Press Releases

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Representatives Brittany Pettersen (CO-07) and Joe Neguse (CO-02) led the state’s House Democratic delegation in introducing three bills aimed at reforming the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The bills were first introduced by Senator Michael Bennet in the U.S. Senate and include the Keeping Immigrants and Destinations Safe (KIDS) Act, the Training, Responsibility, Uniforms, and Standards for Transparency (TRUST) Act, and the Oversight, Protection, and Enforcement Notification (OPEN) Act.

Reps. Pettersen and Neguse are joined by fellow House members Representatives Diana DeGette (CO-01) and Jason Crow (CO-06) in introducing these proposals.

“Donald Trump’s ICE operations are out of control—he promised to go after the ‘worst of the worst,’ but instead ICE is detaining children, deporting U.S. citizens and people who are here legally, and operating with virtually no oversight or accountability,” said Congresswoman Pettersen. “As Republicans move to pour billions more taxpayer dollars into this lawless agency, we need comprehensive reform that the majority of the American people support. I’m grateful to work with Congressman Joe Neguse to introduce these bills to increase transparency, strengthen accountability, protect due process, and begin restoring trust.” 

“Over the course of the last year and a half, the Trump administration’s cruel and inhumane immigration policies have inflicted a heavy toll on the people of Colorado. Enough is enough,” said Congressman Joe Neguse. “I’m proud to join Senator Michael Bennet in introducing legislation that stands up for transparency and accountability, makes clear that oversight is not optional, and underscores that no president can bend the rule of law to their will. These proposals are a starting point toward real, meaningful reform—protecting children and sensitive locations, holding federal immigration officers accountable, and ensuring that everyone is treated with dignity and respect.” 

“Donald Trump said he’d go after the ‘worst of the worst’ criminals. Instead, he’s rounding up kids, detaining and murdering Americans in our streets, and terrorizing our communities,” said Congressman Crow. “Republicans just gave ICE a massive budget increase without pushing for any reforms to the abuses we have seen. It’s wrong and we must rein in the abusive practices of this rogue agency. I appreciate Senator Bennet’s leadership to stand up to President Trump and hold this administration accountable.”

Additional information about each bill can be found below.

The Keeping Immigrants and Destinations Safe (KIDS) Act would prohibit DHS from detaining children and from performing immigration enforcement actions in and around sensitive locations without a court issued criminal warrant. 

More specifically, the KIDS Act would:

• Prohibit DHS from detaining children, individuals with cognitive disabilities, or their primary caregivers;

• Ban immigration arrests at schools, hospitals, places of worship, courthouses, and other sensitive locations, unless officers have a court-issued criminal warrant; and 

• Clarify that these protections also apply when individuals are traveling to, attending, or returning from sensitive locations.

The Training, Responsibility, Uniforms, and Standards for Transparency (TRUST) Act ensures immigration enforcement agents are held to the same standards as local law enforcement and reforms hiring and screening standards and enforce uniform, identification, and professional conduct standards. 

More specifically, the TRUST Act would:

• Require immigration enforcement officers to wear standardized DHS uniforms and clearly display badges and identification during enforcement operations;

• Prohibit officers from wearing masks during immigration enforcement operations;

• Establish stronger hiring standards, including comprehensive background investigations, screening for affiliations with terrorist, violent, or hate-based organizations, and psychological evaluations;

• Require officers to complete specialized training on wrongful detention prevention, de-escalation strategies, language access, medical and disability recognition, and civil rights protections; and 

• Mandate officers to use body-worn cameras during enforcement actions, establish consequences for failing to activate or tampering with recordings, and require public release of footage following serious incidents, subject to privacy protections.

The Oversight, Protection, and Enforcement Notification (OPEN) Act seeks to improve oversight of DHS and enforce detention standards. 

More specifically, the OPEN Act would:

• Guarantee Members of Congress unrestricted access to all immigration detention facilities without prior approval;

• Ensure detained individuals are able to notify family members following their detention and access legal counsel;

• Require notification to family and legal representatives immediately when individuals are transferred to another detention facility or hospital;

• Require DHS to publicly report allegations and incidents of excessive force, wrongful detention, mistaken arrests, the detention of U.S. citizens, and sexual assault;

• Establish requirements for independent inspections by and transparency to appropriate federal and state officials before converting warehouses, jails, or other facilities into immigration detention centers; and 

• Require judicial warrants for immigration enforcement. 

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