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Supervisors and nonprofits push for expanded immigrant legal defense funding as enforcement rises
Summary
Community legal providers and supervisors urged immediate funding to expand immigrant legal defense after recent ICE activity; groups asked the board to approve a $3.5 million supplemental to support habeas petitions, rapid response, and expanded representation.
Advocates and nonprofit legal providers asked the Board of Supervisors on Oct. 28 to approve a $3.5 million supplemental appropriation to expand immigrant legal defense capacity amid increased federal immigration enforcement.
"Sanctuary cities like San Francisco are the last line of defense," Amanda Maya of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights told the board, urging approval of the supplemental that would fund legal representation, rapid response and habeas corpus petitions for detained residents. "The $3,500,000 allocated to the immigration legal services collaborative is a lifeline of our work."
Speakers from the Public Defender's Office, the San Francisco Immigrant Legal Defense Collaborative (SFLDC), the Central American Resource Center, the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, and others described recent spikes in detentions and the urgent need for immigration counsel and court work to protect due process. Carolyn Goosen of the Public Defender's Office said the city is already coordinating rapid response and habeas petitions and urged unanimous support for the funding.
On the dais, Supervisor Walton and multiple colleagues introduced resolutions reaffirming the city's WATCH Act protections and called for federal funding to avert imminent SNAP disruptions; several supervisors and community groups positioned the immigrant legal services funding as a concrete step the city can take immediately to protect residents while federal uncertainty persists.
No final vote on the supplemental is recorded in the Oct. 28 transcript; the public record on the day shows extensive testimonial support and a request that the board move quickly to authorize additional capacity for emergency representation and community defense.
