# The REUNITE Act: Bringing Separated Families Back Together

This bill addresses a serious problem: children and parents who get separated when they're caught crossing the U.S. border. The REUNITE Act creates a system to find these separated family members and bring them back together, while also providing them with legal help and alternatives to detention.

When immigration authorities catch parents and children at the border, they sometimes end up in different facilities or locations. This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services to work together to reunite them. Within 10 days of the law passing, these agencies must create detailed rules explaining exactly how they'll help separated parents find their children. The government has to set up a free phone hotline so parents can get daily updates about where their kids are and when court hearings are scheduled. Parents also get to talk to their children at least three times a week, including at least one video call. The bill requires the government to provide free legal representation to children in immigration court and ensures that independent inspectors can check on facilities where separated children are being held.

The bill also includes protections around DNA testing. Before using DNA tests to prove family relationships, authorities must try other methods first—like checking documents or asking witnesses. If DNA testing is necessary, it has to be the least invasive type available, and the government must destroy the DNA samples within a week. Importantly, DNA information can only be used for reunification and cannot be shared with law enforcement for immigration or criminal investigations.

For parents who are caught at the border, the bill creates alternatives to detention. Instead of being locked up, parents can participate in community-based supervision programs with case management services. The government can only keep a parent detained if they can prove with clear evidence that the parent poses a serious danger. Parents also get an automatic delay in their deportation while their child's immigration case is ongoing, giving families more time to figure out their situation together. The bill allocates $50 million to pay for these reunification and supervision programs.

REUNITE Act

Espaillat, Adriano

Reunite Every Unaccompanied Newborn Infant, Toddler and other children Expeditiously Act or the REUNITE Act This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to reunite children and their parents or legal guardians who were apprehended for illegal entry into the United States. DHS and HHS shall develop procedures and programs, including procedures to (1) identify separated family members, (2) allow apprehended parents or legal guardians to have frequent no-cost contact with their separated children, and (3) coordinate with foreign consulates to locate apprehended individuals. DHS and HHS shall ensure immediate reunification of apprehended children with a parent or legal guardian, but may make exceptions for the child's safety. DHS and HHS may use DNA testing to determine family relationships, but shall first use other methods, such as official documents. DHS and HHS shall develop procedures for instances where the aliens refuse to consent to DNA testing. Collected DNA information may not be used for any purpose other than family reunification, including criminal or immigration enforcement. The bill restores the Family Case Management Program, an alternative to detention program that uses case managers to promote compliance with immigration law obligations. DHS, HHS, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) shall establish the Office for Locating and Reuniting Children with Parents. Aliens shall have access to counsel inside immigration detention facilities, and DOJ may provide counsel for immigration proceedings. DOJ shall provide counsel if necessary for children and vulnerable individuals, and children's cases shall be heard individually.