H.R. 756 — 287(g) Program Protection Act

This section revises the 287(g) program under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1357(g)), which authorizes the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to delegate certain immigration enforcement functions—such as the investigation, apprehension, detention, and transportation of removable aliens—to qualified state and local law enforcement officers. Specifically, it (1) requires DHS to enter into such agreements upon request from a state or political subdivision (with no limit on agreements and processing within 90 days), prohibits denials absent a compelling reason (with notice to Congress and publication in the Federal Register at least 180 days in advance), and explicitly includes transportation of aliens across state lines; (2) replaces all references to the Attorney General with the Secretary of Homeland Security; (3) requires agreements to accommodate state-preferred enforcement models (e.g., patrol, task force, jail, or others), prohibits federal identification programs from substituting for these agreements, and limits terminations to compelling reasons (with at least 180 days' written notice, evidence, appeal rights to an administrative law judge or court, and continuation of the agreement during proceedings); and (4) requires uniform training for participating officers aligned with Federal Law Enforcement Training Center standards.

This section modifies the Breached Bond/Detention Fund under INA §286(r)—which receives deposits from forfeited immigration bonds and other specified sources for use in immigration detention and related enforcement expenses—by (1) renaming it the Breached Bond/Detention/287(g) Fund; (2) transferring administrative authority from the Attorney General to the Secretary of Homeland Security; (3) transferring references from the Department of Justice to the Department of Homeland Security; and (4) authorizing use of fund amounts for expenses associated with administering INA §287(g) (i.e., agreements delegating specified immigration enforcement functions to qualified state and local law enforcement agencies). (Thus, the fund's purposes are expanded to support the 287(g) program.)

This section directs the Secretary of Homeland Security, beginning December 31 of the first fiscal year after enactment and annually thereafter, to publish (1) a performance report on the section 287(g) program of the Immigration and Nationality Act (i.e., the program authorizing DHS to enter agreements with state and local law enforcement agencies to perform specified immigration enforcement functions) that includes data on aliens apprehended and screened, aliens removed, non-removed aliens with explanations, oversight methods, training compliance, complaints, agreement terminations, and termination reasons; and (2) a recruitment plan with five-year goals for new state and local participants, annual participation numbers, outreach descriptions, and data on agreement requests received, approved, denied, or pending. The section further requires the Secretary to publish, within 180 days of enactment, a notice of proposed rulemaking on training requirements under the section 287(g) program.