HR 5415 · 118th Congress 2023–2025, ended

Safeguarding Endangered Children, Unaccompanied and at Risk of Exploitation Act of 2023

Introduced Sep 12, 2023 Originated House Sponsor Christopher H. Smith R-NJ

Fact sheet Spreadsheet

Latest action · Sep 12, 2023 Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Appropriations, 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.

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.

  1. IntroducedSep 12, 2023
  2. Passed HouseNot reached
  3. Passed SenateNot reached
  4. To the PresidentNot reached
  5. Became lawNot reached

Summary

Safeguarding Endangered Children, Unaccompanied and at Risk of Exploitation Act of 2023 or SECURE Act of 2023

This bill requires regular reports to Congress detailing the status of unaccompanied non-U.S. national (alien under federal law) children. The bill also rescinds certain funding for the agencies responsible for the report for each day that a report is late.

Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation must jointly report to Congress every 60 days on such children that have been in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) since January 1, 2021, and have been released to a parent, family member, or sponsor within the United States.

This report must provide each child’s age, sex, location, and detail the child’s health and well-being. Additionally, the report must provide specified information about adults living in the child’s home, such as whether adults in the home have been subject to a fingerprint-based check of national crime information databases. The report must also specify the number of children that ORR has tried to contact without success on at least three separate attempts.

The report must be provided for up to three years or until all of the specified children have been accounted for. 

The bill also rescinds certain funding from HHS, DHS, and the FBI for each day that a report is late. Up to $10 million may be rescinded from each agency for each fiscal year. 

Cosponsors 30

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Sep 12, 2023 to Oct 30, 2023; 20 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

SeatCosponsorSigned on
R-TNAndrew OglesOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-MDAndy HarrisOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-TXBeth Van DuyneOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-CODoug LambornOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-FLGus M. BilirakisOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-VAH. Morgan GriffithOriginalSep 12, 2023
D-NJJefferson Van DrewOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-AZJuan CiscomaniOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-FLMario Diaz-BalartOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-ILMary E. MillerOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-TXMichael C. BurgessOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-IDMichael K. SimpsonOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-PAMike KellyOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-NYNicole MalliotakisOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-TXPete SessionsOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-SCRalph NormanOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-TXRandy K. Weber, Sr.OriginalSep 12, 2023
R-ALRobert B. AderholtOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-MITim WalbergOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-TXWesley HuntOriginalSep 12, 2023
R-FLMaria Elvira SalazarSep 13, 2023
R-TNMark E. GreenSep 13, 2023
R-TXTony GonzalesSep 13, 2023
R-TXBrian BabinSep 14, 2023
R-TXMichael T. McCaulSep 14, 2023
R-NYAndrew R. GarbarinoSep 18, 2023
R-LAClay HigginsSep 18, 2023
R-FLByron DonaldsSep 29, 2023
R-KSTracey MannSep 29, 2023
R-NEAdrian SmithOct 30, 2023

Committees 2

Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.

ChamberCommitteeWhat it did
HouseJudiciary Committee
Referred Sep 12, 2023
HouseAppropriations Committee
Referred Sep 12, 2023

Actions 2

Everything that happened, newest first.

  1. Sep 12, 2023Introduced in House
  2. Sep 12, 2023Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Appropriations, 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.

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.

Constitutional authority

Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 The single subject of this legislation is: Child Trafficking

The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 169, no. 147, September 12, 2023, page H4265.

Printed hearings 1

Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.

NumberHearingCommitteeHeld
Serial No. 118-116CHILDREN ARE NOT FOR SALE--GLOBAL EFFORTS TO ADDRESS CHILD TRAFFICKING68 pagesForeign Affairs CommitteeSep 14, 2023

Titles 2

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced
To require the Federal Government to report on efforts to locate, establish contact with, conduct wellness checks on, and investigate any suspicion of human trafficking related to approximately 85,000 unaccompanied alien children who crossed the U.S. southern border, were released from Federal custody, and with whom subsequent contact has been lost.
Short Title(s) as Introduced
Safeguarding Endangered Children, Unaccompanied and at Risk of Exploitation Act of 2023

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.

Text 1

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

  1. Sep 12, 2023Introduced in House

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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.