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HR5415FEDERALin_committee

High Impact

The SECURE Act of 2023: Tracking Unaccompanied Migrant Children

Original title: Safeguarding Endangered Children, Unaccompanied and at Risk of Exploitation Act of 2023

September 16, 2025

immigration child welfare human trafficking government oversight federal reporting

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Where This Stands

Introduced

Committee

Floor Vote

Passed

Signed

Currently in_committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.

Last action

Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Appropriations, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.Sep 12, 2023

Lead sponsor

Christopher Smith

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

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The Frame

What this does

This bill would force federal agencies to account for the safety and location of 85,000 migrant children, with a potential loss of up to $30 million annually in agency operating funds if reporting deadlines are missed.

Who is mentioned in the record

Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.

Unaccompanied migrant children

The bill mandates federal investigation into their current location, living conditions, and safety status.

Department of Health and Human Services

The agency must conduct tracking and reporting and faces potential budget rescissions for delays.

Sponsors of migrant children

Sponsors may be subject to increased government contact and background check requirements as part of the status reporting process.

What changed

Current stage: in_committee.

What's next

Floor Vote.

Summary

This bill requires federal agencies to locate and report on the status of approximately 85,000 unaccompanied migrant children who were released to sponsors in the U.S. but have since lost contact with the government. It mandates regular status updates and imposes financial penalties on the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Homeland Security, and the FBI if these reports are submitted late.

Key Facts

Requires a joint status report from HHS, DHS, and the FBI on all unaccompanied children in ORR custody since January 1, 2021, within 75 days of enactment.
Mandates that reports include child location, sponsor relationship, home environment, and assessments of child well-being and trafficking risk.
Requires reports to include whether adults in the child's home have passed fingerprint-based criminal background checks.
Mandates updated reports every 60 days until children are accounted for or three years have passed.
Imposes a $100,000 daily fine per agency (HHS, DHS, FBI) for late reports, totaling $300,000 per day.
Caps the total annual rescission of funds at $10 million per agency.
States that at least 345,000 children have crossed the southern border unaccompanied since early 2021.
States that the government has lost contact with approximately 85,000 of these children after placement with sponsors.

Why It Matters

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if the agencies fail to submit the reports on time?

The bill mandates that $100,000 per day be from the operating funds of each of the three involved agencies (HHS, DHS, and the FBI) for every day the report is late.

How long will these reports continue?

The reporting requirement lasts until the children are accounted for or three years have passed since the first report, whichever comes first.

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Discoveries

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift90% confidence

Financial Accountability Mechanism

The bill uses a specific 'per-day' financial penalty mechanism to force inter-agency cooperation, which is a more aggressive oversight tool than standard reporting requirements.

Department of Health and Human Services Department of Homeland Security Federal Bureau of Investigation

Connected Entities

organizationFederal Bureau of Investigation“Jointly responsible for reporting on the status of migrant children.”Map →

organizationDepartment of Health and Human Services“Responsible for the Office of Refugee Resettlement and the care of unaccompanied”Map →

personMr. Smith of New Jersey“Primary sponsor of the bill in the House of Representatives.”Map →

organizationDepartment of Homeland Security“Jointly responsible for reporting on the status of migrant children.”Map →

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance85
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy75
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment40
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz60
Current news / social attention level

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