Sponsors (14)
Official title: To establish the right to counsel, at Government expense for those who cannot afford counsel, for people facing removal.
Introduced April 30, 2025 by Norma Judith Torres · Last progress April 30, 2025
The bill substantially expands and improves access to high-quality, funded legal representation for low-income immigrants — strengthening fairness and case outcomes — but does so at meaningful fiscal cost, with significant administrative complexity and potential impacts on detention timing and enforcement flexibility.
Low-income noncitizens in removal proceedings will receive government-funded, continuous legal counsel (including rapid initial access and documented evidence delivery), substantially improving fairness, accuracy of outcomes, and chances of relief.
Expanded institutional capacity — a new Office, regional Local Boards, and Immigration Public Defender Organizations with funding tied to enforcement budgets — will broaden geographic and timely access to counsel (including border regions) so more people actually get representation when they need it.
Quality of representation should improve through funded continuing education, consistent compensation/training, caseload standards, and continuity of counsel across appeals and ancillary matters.
All taxpayers: the bill creates a substantial recurring federal spending obligation (expanded counsel, reimbursements, staff, regional offices) and the funding floor tied to enforcement budgets could increase federal expenditures or force reallocations or higher taxes.
Implementation and administration will be complex and costly: standing up a new Office, regional boards, IPDOs, hiring and managing staff with federal benefits, and new governance structures risks high startup costs, coordination challenges, and rollout delays.
Detained noncitizens could face slower case processing or longer detention if proceedings are paused until counsel is appointed and a required waiting period (e.g., 10 days after disclosure) delays adjudication when counsel availability is limited.
Based on analysis of 8 sections of legislative text.
Establishes a federal right to government‑funded counsel for low‑income individuals in most removal‑related immigration proceedings and creates a new Office to provide and pay for representation.
Creates a federal right to government-funded legal counsel for noncitizens in removal, exclusion, deportation, bond, expedited removal, and related proceedings if they cannot afford counsel (defined as family income ≤200% of the federal poverty line). Sets timelines and access rules for appointment and attorney contact for detained and non‑detained individuals, requires agencies to provide records and pauses proceedings to allow counsel review, and bars using appointment or receipt of counsel as a public‑charge ground. Establishes a new nonprofit Office of Immigration Representation (OIR) governed by a 24‑member Board and supported by regional and circuit advisory bodies to recruit, contract with, and pay appointed counsel and providers; requires DHS reimbursement rules for expenses, sets provider payment and preapproval procedures, and mandates a statutory funding floor tied to combined immigration enforcement and prosecution appropriations.