A new report indicates that the Biden administration has struggled to fully vet and monitor households where unaccompanied migrant children have been placed, reports Amanda Seitz of the Associated Press.  

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is required to screen those who offer to take in unaccompanied children who arrive in the country.  

However, Haley Lubeck, an analyst for the HHS Office of Inspector General, which conducted the review, shared that they "found that children’s case files and sponsor records were not always updated with important documentation and information."  

HHS spokesman Jeff Nesbit said that the agency has already improved some of the records management and documentation issues highlighted in the report.   

"Protecting children must remain paramount," said Jennie in a statement yesterday. "HHS and the Biden administration more broadly must take these findings seriously and do everything in their power to ensure that children are safe." 

Separately, a new survey by the Pew Research Center shows how Americans view the situation at the U.S-Mexico border. Russell Contreras of Axios summarizes the insights: 80% of Americans do not approve of the job done by the federal government on immigration. The positive side? A majority agreed that "creating more opportunities for people to immigrate to the U.S. legally would make the situation better." 

We will be off for Presidents Day — look for your next Forum Daily on Wednesday. Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Clara Villatoro, the Forum’s senior strategic communications manager, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Isabella Miller and Dan Gordon. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

TIME IS SHORT – After border and immigration provisions were dropped from a supplemental spending bill last week, concerns remain again for the future of 80,000 Afghan refugees resettled in the U.S., writes Patricia Lopez for Bloomberg. "American credibility is at issue here," Lopez writes. "Betraying the trust of Afghans who risked so much for U.S. efforts would send the world a terrible message. Our allies deserve better." 

This week in local welcome: 

ECONOMIC BENEFIT – A Department of Health and Human Services report shows that refugees and asylum seekers had "a positive net fiscal outcome of $123.8 billion from 2005 to 2019", reports Ellen M. Gilmer of Bloomberg Government. While acknowledging costs to state and local governments, mainly from education, the overall economic contribution of refugees and asylees is positive when compared with the total U.S. population, Gilmer notes.  

FAMILY IMPACT — American Families United and American Business Immigration Coalition Action have launched a new campaign to get President Biden to use executive action to parole undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens, reports April Corbin Girnus of Nevada Current. Limitations of the immigration system have a direct impact on families. "[It’s] an injustice being served to innocent and beautiful American families," said Ed Markowitz, an American citizen who has experienced family separation due to immigration issues. 

EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES – Jemny Marquinez, a DACA recipient from Virginia who has aspired to be a police officer since age 12, has postponed her dream due to legal restrictions. But now she could be closer to having a chance for achieving her goal, reports Denise Lavoie of the Associated Press. Virginia could soon join several states that already have passed legislation to allow noncitizens who are authorized to work in the U.S. to become police officers. Virginia Senate recently approved a bill which will move to the House of Delegates for their consideration.

Thanks for reading,  

Clara