DATA Act

Department of Homeland Security Accountability and Transparency Act or the DATA Act

This bill requires law enforcement officials (i.e., officers or agents of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), or certain state or local officials carrying out the functions of an immigration officer) who initiate a patrol stop or who detain any individual beyond a brief and limited inquiry, such as a primary inspection at a checkpoint, to record certain data, including (1) the date, time, location, and duration of the contact; (2) the basis for the contact and if it was race-related; (3) a description of any items seized during any search; (4) whether a body-worn camera recorded the stop or detention; and (5) whether force was used by the law enforcement official.

The bill also requires the CBP to collect data on the number of permanent and temporary checkpoints used by its officers, the location and a description of each checkpoint, and the dates on which a temporary checkpoint was used. The Department of Homeland Security must compile the data collected by ICE and the CBP and consider it in making policy and program decisions.