S.Amdt. 3253

SA 3253. Mr. LIEBERMAN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
to amendment SA 3192 submitted by Mr. Specter (for himself, Mr. Leahy,
and Mr. Hagel) to the bill S. 2454, to amend the Immigration and
Nationality Act to provide for comprehensive reform and for other
purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

[[Page S2753]]

TITLE __--INSPECTIONS AND DETENTIONS

SEC. __01. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the ``Secure and Safe Detention
and Asylum Act''.

SEC. __02. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The origin of the United States is that of a land of
refuge. Many of our Nation's founders fled here to escape
persecution for their political opinion, their ethnicity, and
their religion. Since that time, the United States has
honored its history and founding values by standing against
persecution around the world, offering refuge to those who
flee from oppression, and welcoming them as contributors to a
democratic society.
(2) The right to seek and enjoy asylum from persecution is
a universal human right and fundamental freedom articulated
in numerous international instruments ratified by the United
States, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
as well as the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of
Refugees and the Convention Against Torture. United States
law also guarantees the right to seek asylum and protection
from return to territories where one would have a well-
founded fear of persecution on account of one's race,
religion, nationality, membership in a particular social
group, or political opinion.
(3) The United States has long recognized that asylum
seekers often must flee their persecutors with false
documents, or no documents at all. The second person in
United States history to receive honorary citizenship by Act
of Congress was Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, in
gratitude for his issuance of more than 20,000 false Swedish
passports to Hungarian Jews to assist them flee the
Holocaust.
(4) In 1996, Congress amended section 235(b) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act, to authorize immigration
officers to detain and expeditiously remove aliens without
proper documents, if that alien does not have a credible fear
of persecution.
(5) Section 605 of the International Religious Freedom Act
of 1998 subsequently authorized the United States Commission
on International Religious Freedom to appoint experts to
study the treatment of asylum seekers subject to expedited
removal.
(6) The Departments of Justice and Homeland Security fully
cooperated with the Commission, which reviewed thousands of
previously unreleased statistics, approximately 1,000 files
and records of proceeding related to expedited removal
proceedings, observed more than 400 inspections, interviewed
200 aliens in expedited removal proceedings at seven ports of
entry, and surveyed 19 detention facilities and all eight
asylum offices. The Commission released its findings on
February 8, 2005.
(7) Among its major findings, the Commission found that,
while the Congress, the Immigration and Naturalization
Service, and the Department of Homeland Security developed a
number of processes to prevent bona fide asylum seekers from
being expeditiously removed, these procedures were routinely
disregarded by many immigration officers, placing the asylum
seekers at risk, and undermining the reliability of evidence
created for immigration enforcement purposes. The specific
findings include the following:
(A) Department of Homeland Security procedures require that
the immigration officer read a script to the alien that the
alien should ask for protection--without delay--if the alien
has any reason to fear of being returned home. Yet in more
than 50 percent of the expedited removal interviews observed
by the Commission, this information was not conveyed to the
applicant.
(B) Department of Homeland Security procedures require that
the alien review the sworn statement taken by the immigration
officer, make any necessary corrections for errors in
interpretation, and then sign the statement. The Commission
found, however, that 72 percent of the time, the alien signs
his sworn statement without the opportunity to review it.
(C) The Commission found that the sworn statements taken by
the officer are not verbatim, are not verifiable, often
attribute that information was conveyed to the alien which
was never, in fact, conveyed, and sometimes contain questions
which were never asked. These sworn statements look like
verbatim transcripts but are not. Yet the Commission also
found that, in 32 percent of the cases where the immigration
judges found the asylum applicant were not credible, they
specifically relied on these sworn statements.
(D) Department of Homeland Security regulations also
require that, when an alien expresses a fear of return, he
must be referred to an asylum officer to determine whether
his fear is ``credible.'' Yet, in nearly 15 percent of the
cases which we observed, aliens who expressed a fear of
return were nevertheless removed without a referral to an
asylum officer.
(8) The Commission found that the sworn statements taken
during expedited removal proceedings were reliable for
neither enforcement nor protection purposes because
Department of Homeland Security management reviewed only the
paperwork created by the interviewing officer. The agency had
no national quality assurance procedures to ensure that paper
files are an accurate representation of the actual interview.
The Commission recommended recording all interviews between
Department of Homeland Security officers and aliens subject
to expedited removal, and that procedures be established to
ensure that these recordings are reviewed to ensure
compliance.
(9) The Commission found that the Immigration and
Naturalization Service (INS) issued policy guidance on
December 30, 1997, defining criteria for decisions to
releasing asylum seekers from detention. Neither the INS nor
the Department of Homeland Security, however, had been
following this, or any other discernible criteria, for
detaining or releasing asylum seekers. The Study's review of
Department of Homeland Security statistics revealed that
release rates varied widely, between 5 percent and 95
percent, in different regions.
(10) In order to promote the most efficient use of
detention resources and a humane yet secure approach to
detention of aliens with a credible fear of persecution, the
Commission urged that the Department of Homeland Security
develop procedures to ensure that a release decision is taken
at the time of the credible fear determination or as soon as
or as soon as feasible thereafter. Upon a determination that
the alien has established credible fear, identity and
community ties, and that the alien is not subject to any
possible bar to asylum involving violence, misconduct, or
threat to national security, the alien should be released
from detention pending an asylum determination. The
Commission also urged that the Secretary of Homeland Security
establish procedures to ensure consistent implementation of
release criteria, as well as the consideration of requests to
consider new evidence relevant to the determination.
(11) In 1986, the United States, as a member of the
Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees, noted that in view of the hardship which it
involves, detention of asylum-seekers should normally be
avoided; that detention measures taken in respect of refugees
and asylum-seekers should be subject to judicial or
administrative review; that conditions of detention of
refugees and asylum seekers must be humane; and that refugees
and asylum-seekers shall, whenever possible, not be
accommodated with persons detained as criminals.
(12) The USCIRF Study found that the Department of Homeland
Security detains the vast majority of noncriminal asylum
seekers, as well as other noncriminal aliens, under
inappropriate and potentially harmful conditions in jails and
jail-like facilities. This occurs in spite of the development
of a small number of successful nonpunitive detention
facilities, such as those in Broward County Florida and Berks
County, Pennsylvania.
(13) The Commission found that nearly all of the detention
centers where asylum seekers are detained resemble, in every
essential respect, conventional jails. Often, aliens with no
criminal record are detained alongside criminals and criminal
aliens. The standards applied by Bureau of Immigration and
Customs Enforcement for all of their detention facilities are
identical to, and modeled after, correctional standards for
criminal populations. In some facilities with ``correctional
dormitory'' set-ups, there are large numbers of detainees
sleeping, eating, going to the bathroom, and showering out in
the open in one brightly lit, windowless, and locked room.
Recreation in Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement
facilities often consists of unstructured activity of no more
than one hour per day in a small outdoor space surrounded by
high concrete walls.
(14) A study conducted by Physicians for Human Rights and
the Bellevue/New York University Program for Survivors of
Torture found that the mental health of asylum seekers was
extremely poor, and worsened the longer individuals were in
detention. This included high levels of anxiety, depression,
and post-traumatic stress disorder. The study also raised
concerns about inadequate access to health services,
particularly mental health services. Asylum seekers
interviewed consistently reported being treated like
criminals, in violation of international human rights norms,
which contributed to worsening of their mental health.
Additionally, asylum seekers reported verbal abuse and
inappropriate threats and use of solitary confinement.
(15) The Commission recommended that the secure but
nonpunitive detention facility in Broward County Florida
Broward provided a more appropriate framework for those
asylum seekers who are not appropriate candidates for
release.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are the following:
(1) To ensure that personnel within the Department of
Homeland Security follow procedures designed to protect bona
fide asylum seekers from being returned to places where they
may face persecution.
(2) To ensure that persons who affirmatively apply for
asylum or other forms of humanitarian protection and
noncriminal detainees are not subject to arbitrary detention.
(3) To ensure that asylum seekers, families with children,
noncriminal aliens, and other vulnerable populations, who are
not eligible for release, are detained under appropriate and
humane conditions.

SEC. __03. DEFINITIONS.

In this title:
(1) Asylum officer.--The term ``asylum officer'' has the
meaning given the term in

[[Page S2754]]

section 235(b)(1)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)(E)).
(2) Asylum seeker.--The term ``asylum seeker'' means any
applicant for asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1158) or any alien who indicates an
intention to apply for asylum under that section and does not
include any person with respect to whom a final adjudication
denying asylum has been entered.
(3) Credible fear of persecution.--The term ``credible fear
of persecution'' has the meaning given the term in section
235(b)(1)(B)(v) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)(B)(v)).
(4) Detainee.--The term ``detainee'' means an alien in the
Department's custody held in a detention facility.
(5) Detention facility.--The term ``detention facility''
means any Federal facility in which an asylum seeker, an
alien detained pending the outcome of a removal proceeding,
or an alien detained pending the execution of a final order
of removal, is detained for more than 72 hours, or any other
facility in which such detention services are provided to the
Federal Government by contract, and does not include
detention at any port of entry in the United States.
(6) Immigration judge.--The term ``immigration judge'' has
the meaning given the term in section 101(b)(4) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(4)).
(7) Standard.--The term ``standard'' means any policy,
procedure, or other requirement.
(8) Vulnerable populations.--The term ``vulnerable
populations'' means classes of aliens subject to the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) who
have special needs requiring special consideration and
treatment by virtue of their vulnerable characteristics,
including experiences of, or risk of, abuse, mistreatment, or
other serious harms threatening their health or safety.
Vulnerable populations include the following:
(A) Asylum seekers as described in paragraph (2).
(B) Refugees admitted under section 207 of the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157), and individuals seeking
such admission.
(C) Aliens whose deportation is being withheld under
section 243(h) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (as in
effect immediately before the effective date of section 307
of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant
Responsibility Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-208; 110 Stat.
3009-612)) or section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(3)).
(D) Aliens granted or seeking protection under Article 3 of
the United Nations Convention against Torture and other
Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
(E) Applicants for relief and benefits under the
Immigration and Nationality Act pursuant to the amendments
made by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000
(division A of Public Law 106-386), including applicants for
visas under subparagraph (T) or (U) of section 101(a)(15)).
(F) Applicants for relief and benefits under the
Immigration and Nationality Act pursuant to the amendments
made by the Violence Against Women Act of 2000 (division B of
Public Law 106-386).
(G) Unaccompanied alien children (as defined by 462(g) of
the Homeland Security Act (6 U.S.C. 279(g)).

SEC. __04. RECORDING SECONDARY INSPECTION INTERVIEWS.

(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish quality
assurance procedures to ensure the accuracy and verifiability
of signed or sworn statements taken by Department of Homeland
Security employees exercising expedited removal authority
under section 235(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
(b) Factors Relating to Sworn Statements.--Any sworn or
signed written statement taken of an alien as part of the
record of a proceeding under section 235(b)(1)(A) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act shall be accompanied by a
recording of the interview which served as the basis for that
sworn statement.
(c) Recordings.--
(1) In general.--The recording of the interview shall
include the written statement, in its entirety, being read
back to the alien in a language which the alien claims to
understand, and the alien affirming the accuracy of the
statement or making any corrections thereto.
(2) Format.--The recordings shall be made in video, audio,
or other equally reliable format.
(d) Interpreters.--The Secretary shall ensure professional
certified interpreters are used when the interviewing officer
does not speak a language understood by the alien.
(e) Recordings in Immigration Proceedings.--Recordings of
interviews of aliens subject to expedited removal shall be
included in the record of proceeding and may be considered as
evidence in any further proceedings involving the alien.

SEC. __05. PROCEDURES GOVERNING DETENTION DECISIONS.

Section 236 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1226) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting
``the Secretary of Homeland Security or'' before ``the
Attorney General''; and
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by striking ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (A);
(ii) by striking ``but'' at the end of subparagraph (B);
and
(iii) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
``(C) the alien's own recognizance; or
``(D) a secure alternatives program as provided for in
section ___09 of this title; but'';
(2) by redesignating subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e) as
subsections (c), (d), (e), and (f), respectively;
(3) by inserting after subsection (a) the following new
subsection:
``(b) Decisions to Detain.--
``(1) In general.--In the case of a decision to detain
under subsection (a), the following shall apply:
``(A) The decision to detain or release shall be made in
writing and shall be served upon the alien. A decision to
continue detention without bond or parole shall specify in
writing the reasons for that detention.
``(B) An initial decision as to whether to detain or
release shall be served upon the alien within 72 hours of the
alien's detention or, in the case of aliens subject to
section 235(b)(1)(B)(iii)(IV), within 72 hours of the
credible fear determination.
``(C) All decisions to detain shall be subject to
redetermination by an Immigration Judge within 2 weeks from
the time the alien was served with the decision under
subparagraph (B). The alien may request further
redetermination upon the availability of new evidence.
``(D) The criteria to be considered by the Secretary and
the Attorney General in making the release or parole
decisions shall include--
``(i) the alien does not pose a risk to public safety or
national security;
``(ii) the alien has established his identity; and
``(iii) the alien has established a likelihood to appear
for immigration proceedings.
``(2) Applications of subsections (a) and (b).--This
subsection and subsection (a) shall apply to all aliens in
the custody of the Department of Homeland Security who are
not subject to mandatory detention under section
235(b)(1)(B)(iii)(IV), 236(c), or 236A and who do not have a
final order of removal.'';
(4) by amending subsection (c), as redesignated, to read as
follows:
``(c) Revocation of Bond or Parole.--The Secretary may, at
any time, revoke a bond, parole, or decision to release an
alien made under subsection (b), rearrest the alien under the
original warrant, and detain the alien.'';
(5) in subsection (d), as redesignated--
(A) by striking ``Attorney General'' and inserting
``Secretary'' each place it appears; and
(B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``or for humanitarian
reasons,'' after ``such an investigation,'';
(6) in subsection (e), as redesignated, by striking
``Attorney General'' and inserting ``Secretary''; and
(7) in subsection (f), as redesignated, by striking ``The
Attorney General's discretionary judgment'' and inserting
``The decisions of the Secretary or the Attorney General''.

SEC. __06. LEGAL ORIENTATION PROGRAM.

(a) In General.--The Attorney General, in consultation with
the Secretary, shall ensure that all detained aliens in
immigration and asylum proceedings receive legal orientation
through a program administered by the Department of Justice
Executive Office for Immigration Review.
(b) Content of Program.--The legal orientation program
developed pursuant to this subsection shall be implemented by
the Executive Office for Immigration Review and shall be
based on the Legal Orientation Program in existence on the
date of the enactment of this Act.
(c) Expansion of Legal Assistance.--The Secretary shall
ensure the expansion through the United States Citizenship
and Immigration Service of public-private partnerships that
facilitate pro bono counseling and legal assistance for
asylum seekers awaiting a credible fear interview. The pro
bono counseling and legal assistance programs developed
pursuant to this subsection shall be based on the pilot
program developed in Arlington, Virginia by the United States
Citizenship and Immigration Service.

SEC. __07. CONDITIONS OF DETENTION.

(a) In General.--The Secretary shall ensure that standards
governing conditions and procedures at detention facilities
are fully implemented and enforced, and that all detention
facilities comply with the standards.
(b) Procedures and Standards.--The Secretary shall
promulgate new standards, or modify existing detention
standards, to improve conditions in detention facilities. The
improvements shall address at a minimum the following
policies and procedures:
(1) Fair and humane treatment.--Procedures to ensure that
detainees are not subject to degrading or inhumane treatment
such as verbal or physical abuse or harassment, sexual abuse
or harassment, or arbitrary punishment.
(2) Limitations on shackling.--Procedures limiting the use
of shackling, handcuffing, solitary confinement, and strip
searches of detainees to situations where it is necessitated
by security interests or other extraordinary circumstances.
(3) Investigation of grievances.--Procedures for the prompt
and effective investigation of grievances raised by
detainees, including review of grievances by officials of

[[Page S2755]]

the Department who do not work at the same detention facility
where the detainee filing the grievance is detained.
(4) Access to telephones.--Procedures permitting detainees
sufficient access to telephones, and the ability to contact,
free of charge, legal representatives, the immigration
courts, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and the Federal
courts through confidential ``toll-free'' numbers.
(5) Location of facilities.--Location of detention
facilities, to the extent practicable, near sources of free
or low cost legal representation with expertise in asylum or
immigration law.
(6) Procedures governing transfers of detainees.--
Procedures governing the transfer of a detainee that take
into account--
(A) the detainee's access to legal representatives; and
(B) the proximity of the facility to the venue of the
asylum or removal proceeding.
(7) Quality of medical care.--Prompt and adequate medical
care at no cost to the detainee, including dental care, eye
care, mental health care, individual and group counseling,
medical dietary needs, and other medically necessary
specialized care. Medical facilities in all detention
facilities used by the Department that maintain current
accreditation by the National Commission on Correctional
Health Care (NCCHC). Requirements that each medical facility
that is not accredited by the Joint Commission on the
Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHO) will seek
to obtain such accreditation. Maintenance of complete medical
records for every detainee which shall be made available upon
request to a detainee, his legal representative, or other
authorized individuals.
(8) Translation capabilities.--The employment of detention
facility staff that, to the extent practicable, are qualified
in the languages represented in the population of detainees
at a detention facility, and the provision of alternative
translation services when necessary.
(9) Recreational programs and activities.--Daily access to
indoor and outdoor recreational programs and activities for
all detained asylum seekers.
(c) Special Standards for Noncriminal Detainees.--The
Secretary shall promulgate new standards, or modifications to
existing standards, that--
(1) recognize the special characteristics of noncriminal,
nonviolent detainees, and ensure that procedures and
conditions of detention are appropriate for a noncriminal
population; and
(2) ensure that noncriminal detainees are separated from
inmates with criminal convictions, pretrial inmates facing
criminal prosecution, and those inmates exhibiting violent
behavior while in detention.
(d) Special Standards for Vulnerable Populations.--The
Secretary shall promulgate new standards, or modifications to
existing standards, that--
(1) recognize the unique needs of asylum seekers, victims
of torture and trafficking, families with children, detainees
who do not speak English, detainees with special religious,
cultural or spiritual considerations, and other vulnerable
populations; and
(2) ensure that procedures and conditions of detention are
appropriate for the populations listed in this subsection.
(e) Training of Personnel.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall ensure that personnel
in detention facilities are given specialized training to
better understand and work with the population of detainees
held at the facilities where they work. The training should
address the unique needs of--
(A) asylum seekers;
(B) victims of torture or other trauma; and
(C) other vulnerable populations.
(2) Specialized training.--The training required by this
subsection shall be designed to better enable personnel to
work with detainees from different countries, and detainees
who cannot speak English. The training shall emphasize that
many detainees have no criminal records and are being held
for civil violations.

SEC. __08. OFFICE OF DETENTION OVERSIGHT.

(a) Establishment of the Office.--
(1) In general.--There shall be established within the
Department an Office of Detention Oversight (in this title
referred to as the ``Office'').
(2) Head of the office.--There shall be at the head of the
Office an Administrator who shall be appointed by, and report
to, the Secretary.
(3) Effective date.--The Office shall be established and
the head of the Office appointed not later than 6 months
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b) Responsibilities of the Office.--
(1) Inspections of detention centers.--The Office shall--
(A) undertake frequent and unannounced inspections of
detention facilities;
(B) develop a procedure for any detainee or the detainee's
representative to file a written complaint directly with the
Office; and
(C) report to the Secretary and to the Assistant Secretary
of Homeland Security for U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement all findings of a detention facility's
noncompliance with detention standards.
(2) Investigations.--The Office shall--
(A) initiate investigations, as appropriate, into
allegations of systemic problems at detention facilities or
incidents that constitute serious violations of detention
standards;
(B) report to the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary of
Homeland Security for U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement the results of all investigations; and
(C) refer matters, where appropriate, for further action
to--
(i) the Department of Justice;
(ii) the Office of the Inspector General of the Department
of Homeland Security;
(iii) the Civil Rights Office of the Department of Homeland
Security; or
(iv) any other relevant office of agency.
(3) Report to congress.--
(A) In general.--The Office shall annually submit a report
on its findings on detention conditions and the results of
its investigations to the Secretary, the Committees on the
Judiciary of the Senate and the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of
the Senate, and the Committee on Homeland Security of the
House of Representatives.
(B) Contents of report.--
(i) Actions taken.--The report described in subparagraph
(A) shall also describe the actions to remedy findings of
noncompliance or other problems that are taken by the
Secretary, the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Assistant Secretary
of Homeland Security for U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, and each detention facility found to be in
noncompliance.
(ii) Results of actions.--The report shall also include
information regarding whether the actions taken were
successful and resulted in compliance with detention
standards.
(4) Review of complaints by detainees.--The Office shall
establish procedures to receive and review complaints of
violations of the detention standards promulgated by the
Secretary. The procedures shall protect the anonymity of the
claimant, including detainees, employees or others, from
retaliation.
(c) Cooperation With Other Offices and Agencies.--Whenever
appropriate, the Office shall cooperate and coordinate its
activities with--
(1) the Office of the Inspector General of the Department
of Homeland Security;
(2) the Civil Rights Office of the Department of Homeland
Security;
(3) the Privacy Officer of the Department of Homeland
Security;
(4) the Civil Rights Section of the Department of Justice;
and
(5) any other relevant office or agency.

SEC. __09. SECURE ALTERNATIVES PROGRAM.

(a) Establishment of Program.--The Secretary shall
establish a secure alternatives program. For purposes of this
subsection, the secure alternatives program means a program
under which aliens may be released under enhanced supervision
to prevent them from absconding, and to ensure that they make
required appearances.
(b) Program Requirements.--
(1) Nationwide implementation.--The Secretary shall
facilitate the development of the secure alternatives program
on a nationwide basis, as a continuation of existing pilot
programs such as the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program
(ISAP) developed by the Department of Homeland Security.
(2) Utilization of alternatives.--The program shall utilize
a continuum of alternatives based on the alien's need for
supervision, including placement of the alien with an
individual or organizational sponsor, or in a supervised
group home.
(3) Aliens eligible for secure alternatives program.--
(A) In general.--Aliens who would otherwise be subject to
detention based on a consideration of the release criteria in
section 236(b)(1)(D), or who are released pursuant to section
236(d)(2), shall be considered for the secure alternatives
program.
(B) Design of programs.--Secure alternatives programs shall
be designed to ensure sufficient supervision of the
population described in subparagraph (A).
(4) Contracts.--The Department shall enter into contracts
with qualified nongovernmental entities to implement the
secure alternatives program. In designing the program, the
Secretary shall--
(A) consult with relevant experts; and
(B) consider programs that have proven successful in the
past, including the Appearance Assistance Program developed
by the Vera Institute and the Intensive Supervision
Appearance Program (ISAP) developed by the Department of
Homeland Security.

SEC. __10. LESS RESTRICTIVE DETENTION FACILITIES.

(a) Construction.--The Secretary shall facilitate the
construction or use of secure but less restrictive detention
facilities.
(b) Criteria.--In developing detention facilities pursuant
to this section, the Secretary shall--
(1) consider the design, operation, and conditions of
existing secure but less restrictive detention facilities,
such as the Department of Homeland Security detention
facilities in Broward County, Florida, and Berks County,
Pennsylvania;
(2) to the extent practicable, construct or use detention
facilities where--
(A) movement within and between indoor and outdoor areas of
the facility is subject to minimal restrictions;
(B) detainees have ready access to social, psychological,
and medical services;
(C) detainees with special needs, including those who have
experienced trauma or torture, have ready access to services
and treatment addressing their needs;

[[Page S2756]]

(D) detainees have ready access to meaningful programmatic
and recreational activities;
(E) detainees are permitted contact visits with legal
representatives, family members, and others;
(F) detainees have access to private toilet and shower
facilities;
(G) prison-style uniforms or jumpsuits are not required;
and
(H) special facilities are provided to families with
children.
(c) Facilities for Families With Children.--For situations
where release or secure alternatives programs are not an
option, the Secretary shall ensure that special detention
facilities are specifically designed to house parents with
their minor children, including ensuring that--
(1) procedures and conditions of detention are appropriate
for families with minor children; and
(2) living and sleeping quarters for parents and minor
children are not physically separated.
(d) Placement in Nonpunitive Facilities.--Priority for
placement in less restrictive facilities shall be given to
asylum seekers, families with minor children, vulnerable
populations, and nonviolent criminal detainees.
(e) Procedures and Standards.--Where necessary, the
Secretary shall promulgate new standards, or modify existing
detention standards, to promote the development of less
restrictive detention facilities.

SEC. __11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are
necessary to carry out this title.

SEC. __12. EFFECTIVE DATE.

Except as otherwise provided, this title shall take effect
6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.
______