Senators Rick Scott (R-FL) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) have introduced the Stop Human Trafficking of Unaccompanied Migrant Children Act, a bill which looks to address “unaccompanied migrant children” that have been given to sponsors that haven’t received proper vetting from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Sen. Scott blamed President Joe Biden (D) and his administration’s handling of the migrant crisis at the southern border, stating that “no one is safe.”
“No one is safe from the suffering caused by President Biden’s border crisis, especially children. The savage cartels don’t care about a child’s life, they happily traffic them across Biden’s wide open border and collect the payment without a minute of regret,” stated Sen. Scott.
“Every child is worth protecting. Hundreds of thousands of migrant children have entered the federal government’s shelter system and President Biden’s administration is not doing nearly enough to keep them safe. We must ensure that these unaccompanied children placed with a sponsor by this administration are not being trafficked. I’m proud to lead my colleagues in introducing this good bill and implement real vetting that protects kids.”
The bill requires that all sponsors be vetted before HHS places that sponsor with an unaccompanied child, as well as prohibits sponsors that are illegal aliens, unless the sponsor is a biological parent or relative.
Sen. Rubio stated, "The Biden Administration's reckless approach to immigration puts vulnerable migrant children at risk. The recent reports of child labor violations are a disturbing reminder of the consequences of the president’s open border policies. The Stop Human Trafficking of Unaccompanied Migrant Children Act is an important step in preventing this from happening and ensuring that proper vetting procedures are in place to protect these vulnerable children.”
The bill will also require HHS and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to report to Congress once every 30 days “on all efforts to account for all missing unaccompanied children that were placed with a sponsor and are now missing.”
The bill is also co-sponsored by Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR).
