S. 2401 — 287(g) Program Protection Act

This section revises Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1357(g)), which authorizes the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to delegate immigration enforcement functions (i.e., investigation, apprehension, detention, and transport across state lines of aliens) to qualified state and local law enforcement officers, as follows: (1) requires DHS to approve and enter into agreements upon request from any state or political subdivision (including law enforcement or corrections agencies), notwithstanding the prohibition on voluntary services in 31 U.S.C. §1342, with all bona fide requests approved absent a compelling reason (denials requiring congressional notice and Federal Register publication at least 180 days prior to finalization), no limit on agreements, and processing within 90 days; (2) replaces all references to the Attorney General with the Secretary of Homeland Security; (3) requires agreements to accommodate the requester's preferred enforcement model (e.g., patrol, task force, jail, combination, or other); (4) clarifies that no federal identification program or technology may substitute for these agreements; (5) prohibits termination absent a compelling reason, requires 180 days' written notice with supporting evidence, and grants the state or subdivision appeal rights to an administrative law judge or court (with agreements remaining in effect during proceedings); and (6) directs DHS to implement uniform training aligned with Federal Law Enforcement Training Center standards.

This section modifies the Breached Bond/Detention Fund established under INA §286(r) (i.e., a fund that receives specified immigration fees for detention of aliens, costs of breached bonds, and related Department of Homeland Security (DHS) expenses) by (1) renaming it the Breached Bond/Detention/287(g) Fund; (2) replacing all references to the Attorney General with the Secretary of Homeland Security (reflecting DHS's administration of immigration enforcement); (3) updating a cross-reference in paragraph (2) from the Department of Justice to DHS and standardizing the citation to INA §245(i)(3)(B); and (4) adding to paragraph (3) a permitted use for expenses associated with administering INA §287(g) (i.e., agreements delegating specified immigration enforcement functions to qualified state and local law enforcement officers). (Thus, the fund's available amounts may now support the 287(g) program.)

This section directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to publish, by December 31 of the first fiscal year after enactment and annually thereafter, (1) a performance report on the 287(g) program (i.e., agreements allowing state and local law enforcement to perform certain immigration enforcement functions) that includes the number of aliens apprehended and screened, removed, or not removed (with explanations); oversight methods for participants; compliance with training requirements; complaints against participants; agreements terminated; and reasons for termination; and (2) a recruitment plan that includes five-year goals for new state and local participants, numbers of new participants, outreach descriptions, and requests for agreements received, approved, denied, or pending.

This section directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to publish a notice of rulemaking with respect to training requirements under new section 287(g)(6) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)—pertaining to the 287(g) program, which authorizes agreements deputizing state and local law enforcement to perform certain immigration enforcement functions—not later than 180 days after enactment.