Process for sponsors concerns about labor exploitation and coordination state and local Government Agencies for the hearing was held by house energy and commerce subcommittee on oversight. It is just over two and half hours. [background noises] please take your seat t and members as well. Secretary has requested we get him out of here at 12 30 p. M. Over four but were going to try to make that happen if we can. Right the seventh of may oversight investigations will not come tow order. I recognize myself for five minutes for an Opening Statement. Gr welcome secretary i appreciate keeping your k word and appearig before the subcommittee related to the office of Refugee Resettlement. Its an agency of the department of health and Human Services and is responsible for the care and placement of unaccompanied unaccompanied childrenreferred. Under the Biden Administration has faced unprecedented surge in the number of unaccompanied minors referred to its custody. They numbers of unaccompanied minors crossing our border is astronomically high. From fiscal year 2018 through 2020 below our average referrals per year. As of march 31, 2023 which is the last time it made the numbers public, the agency had received almost 60000 referrals it fiscal year 2023. Including agency on pace for over 120,000 referrals for the third year in a row. If you and i do not agree on the policies that brought his children to our border vet i believe, no matter the policies once they are in our care and we have taken on the responsibility for them must care for them properly. Todaysto hearing is to take stk of how hhs and oh oh are have responded to the surge of these children. Thousands of Vulnerable Children by an agency under your leadership, what was the message you sent to the front line of workers managing the border crisis . Hopefully it was to make sure thesefu children are placed in Safe Environments with people they are actually related to. Hopefully also the state and local child where agencies were aware of Vulnerable Children being placed in jurisdictions and would likely need services. No matter the message you intended to send it does appear the childrens welfare was not a primary concern. Thanks to the whistleblower and the New York Times reporting we know there was constant neglect when can the intake and release of these children. According to the recording obtained by the york times regarding according to the recording obtained by the york times regarding which i will submit for the record you stated if henry ford had seen this in his plans, he would have never become famous and rich. This is not the way you do an Assembly Line. Ise that statement consistent with how you intend to run the unaccompanied Childrens Program . While i hope that the overriding seems to be moving childrens quickly as possible not protecting them. That would explain why you would haveve approved policies like oh are field guidance 10 which expedites release of minors claiming to be feeling members while simultaneously waving background checks to ensure potential sponsor is in fact a Family Member. I also explained your approval of field guidance 11 which waiveseq a background check requirements for unrelated adults who live in the same residence, a minor is being sent to. This is of great concern. Ive been vocal to provide a bona fide background checks. In 2021 i visited the emergency intake and was shocked with what i learnedbl there. There was no collaboration with Law Enforcement when vetting sponsors in the record check that they were using was widely available internet search while. My suspicions were solidified by september 2022 oig reported on fort bliss. Billions of dollars for what seemed to be large influx care facilities designed to quickly process hundreds of minors. My fear is no matter what your intentions may be you may be putting or on a permanent assemblylinepe footing were chd welfare simply is not a priority. As i close like to enter to the regular part by r statewide grad jury in florida charged with investigating or. This report is damning a detailed chapter and verse out ors policy and practices resulted in Child Exploitation and trafficking. I will endnd by quoting the grad jurys assessment. If any resident of florida exposed quote if any resident of florida exposed usborn children to this process, theyll be justifiably arrested for child neglect or worse. We do not think children should be less protected simply because they were born outside our borders and brought here by government agency. Ive been saying that for years. As a former domestic relations in virginia would be true in virginia as well. Actions are equal to neglect. The childs legal status is irrelevant. I yield back. The Ranking Member of the subcommittee for five minute Opening Statement. Thank you very much. Most vulnerable among us. They often cross the border alone, experience to be frightening and confusing let alone a child he may not speak english. Moral and legal obligation are safe and cared for. With the responsibility keep unaccompanied children oh well and safe from the time they are transferred from the department of Homeland Security to the times they are placed with invented sponsors who are more often than not Family Members. Earlierep this years news repos detailed cases of unaccompanied minors work in harsh conditions and plants and factories the more shocking and deeply disturbing. Businesses are exploiting children as a source of cheapap labor and preying on their financial desperation. This type of exploitation must not be tolerated. Even though it has limited authority under the law and limited resources there is more that can be done to protect these children. For example is now expanding oversight and services to children after they are placed with families and sponsors per the funding that congress provided and last years omnibus appropriation bill or also working more closely with the department of labor to address labor issues. Hhs Inspector Generalth recommended as they recommend recommendedhhs is working to exk capacity and modernized portals to allownd or to monitor the bet interest of the children. I look forward to hearing from youte with your secretary about the work to eliminate the risk of labor trafficking. To enhance services after the placement with sponsors into improve the reporting of abuse. Not the kind of oversight the subcommittee must be doing and i commend the chair for this hearing and to the secretary for attending. But this meaningful oversight effortti is an exception. Because the majority has been focused on various partisan tangents, most of this congress aimed at sowing distrust in public to service interpublic institution. One of far out tangent i hope we can put to rest his gop baseless allegations regarding the validity of certain nihll institute and center directors. For months, energy and comments republicans have made unfounded claims 14 directors nih institution centers served illegally for over two years because they are not directly reappointed by secretary. The gop members point to a section of the 21st century act holding up a graphic that states such directors shall be appointed by the secretary they intentionally obscure the most important part of that statute. Which states when making director appointments of secretary active through the director of the National Institutes of health. Republicans inexplicably blurt out the clear language of the statute. Why . It appears to be an attempt to spin up yet another conspiracy. This is especially bizarre because it was republicans who insisted on transferring they authority and appoint director from the secretary to the director of nih over the objections t of the Obama Administration 2016. It is wrong to deliberately mislead the public. It is strange to do so involvig language gop members were themselves. This congress my republican colleagues had taken everyav opportunity to align Public Health officials. In selling this trust in our Research Agencies and Public Health expert republicans are playing a dangerous game. Americans depend on the work of these dedicated Public Servants to keep us safe and healthy. It is t time for the harassmento end. This committee has real work to do. On so many issues preparing for the next pandemic, tackling devastating drug shortages, protecting Online Privacy developing solutions to reduce climate pollution thats wreaking havoc and costing us more every day. The care of unaccompanied children is among the issues that demands congresses attention. Lets focus on that issue today instead of the fabricated one. Mr. Secretary we are committed to making sure coats are part does its job and does it right thank you for being here today i look forward to the discussion of the real issues. I yield back my time. Except krish is a junk slate yielding back and i reckon its a gentle lady from washington the chairwoman of the full committee for his per five minutes of Opening Statement. Ask secretary, today we as elected representatives of the people seek answers and transparency from you as a secretary of health and Human Services. Today were working to ensure the safety and wellbeing of unaccompanied children crossing the border some of the most vulnerable among us. Under President Biden we have faced the worst border crisis in our history. Receive referrals from 350,000 unaccompanied children over the course of the first three years of his presidency. It is more than 120,000 unaccompanied minors passing through or are custody annually for this is unprecedented part of the present by the largest single year of total referrals was about 69000. The New York Times has uncovered, this form of credits is has left children alone and exploited. These are just a few of the gut wrenching examples. Thirteen and 14 a yearolds are working 12 hour shifts on farms and factories. Children dropping out of school or never signing up because they owe a debt to these smugglers that trafficked them. Children, running away from theirchir sponsors they went orr place them with their being sold for sex. We are going to talk a lot about the 85000 children that or are could not contact after placement. Or claims 81 successful post release contact rate is a significant accomplishment. It is not a success. When the agency is less contact with one third of the Migrant Children during the first two years of the Biden Administration, the post release of followup is already a low bar or are considered it a success if they nearly speak with the child for a sponsor over the phone. Secretary im especially concerned about the specific policies and practices that you put in place that prevent or are from vettingng sponsors. Clwhy would you waive criminal background checks including checks of the sex offender and child abuse registries for sponsors and other adults living in households where children are placed . Why would you allow under yourr watch digital fingerprinting to confirm the identity of the sponsor to drop by 55 why would you allow at least 30,000 minors to be handed over to someone or are knows they are not related to. As an internal memo revealed the department has become quote one that rewards individuals with quick releases. Not one that rewards individuals fort preventing unsafe releases for the consequences of theseon decisions are entirely foreseeable. And again thanks to the New York Times we know reports reach your desks that children were at risk. The American People must know how you couldth possibly ignore these warning signs and continue to put more children in danger of exploitation. As i mention this is not the only example of mismanagement and abuse of power at hhs. As secretary you failed to follow the law and the constitution to reappoint the 14 including dr. Fauci as a result the exercise power andt, authory they did not legally have an approving billions of dollars in taxpayer funded grants. There is a crisis of confidence at her Public Health agencies including cdc, fda and cms is denying seniors approved alzheimers medications dragging its feet on lower drug costs the fda Baby Formula Shortage cause panic and harm to mothers and fathers and children across the nation. To you failed to provide us the transparency for President Bidens radical spending agenda that fueled recordbreaking inflation. The hhs oig just reported a massive amount of fraud and waste the covenant teens Uninsured Program which grew dramatically under your watch. For the sake of time i will not go i on. But i will close by saying this. Hhs is lost sight of its mission there seems to be more concerned with politics and power than the American People safety and wellbeing. I am very concerned about a culture of arrogance and lawlessness. As i started we are the elected representatives of the people we are demanding transparency and responsiveness. This culture must change and must change at the very top chart with your leadership and take responsibility for your actions for your testifying before the committee under oath but we expect and eat honest and complete answers for what has happened, thank you and yield back. Oxygen to let you inspect recognized frank affirms the full committee for his fiveminute Opening Statement. Think c it mr. Chairman. Earlier this year i was alarmed by children who came to this country alone only to be exploited by their sponsors and companies that illegally employed them. Im pleased secretary is here to explain with the field office of refugee settlement is doing to better address is cruel abuse part orr has been in a difficult position. Its budget and the authorities are limited particular in the period after a child is released into the custody of their sponsor this is a critical time for the detection or remediation of any exploitation. In 2020 when the Biden Administration inherited a crisis in the aftermath of the Trump Administration inhumane family separation policy or are acted quickly to reunify families, place children built emergency facilities and hire staff. Those efforts were necessary responding to this crisis revealed areaspo for improvemen, must stay vigilant in its work to identify and respond to exploitation both as a spots vetting process when their theye released into the care of theirt sponsor. Forward to hearing how old rr is accelerating this important work including joint efforts with the department of labor to combat illegal child labor parade this year it is entitled stopping the exploitation of Migrant Children. I went fully supports that goal. Unfortunately i believe the actions of my republican colleagues are taking would make the situation worse not better. This Congress Republicans routinely tried to chip away at the right to legal asylum. Even as they deprived Child Exploitation, republicans nearly unanimous support legislation that would reverse critical safeguards for kids who are traffic this Republican Action would lead these kids in the department of Homeland Security facilities for up to 10 times as long as a legal limit. Republicans continue to cave to the extreme right wing of the party by pushing for dramatic budget cuts that would set back any progress oh rr has made in protecting unaccompanied minors. Most recent house e republicans are pushing annual funding bill that cut the unaccompanied Childrens Program funding by 3. 3 billion in the upcoming ngfiscal year. This drastic funding cut was ceseverely hinder the offices ability to provide Services LikeMental Health and Legal Services that would help detect and prevent the very kind of abuse this hearing is supposedly about. Frankly, tearing down agencies rather than supporting their essential work has been a theme this year under the republican majority. Our committees traditionally been able to stay above the fray im concerned that is no longer the case. There republican majority continues to push a legally flawed theory that 14th National Institutes of Health CentersInstitute Directors were improperly appointed. Allegations ignore language in the 21st century act that they put in full but republican chair on former congressman joe barton deliberately saying the secretary shouldou act to the nh director. This socalled investigation simply is not based at all. Its also a huge waste of committee and its members time. We have so many more important issues to deal with than this. Republicans have also continued other baseless investigations including caressing nah scientists to sit for transcribedsc interview about a Research Progress that never returned. Continue to press the theory covenant tina leaked from the Wuhan Institute of virology wi