House Committee subpoenas HHS secretary for information on unaccompanied minors

U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green, R-Tenn., subpoenaed U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to appear before the committee this week and provide answers on agency oversight of hundreds of thousands of “unaccompanied alien children” (UACs).

The subpoena was sent after the Green says HHS failed to respond and comply with committee requests for documents and information and received 700 pages of content “wholly unresponsive to the committee’s request.

On Aug. 12, 2024, Green sent a letter to Robin Dunn Marcos, director of HHS’ Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), requesting information about ORR’s alleged mishandling of UACs after multiple reports of allegations of abuse and neglect have been lodged over the years. A Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General report identified alleged neglect and abuse of UACs, sponsors not being vetted and losing track of over 100,000 children. Another report found alleged child labor abuse; another concluded, “Without an ability to monitor the location and status of UCs, ICE has no assurance UCs are safe from trafficking, exploitation, or forced labor.”

Green requested information on ORR’s sponsor screening process, the monthly number of UACs placed with sponsors, how many sponsors had been “charged with or convicted of any crime or investigated for the physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or abandonment of a child,” how many provided false information, among other information.

On Sept. 25, one month after the requested deadline, HHS sent Green more than 700 pages of documents, including 400 pages of publicly available documents. In response, Green wrote Becerra, “Absurdly, HHS stamped all these publicly available pages with a disclaimer stating, ‘Produced to Homeland Security Committee Pursuant to Oversight Request[;] Do Not Disclose Without Permission from Department of Health and Human Services.’”

His letter also points to requests made by several committee members at a Sept. 19 briefing with ORR Deputy Director Jenifer Smyers, who communicated “potentially low awareness of the issue” and refused to answer or provide answers to basic questions. Committee staff sent numerous emails and called but HHS staff were unhelpful or unresponsive, he says.

At different times, “staff rebuffed the request and merely stated that they would “circle back” and "provided no dates or times to discuss a production schedule,” the letter states.

“The sheer number of unaccompanied, vulnerable minors who have crossed our Southwest border on President Biden and Vice President Harris’ watch is difficult to fully comprehend – but that doesn’t make it any less tragic,” Green said. “Most of these children have witnessed things that would chill us to the bone, and when they arrive in the United States, the nightmare is only beginning. We know that many of them have been pressed into forced labor, sexual servitude, or gang membership – all inside our borders. The administration has a moral obligation to be honest with the public about what they are doing to prevent the abuse of these children, and it’s extremely telling that we have to compel them to do so. They know what they’ve done, and they know there is no excuse. We will not let them hide.”

The House requests came after multiple hearings were held in the U.S. Senate by U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-IA. Grassley’s investigations uncovered multiple issues including UACs being released to MS-13 gang members and alleged traffickers, prompting him to file criminal complaints and Senate Republicans to propose legislatives solutions.

At a recent House Committee on Homeland Security hearing, retired San Diego Sector Border Patrol Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke testified to how teenage UACs were being put into forced prostitution by their smugglers. Border Patrol agents also continue to post images of children they’ve rescued after being smuggled into the country by cartel operatives, believing they have been drugged and abused, The Center Square reported.

In an effort to hold accountable HHS-contracted facilities charged with abuse of children by the Department of Justice, Grassley filed a bill to cancel their contracts and funding, which was blocked by a single Senate Democrat.

The subpoena commands Beccara to appear before the committee at noon on Oct. 3.