SRES 195 — Congress 119
A resolution requesting information on El Salvador's human rights practices pursuant to section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.
Official source: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-resolution/195
Congress.gov subjects: International Affairs
Issues impacted: Foreign Policy & Sanctions (ai, high)
Official bill text (stored)
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119 SRES 195 IS: Requesting information on El Salvador’s human rights practices pursuant to section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. U.S. Senate 2025-05-01 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain. III 119th CONGRESS 1st Session S. RES. 195 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 1, 2025 Mr. Kaine (for himself, Mr. Van Hollen , Mr. Schumer , and Mr. Padilla ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations RESOLUTION Requesting information on El Salvador’s human rights practices pursuant to section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. 1. Request for information on El Salvador’s human rights practices (a) Statement requested The Senate requests that the Secretary of State, not later than 30 days after the date of the adoption of this resolution, submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives , pursuant to section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2304(c) ), a statement regarding El Salvador's human rights practices that has been prepared in collaboration with the Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor and the Office of the Legal Adviser at the Department of State. (b) Elements The statement submitted pursuant to subsection (a) should include— (1) all available credible information concerning alleged violations of internationally recognized human rights by the Government of the Republic of El Salvador, including— (A) torture and inhumane treatment of detainees, including detainees who are not citizens of El Salvador; (B) forced disappearances; (C) transnational repression; (D) the denial of due process for residents of El Salvador, including an evaluation of judicial independence in El Salvador; and (E) the treatment of citizens or residents of other countries who are being detained or imprisoned in El Salvador, including any opportunity provided to such citizens or residents to demonstrate they are being wrongfully detained or imprisoned; (2) a description of the steps the United States Government has taken— (A) to promote respect for and observance of human rights as part of the Government of El Salvador’s activities, including in the context of El Salvador's ongoing State of Exception; (B) to discourage any practices that are inimical to internationally recognized human rights; and (C) to publicly or privately call attention to, and disassociate the United States and any security assistance provided for the Republic of El Salvador from, any practices described in subparagraph (B); and (3) other information, including— (A) an assessment from the Secretary of State of the likelihood that United States security assistance (as defined in section 502B(d) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2304(d) )) provided to the Republic of El Salvador could be used in support of activities by government officials related to the rendition, trafficking, detention, or imprisonment of individuals who are not nationals of El Salvador; (B) an assessment from the Secretary of State of the conditions in El Salvador’s Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT), including an assessment of allegations of torture and other gross violations of human rights; (C) a description of any actions that the United States Government is taking to ensure that the Government of the Republic of El Salvador releases United States citizens or residents being detained or imprisoned in El Salvador in compliance with United States court orders regarding their return to the United States; (D) a description of any actions that the United States Government is taking to address allegations of detention, torture, or forced disappearances of United States citizens or residents by the Republic of El Salvador or efforts to facilitate the detention, torture or forced disappearances of United States citizens or legal residents; (E) a description of actions the United States Government is taking to provide due process in compliance with United States law for relevant persons detained or imprisoned in El Salvador through an agreement with the United States Government; and (F) a description of any actions the United States Government is taking to protect United States citizens and residents from unlawful rendering, trafficking, or other means of removal from the United States to the Republic of El Salvador.
Plain-English summary
Confidence: high · Complexity: moderate · Model: grok-4.5
This Senate resolution is basically Congress asking the State Department for a full report on human rights in El Salvador.
It leans on a tool already in foreign-aid law (section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act) that lets lawmakers demand a formal statement from the Secretary of State. They want it within 30 days, written with the department’s human-rights and legal teams. The report should cover credible claims of torture and rough treatment of people in custody (including folks who aren’t Salvadoran), forced disappearances, pressure that crosses borders, weak due process and court independence, and how foreign citizens or residents locked up there can challenge a wrongful stay.
It also wants straight answers on what the U.S. has done to push human rights during El Salvador’s ongoing “state of exception,” whether U.S. security aid could help lock up non-Salvadorans, conditions at the big CECOT prison, and what Washington is doing about U.S. citizens or residents held there—including court orders to bring people home and due-process issues when detention ties to a U.S. deal.
For regular people this doesn’t spend new money or rewrite immigration rules by itself. It’s an oversight ask: more official facts on El Salvador’s record and how U.S. policy and aid connect to it.
Related issues
How a vote maps to positions
Impartial mapping: which issue position a Yea vs Nay advances. When a bill has multiple floor votes, each roll can have its own mapping. Bill-level entries (no roll listed) apply as a default when a roll has no specific map. Used for legislator alignment.
All rolls (bill default)
| Issue | Yea advances | Nay advances | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign Policy & Sanctions | Democracy and human-rights conditionality abroad | Status quo / reject this change | Yea backs a formal 502B(c) human-rights statement and scrutiny of El Salvador’s practices and related U.S. security assistance; Nay rejects adopting that information demand. |