This bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to take several steps before building or contracting to build any facility used to detain people under the immigration laws. Before beginning construction or entering a contract, DHS must consult local elected officials, stakeholders (including utility companies, community leaders, business leaders, and advocates), community members, local public health authorities, and emergency response services. DHS must also assess impacts on health care, emergency services, community health, water and wastewater systems (including pressure and supply), electric power grids, and roads. The department must hold a public meeting where community members can meet DHS, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; open a 60-day public comment period; and respond to comments. If a local government issues an official prohibition on construction, DHS may not build a detention facility in that municipality. The bill bars converting buildings not intended to house people (for example, warehouses or storage facilities) into detention facilities. It also prohibits constructing or operating detention facilities on U.S. military installations. DHS must coordinate with local public health authorities to set protocols for treatment, care, containment, preventing further contagion, and notifying the local community in case of a contagious disease outbreak in a detention facility.
If you live in a community where DHS plans to build an immigration detention facility, you would get a public meeting and a 60-day comment period to share concerns. Local elected officials, utility providers, public health, and emergency services must be consulted before construction starts. A local government that officially bans such construction can block DHS from building in that municipality. The bill also means DHS must plan for how a contagious disease would be handled and how the community would be notified.
No publicly available information on costs or funding is included in the bill text or metadata.
No publicly available information.
No publicly available information.