U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) has called attention to the plight of unaccompanied immigrant children in federal custody after an oversight visit to a transitional foster care site in New Haven.
Children at the site, some as young as five, are being kept there by the federal government’s Office of Refugee Settlement, separated from their families for hundreds of days, in violation of federal law, DeLauro said at a news conference at New Haven City Hall on Friday.
“We have a law that says these children must be cared for,” she said.
“They must be placed in a safe environment with the least restrictions and the shortest amount of time. That is what our obligation is,” DeLauro said.
Child healthcare providers and advocates say the average length of stay for children in federal custody has increased from about 30 days in 2024 to about 206 days now.
That’s because new policies under the Trump administration, such as fingerprinting for all adult members of households, have delayed the release of the unaccompanied immigrant children to their sponsors, including parents.
In the meantime, the government’s contract with the Hartford office of Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), an organization that protects unaccompanied immigrant children, expired on Friday and had yet to be renewed.
The government owes KIND more than $20 million for services rendered to immigrant children in federal custody since December, according to the organization.
