Stopping Border Surges Act

The Stopping Border Surges Act would modify how the federal government handles asylum applications and unaccompanied migrant children at the border. Currently, the Department of Homeland Security has discretion in whether to repatriate unaccompanied children who are not trafficking victims or facing persecution. This bill would require mandatory repatriation of certain inadmissible unaccompanied children and would require the Department of Health and Human Services to share personal information about individuals who receive released children, including Social Security numbers and immigration status.

The bill would also make it harder for asylum seekers to succeed in their claims. It would establish stricter standards for proving a credible fear of persecution, expand what counts as a frivolous asylum application, shorten the deadline for filing for asylum, and delay when asylum seekers can receive work permits. Additionally, if someone granted asylum returns to their home country without that country's conditions changing, they would be deemed to have given up their asylum status.

The bill would also increase penalties for fraud in asylum proceedings, making it a crime punishable by fines or up to 10 years in prison to knowingly make false statements or use fraudulent documents in asylum cases. Currently in committee, this bill has not yet been voted on by the full House.