FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: media@vera.org

December 3, 2024

NEW YORK – As the incoming Trump administration prepares its sweeping deportation agenda, a broad group of New York State elected officials, immigrant advocates, and impacted families today called for bold state-level action as part of the Campaign for Access, Representation, and Equity (CARE) for Immigrant Families coalition. The campaign is calling for a total investment of $165 million for the Office for New Americans and the Education Department to fund sustainable immigration legal services and infrastructure to help New Yorkers facing deportation who cannot afford an attorney. This is in addition to the passage of legislation, the Access to Representation Act and the BUILD Act, that will help ensure immigrants targeted by cruel federal policies have critical legal help to protect their rights.

The coalition—which includes the Vera Institute of Justice, the New York Immigration Coalition, Immigrant ARC, and over 100 organizations—emphasized the urgency of the moment. Aggressive federal policies threaten to tear families apart and destabilize communities. At the same time, the number of New Yorkers—both new arrivals seeking safety and longtime residents—facing high-stakes immigration proceedings without representation continues to grow.

The CARE campaign’s priorities include a significant increase in funding for immigration legal services to stop family separations, protect communities at risk of deportation, safeguard New York’s workforce, and counteract the damaging impact of federal overreach. This initiative reflects New York’s commitment to being a beacon of safety and economic stability in an era of heightened federal hostility toward immigrant communities.

Over 172,000 people are unrepresented in New York immigration courts, a number that has more than doubled since last year. Long-term solutions—including funding infrastructure for sustainable legal services and other legislative actions—will ensure that the state is prepared to welcome and support immigrants for years to come, instead of scrambling for short-term solutions. Universal representation is a sensible solution to promote safety, family unity, and economic stability and has wide public support.

“New York is facing an unprecedented challenge as the incoming Trump administration prepares to implement policies rooted in cruelty and chaos, tearing families apart and destabilizing communities. We will not stand idly by. That’s why I am proud to sponsor the Access to Representation Act and the BUILD Act, ensuring every New Yorker at risk of deportation has access to legal representation and that immigration lawyers have the resources they need to fight back. We are also advocating for $100 million to the Office of New Americans for a state investment in immigration legal services and $65 million to the Department of Education to build long-term capacity and protect our communities with both legal and educational resources. This moment demands courage, and New York is ready to lead the way,” said Assemblymember Catalina Cruz.

“As we approach a second Trump Administration we must stand ready to protect New York’s immigrant community from the attacks that the former president has already promised. Now is the time to make significant financial investments in immigrant legal representation and pass the Access to Representation Act (S.999A), which I sponsor with Assemblymember Cruz, into law. The ARA will guarantee that all those in New York State facing legal challenges related to their immigration status have access to lawyers, which is not currently the case. Legal representation can quite literally determine if thousands of parents are separated from their children or not. By investing in immigrant legal services we can protect vulnerable communities, stop family separation and reform our broken immigration court system, before Donald Trump has the chance to damage it even further," said Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal.

"President-elect Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies threaten millions of New York families, risking devastating mass deportations and family separations that would harm communities and endanger New York’s future. New York’s leaders face a clear choice: stand by as lives are torn apart or take bold action. This moment demands significant investments in legal services to protect families, strengthen communities, bolster the economy and uphold our values. As the nation looks to New York for leadership, our elected officials must act decisively and without hesitation. That means funding immigration legal services and infrastructure at $165 million and advancing policies like the Access to Representation Act and the BUILD Act that will ensure legal services providers can continue delivering life-saving representation,” said Shayna Kessler, director of the Vera Institute of Justice’s Advancing Universal Representation Initiative.

“New York’s immigration legal service providers are the strongest defense against injustice and a critical safeguard for ensuring due process is upheld for all. Immigrant ARC urges Governor Hochul and the legislature to allocate $165 million for immigration legal services—an investment that reflects our state’s commitment to fairness and community resilience. At a time when needs have never been greater, this funding is not just a necessity; it is a reaffirmation of the values that make New York a beacon of hope and justice,” said Camille Mackler, CEO of Immigrant ARC.

“Immigrant New Yorkers across our state work every day to support our families and contribute to our economy and culture. But they are not guaranteed a lawyer when they go to immigration court. The imminent threat of mass deportation becoming a reality means that Albany must take critical steps to protect everyone who calls New York home—by funding $165 million for immigration legal services and infrastructure and passing the Access to Representation and BUILD Acts. These measures would ensure that immigrant New Yorkers get a fair shot in court, so they can avoid detention in dangerous facilities, permanent family separation, and deportation to potentially life-threatening conditions,” said Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition.

"All New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status, deserve access to legal representation. In preparation for the incoming federal administration, the Arab American Family Support Center and our partners are enhancing our services to communities at risk of deportation. We call on New York State to join us in protecting our communities from draconian immigration policies and practices. It is time for New York to invest $165 million in immigration legal services and pass the ARA and BUILD Act to improve access, representation, and equity for immigrant New Yorkers," said Hizam Wahib, Assistant Executive Director at the Arab American Family Support Center.

Background:

Currently, people facing deportation are not guaranteed a right to appointed counsel. Instead, many who cannot afford to hire legal representation are forced to fend for themselves against a trained government lawyer. Investing in legal defense will promote fairness, family unity, and economic stability in a time when immigrants will be at acute risk from federal attacks.

Funding for new and expanded immigration legal services is a practical solution to meet the needs of immigrants seeking stability and a chance to work and support their families, protect immigrant New Yorkers at risk of deportation, and put into place long-term infrastructure to equip New York to support communities with life-saving legal services. Passing the Access to Representation Act and the BUILD Act will address the uncertainty surrounding the state budget’s annual funding for immigrant legal services by creating a right to an attorney for any New Yorker facing deportation who cannot afford to hire one on their own.

As the incoming administration intends to ramp up its mass deportation plan, these measures will protect immigrant New Yorkers from aggressive federal actions, and will promote economic stability as the state faces labor shortages and declining population growth. Investments in legal services will promote community safety and economic stability across New York by ensuring that more parents remain home with their children, more essential workers remain on the job, and more business owners continue to invest in and support our communities.

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About the Campaign for Access, Representation, and Equity (CARE) for Immigrant Families: The Vera Institute of Justice, the New York Immigration Coalition, and Immigrant ARC lead CARE for Immigrant Families, a coalition of more than 100 leading organizations, religious groups, and elected officials united to pass the Access to Representation Act. The bill (S999A/A170A) will guarantee access to legal representation for immigrants at risk of deportation in New York. Sponsored by Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assemblymember Catalina Cruz, the legislation would be the first in the nation to create a statewide right to legal representation for people facing deportation who cannot afford it, whether they have recently arrived in the state or have been New Yorkers for decades.

About the Vera Institute of Justice: The Vera Institute of Justice is powered by hundreds of advocates, researchers, and policy experts working to transform the criminal legal and immigration systems until they’re fair for all. Founded in 1961 to advocate for alternatives to money bail in New York City, Vera is now a national organization that partners with impacted communities and government leaders for change. We develop just, antiracist solutions so that money doesn’t determine freedom; fewer people are in jails, prisons, and immigration detention; and everyone is treated with dignity. Vera’s headquarters is in Brooklyn, New York, with offices in Washington, DC, New Orleans, and Los Angeles. For more information, visit vera.org.

Immigrant ARC is a collaborative of over 80 organizations and professional associations providing legal services to New York’s immigrant communities throughout the State. Born out of the legal effort at JFK Airport during the Muslim Travel Ban in 2017, our mission is clear: to mobilize New York State’s legal service providers by facilitating communication and information sharing to better support our immigrant communities; to organize and respond to issues as they arise by coordinating resources and fostering best practices among providers; and to resist and challenge anti-immigrant policies by shining a light on injustices and confronting inequalities faced by our communities in the legal system. For more information, visit www.immigrantarc.org.

The New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) is an umbrella policy & advocacy organization that represents over 200 immigrant and refugee rights groups throughout New York. The NYIC serves one of the largest and most diverse newcomer populations in the United States. The multi-racial and multi-sector NYIC membership base includes grassroots and nonprofit community organizations, religious and academic institutions, labor unions, as well as legal and socioeconomic justice organizations. The NYIC not only establishes a forum for immigrant groups to voice their concerns, but also provides a platform for collective action to drive positive social change. Since its founding in 1987, the NYIC has evolved into a powerful voice of advocacy by spearheading innovative policies, promoting and protecting the rights of immigrant communities, improving newcomer access to services, developing leadership and capacity, expanding civic participation, and mobilizing member groups to respond to the fluctuating needs of immigrant communities.