Obama Administration Awarded Contracts Worth over $310 Million for Legal Representation of Unaccompanied Alien Minors

An investigation by the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) has revealed that the Obama-era U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), in apparent violation of federal immigration law, awarded multiple high-value contracts, worth over $310 million, to a single nonprofit group in 2015 and 2016.

All of these contracts were awarded for the purpose of providing legal representation to unaccompanied alien children (UACs). {snip}

The funds went to the Vera Institute of Justice (Vera), a nonprofit group that provides immigrants with access to legal services. {snip} The contracts require Vera to provide “direct legal representation” to UACs, recruit and train pro bono attorneys, and facilitate continued legal representation once a UAC is released to a sponsor – frequently an illegal alien. So far, the federal grants have paid for legal representation of UACs in removal proceedings and removal appeals throughout the nation.

The Immigration and Nationality Act, Section 292, states that aliens in removal proceedings “shall have the privilege of being represented (at no expense to the Government).” {snip}

Even though the use of federal funds to provide direct representation to UACs appears to violate federal law, the Obama administration continued to provide funding to Vera for these illegal aliens, knowing that taxpayers would face significant hurdles if they attempted to sue the federal government to halt the payments. To date, HHS has obligated over $232 million to Vera, with its network of legal services subcontractors, to provide these services, and HHS likely plans to obligate the $78 million remaining on the contracts.

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