New York provides $7.25M for migrant child legal aid

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(The Center Square) — Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is tapping millions of dollars in taxpayer funds to provide legal representation for migrant children facing deportation.

Hochul announced Wednesday that the new infusion of state funding will provide legal assistance for roughly 1,400 unaccompanied migrant children "navigating" federal immigration proceedings.

Under the plan, the New York State Office for New Americans will enter into contracts totaling $7.25 million with a coalition of legal services providers, led by the Hispanic Federation, to support children previously served under the federal program, Hochul said. 

“No child in our state should ever face the fear and uncertainty of the immigration process without advocates and legal support in their corner," Hochul, a Democrat, said in remarks Wednesday. "While the Trump Administration is walking away from these children, New York is stepping up to help bridge the gap and ensure their continued access to the services they need and deserve." 

The move comes in response to the Trump administration's decision to end a contract with the Acacia Center for Justice, which contracts with legal service providers to represent migrant children.

Hochul was joined by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who boasted that his administration has spent $153 million dollars on legal representation for immigrants, expanded 'Know Your Rights' outreach in dozens of languages, and "strengthened the firewall between city agencies and federal immigration enforcement." 

"New York refuses to stand idly by while the federal government abandons immigrant children and leaves them vulnerable to exploitation and deportation," Mamdani, a democratic socialist, said in remarks. "We will not stop until the values our city was built upon are truly felt across the five boroughs."

But the new infusion of taxpayer money to the immigrant legal aid fund comes as the Trump administration ramps up its mass deportation campaign across the country. 

Advocates have raised concerns that unaccompanied minors facing deportation proceedings are lacking the legal representation needed to navigate to the federal immigration court system. 

Under federal law, the government is required to facilitate legal representation for unaccompanied children under its care who are facing deportation proceedings. 

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a $150 million contract to give legal representation to migrant children traveling alone to the U.S. to a Texas-based law firm that critics point out has ties to the Trump administration. 

Nationwide, more than 20,000 unaccompanied migrant children are at risk of losing legal counsel after the Trump administration canceled Acadia's contract, the group said.

"New York will never stand by while vulnerable children are left to navigate our immigration system alone," New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, said in remarks Wednesday. who during "We will continue fighting to protect immigrant New Yorkers and push back against federal overreach that puts families and communities at risk."