Justin Chen
Research Mentor: Devin Judge-Lord
Mentor Department: , Public Policy
Author(s): Not Available
Session: Session 7 (4:00 PM – 4:50 PM)
Presentation Type: Poster 57
Abstract
In 2018, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued final rule ICEB-2018-0002, replacing the longstanding Flores Settlement Agreement. The Flores Settlement Agreement was an agreement that detailed the detention and release of immigrant children in the United States of America. The rule impacts migrant families in U.S. immigration custody, a group of people with limited political representation. While the rule asserts that it maintains protections ensuring the safety of minors, it also restructures detention authority and oversight requirements by creating alternatives to state-licensed family residential centers. To assess the rule’s responsiveness to public input, this project analyzes public comments submitted during the September-November 2018 comment period and compares the proposal of the rule with the final regulation that was put into place. Using qualitative document analysis, comments were categorized by issue areas including detention conditions, “special needs” definitions, and release standards. This methodology integrates codebook variables to label commenter position, commenter type, and organization type. Additionally, the study analyzes up to three asks per entry, measuring success on a -2 to 2 scale to evaluate how effectively different coalitions shaped the final rule. Findings from this analysis will clarify how public participation influences executive branch immigration policymaking and will contribute to broader discussions about child welfare and administrative law.
