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Defender Association and service providers urge city funding increase for immigration legal representation
Summary
Speakers at a City Council hearing described representation gaps in Philadelphia immigration cases and asked the city to expand funding for universal legal services and a proposed in‑house Defender Association immigration unit.
Legal service providers and defenders asked Philadelphia City Council on Jan. 22 to increase funding for immigration legal representation, citing data they said show markedly better outcomes for detained people who have counsel.
Julio Rodriguez of the Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition urged the council to fund the Philadelphia Immigrant Family Unity Project (PIFA/PIFUP) at $1,300,000. The Defender Association of Philadelphia described a staffing plan to create a dedicated immigration defense unit and asked the city for an additional $800,000 to supplement the current $500,000 PIFA grant the association would absorb.
Representatives from the Nationality Service Center (NSC) and the Defender Association said representation improves outcomes: presenters cited that 39% of PIFA clients with completed cases were allowed to stay in the United States compared with 19% of unrepresented detainees. NSC said it and partners have represented more than 200 detained clients since 2019 and that, overall, 65% of Philadelphia immigration court cases since 2019 lacked legal representation.
At the hearing, the Defender Association said its proposed 13‑person immigration defense unit would include two legal fellows and specialized staff to serve detained and non‑detained clients; the expansion, advocates said, would better cover the estimated tens of thousands of Philadelphia residents at risk of removal. The Defender’s current PIFA funding is $500,000 per year; the additional $800,000 request would bring the total local commitment supporting the Defender plan to $1.3 million.
Steven Lehi of the Nationality Service Center said local providers have increased “know‑your‑rights” trainings, trained nonimmigration attorneys to represent clients in bond hearings, and are preparing family‑support resources for detained individuals. He urged the council to sustain and increase funding for legal representation, refugee resettlement supports and language-access services as federal policies change.
No votes were taken. Committee members signaled interest in budget submissions and follow‑up meetings with service providers to assess the capacity and fiscal needs required to expand universal representation.
