Sponsors (4)
Official title: Authorize the Attorney General to provide grants to States, units of local government, and organizations to support the recruitment, training, and development of staff and infrastructure needed to support the due process rights of individuals facing removal.
Introduced March 19, 2026 by Edward John Markey · Last progress March 19, 2026
The bill meaningfully expands and funds legal representation and capacity for immigrants and strengthens oversight and transparency, improving access and program integrity, but it increases federal spending and compliance requirements that may burden small providers and risk excluding some eligible people.
Immigrants facing removal will have substantially greater access to high-quality legal representation through grant-funded expansion of legal services, workforce development, capacity building, and preservation of appointed counsel.
The Department of Justice receives dedicated funding ($100 million per year for FY2026–FY2027) to implement the Act, enabling staffing, program delivery, oversight, and related operations.
Community-based organizations, nonprofits, and state/local programs get resources for workforce retention, technical assistance, culturally and linguistically appropriate services, and organizational capacity, improving service quality and sustainability in underserved areas.
Taxpayers face increased federal spending (roughly $200 million across FY2026–FY2027 plus ongoing costs to support counsel and program operations), raising budgetary costs and potential pressure on future appropriations.
Smaller nonprofits and local providers may be disproportionately burdened by expanded application, certification, reporting, audit, and disclosure requirements, increasing compliance costs and diverting resources from direct services.
Narrow statutory definitions (e.g., who qualifies as an 'individual facing removal' or reliance on an external definition of 'unit of local government') risk excluding people or local entities who need services, reducing coverage and creating gaps.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Establishes DOJ competitive grants to expand the immigration legal‑services workforce and infrastructure to increase representation for people facing removal.
Creates a competitive Department of Justice grant program (administered by the Office for Access to Justice) to expand legal-services workforce and infrastructure so more noncitizens in removal proceedings can obtain representation. Grants fund recruitment, training, retention, technical assistance, capacity building in underserved areas, coordination with publicly funded representation programs, and infrastructure; grantees must report annually and undergo OIG audits. The bill authorizes $100 million for each of fiscal years 2026 and 2027 and preserves existing statutory rights to appointed counsel where already authorized by law.