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H.R.883 / 116th Congress

Families Belong Together Act

Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.

Official summary

Version 00 · Introduced in House · Jan 30, 2019

Families Belong Together Act

This bill grants lawful permanent resident status to certain aliens who were separated from immediate family members by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Children and their legal guardians or parents shall be eligible if  DHS separated them and failed to demonstrate in a hearing that the legal guardian or parent was unfit or presented a danger to the child. Such a child shall be eligible whether he or she remained in the custody of  DHS or the Office of Refugee Settlement, was released to a sponsor, or repatriated to his or her country of origin.

Individuals who are inadmissible for various grounds, including those related to criminal activity or security concerns, shall not be eligible.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services shall grant all applications from eligible individuals for humanitarian parole or for lawful permanent resident status, and no application fees may be charged.

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Who introduced it

Rep. Castro, Joaquin [D-TX-20] · D–TX

Committees

  • Judiciary Committee
6 cosponsorship records, including any withdrawals

Actions

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  1. Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.

  2. Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

  3. Introduced in House

  4. Introduced in House

Bill text & related measures

Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.

Related bills identified by Congress.gov

Source last updated: Jan 20, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.

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Neutral evidence review

Objective

Analyze H.R.883 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.

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Fairness and public impact

Progressive lens

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Institutions and government scope

Conservative lens

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Individual rights and government power

Liberty lens

Examine H.R.883 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.

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