary or deferred inspections when seeking admission into the United States. Covered individuals include U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents, aliens in possession of a visa, and refugees.
The Department of Homeland Security shall ensure that a covered individual subject to secondary or deferred inspection has a meaningful opportunity to consult with counsel and certain related parties, such as a relative, within an hour of the start of the secondary inspection and as necessary during the inspection process. The counsel and related party shall be allowed to advocate on behalf of the covered individual, including by providing evidence and information to the examining immigration officer.
A lawful permanent resident subject to secondary or deferred inspection may not abandon lawful permanent resident status until the individual has had a reasonable opportunity to seek advice from counsel, unless the individual voluntarily and knowingly waives in writing this opportunity to seek counsel's advice.
Cosponsors 50
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 10, 2020 to Feb 18, 2020; 21 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-CA | Adam B. Schiff | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-WA | Adam Smith | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-IL | Bobby L. Rush | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-NJ | Bonnie Watson Coleman | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-IL | Bradley Scott Schneider | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-FL | Debbie Wasserman Schultz | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-WA | Derek Kilmer | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-CA | Eric Swalwell | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-GA | Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-MA | James P. McGovern | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-MD | Jamie Raskin | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-IL | Janice D. Schakowsky | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-NY | Jerrold Nadler | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
| D-CA | Judy Chu | Original | Jan 10, 2020 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Jan 10, 2020Markup Feb 12, 2020Reported Mar 5, 2020 |
| Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee | Referred Jan 28, 2020Discharged Feb 11, 2020 | |
| House | Homeland Security Committee | Referred Jan 10, 2020Discharged Mar 5, 2020 |
| Border Security and Enforcement Subcommittee | Referred Jan 17, 2020 |
Actions 10
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Mar 5, 2020Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Judiciary. H. Rept. 116-412, Part I.
- Mar 5, 2020Committee on Homeland Security discharged.
- Mar 5, 2020Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 332.
- Feb 12, 2020Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Feb 12, 2020Ordered to be Reported (Amended).
- Feb 11, 2020Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship Discharged.
- Jan 28, 2020Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.
- Jan 17, 2020Referred to the Subcommittee on Border Security, Facilitation, and Operations.
- Jan 10, 2020Introduced in House
- Jan 10, 2020Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H1520 | Steny H. Hoyer D-MD | Mar 5, 2020 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 166, no. 6, January 10, 2020, page H180.
CRS reports 1
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 1
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R46419 | Immigration Legislation and Issues in the 116th Congress Archived | Report | Jul 27, 2020 |
Related bills 3
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 1006 | To clarify the rights of all persons who are held or detained at a port of entry or at any detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. | Reintroduction of | Feb 24, 2017 |
| S 2219 | A bill to clarify the rights of all persons who are held or detained at a port of entry or at any detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. | Related bill | Jul 23, 2019 |
| HR 2486 | FUTURE Act | Related bill | Jul 23, 2020 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To clarify the rights of all persons who are held or detained at a port of entry or at any detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Access to Counsel Act of 2020
- Short Title(s) as Reported to House
- Access to Counsel Act of 2020
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.
Text 2
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Mar 5, 2020Reported in House
- Jan 10, 2020Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
