S. 349: A bill to clarify the rights of all persons who are held or detained at a port of entry or at any detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

S. 349: A bill to clarify the rights of all persons who are held or detained at a port of entry or at any detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

115th Congress · introduced 2017-02-09 · Immigration · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2017-02-09 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Harris, Kamala D. [D-CA] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

A bill to clarify the rights of all persons who are held or detained at a port of entry or at any detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Plain summary

This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide an individual in any removal, exclusion, or deportation proceeding or inspection (excluding primary inspections as defined by Department of Homeland Security policies) with a right to representation (at no expense to the government) by counsel of such individual's choosing, including remote counseling if counsel cannot personally meet with the individual. A person held or detained at a port of entry may not submit a valid Record of Abandonment of Lawful Permanent Resident Status or Withdrawal of Application for Admission if such person has been denied access to counsel. The bill extends the right to be accompanied, represented, and advised by counsel or other qualified representative before a government agency to any person subject to a proceeding, examination, holding, or detention. The holding or detention of individuals at a port of entry or at any holding or detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shall: (1) be limited to the briefest term and the least restrictive conditions practicable, (2) be consistent with the rationale for such holding or detention; and (3) shall include access to food, water, and rest room facilities.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

A bill to clarify the rights of all persons who are held or detained at a port of entry or at any detention facility overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Harris, Kamala D. [D-CA] · 7 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory A. Booker (D-NJ), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (2)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-115s349.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/115/s>

Record fed-us-cong115-s349 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115