Price Committee seeks Alternatives to Detention for Illegal Immigrants

ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION
The Committee provides $73,913,000 for ICE Alternatives to Detention programs, which is $10,000,000 more than requested. The Committee continues to recognize the value of Alternatives to Detention programs which have yielded a 98-percent appearance rate at immigration proceedings. When properly implemented and managed, Alternatives to Detention programs augment ICE's regular detention capacity and provide a cost effective means of accounting for individuals accused of being in the country illegally but who do not require administrative custody during their immigration proceedings. The Committee is very concerned that ICE has not complied with the 2009 Appropriations Act, which required the agency to submit a plan for nation-wide deployment of the Alternatives to Detention program by January 5, 2009. The Committee directs ICE to submit this plan immediately.

As a matter of principle, DHS should use the least restrictive and least costly means required to supervise individuals in removal proceedings. Whenever practical and appropriate, individuals who cannot be paroled without supervision or on bond should be enrolled in Alternatives to Detention programs, particularly those that are community-based and which emphasize the personal responsibility of the individual. These programs, which cost less per day than detention, are a more humane method for monitoring individuals who may have legitimate immigration claims but for whom detention is unreasonably burdensome, such as asylum seekers, families, and the elderly.