H.R. 10111: Oversight Access Act

This bill would limit the Department of Homeland Security’s ability to block or alter congressional oversight visits to immigration detention facilities.

What it would do

• It would prohibit the Secretary of Homeland Security from stopping a Member of Congress, or a congressional employee accompanying that Member, from entering a DHS-run or DHS-contracted facility that detains or houses non-citizens, if the visit is for oversight purposes.
• It would bar DHS from requiring advance notice before such an oversight visit.
• It would forbid DHS from making temporary changes to a facility if those changes would affect what the visiting Member of Congress or staff would see compared with an unaltered visit.

Reporting requirement

The bill would require the DHS Inspector General to notify the House and Senate Judiciary Committees within 30 days if the Inspector General finds that the Secretary of Homeland Security materially failed to follow these rules.

Practical effect

In plain terms, the bill is meant to make it easier for Members of Congress to conduct unannounced oversight visits to immigration detention facilities and to see conditions as they actually are, without advance warning or last-minute changes made for the visit.

Relevant Companies

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