Migrant Child Safety Act

This legislation, known as the Migrant Child Safety Act, aims to strengthen protections for unaccompanied alien children by amending existing law. It requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to collect and provide comprehensive information about potential sponsors to the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) before placing a child. This includes the sponsor's name, social security number, date of birth, residence, background check results for all adult household members, immigration status, and proof of relationship to the child, such as DNA test results if applicable. The bill introduces several new pre-placement safeguards , including mandatory in-person home visits to assess the safety and suitability of the placement environment. For sponsors who are not U.S. citizens, the bill requires consent to electronic monitoring, such as GPS, for the duration of the child's immigration proceedings. Additionally, sponsors must execute a bond of at least $5,000 to ensure the child's attendance at all required immigration proceedings and compliance with reporting requirements. Upon receiving sponsor information, DHS must promptly determine the individual's immigration status and notify HHS, considering removal proceedings for unlawfully present individuals not already in removal. The bill also mandates that HHS report children as missing to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children if contact with the sponsor is lost within 120 days post-placement. Furthermore, HHS must share sponsor and child information with appropriate state or local health or welfare agencies within 30 days of placement and attempt to contact the child's parents. These amendments apply to unaccompanied alien children apprehended 30 days after the act's enactment.