HR3101-119

What This Bill Does

The SHIELD Act addresses the lack of government-funded counsel for people in deportation proceedings by funding legal services infrastructure rather than creating a direct right to counsel. The findings say most people in removal proceedings are unrepresented, including an estimated 80 percent of detained immigrants in deportation cases initiated over the past 20 years; represented detained immigrants are 3.5 times more likely to receive bond and up to 10.5 times more likely to obtain relief from deportation; and nondetained people with lawyers win 60 percent of cases compared with 17 percent without lawyers. The Attorney General, through the Office of Access to Justice, must award four-year competitive workforce development and capacity-building grants to states, local governments, community organizations, nonprofits, and educational institutions that provide, coordinate, recruit, train, or mentor immigration legal services for individuals facing deportation. Funds may support lawyer, accredited representative, social worker, and community navigator recruitment and training; fellowships and clinics; language training; complex defense support; federal and state court representation; leadership development; local coordination; retention strategies; diversity; services in areas with low legal capacity; and physical, administrative, and technology infrastructure. Grantees may contract or subaward to other organizations, must certify proper uses, report annually within 90 days after each fiscal year, and federal funds must supplement rather than supplant other funds. The Office of Access to Justice may issue rules and must operate independently of immigration enforcement priorities. DOJ Inspector General audits, offshore-account restrictions, compensation disclosures, technical assistance for unresolved audit findings, and public reporting apply. The bill authorizes 100 million dollars for each of fiscal years 2026 and 2027.

Who Benefits and How

Individuals facing deportation benefit from expanded legal services staffing and infrastructure in their service areas. Detained immigrants benefit because representation is linked in the findings to higher bond and relief rates. Immigration legal services nonprofits benefit from four-year grants for recruitment, training, retention, technology, and capacity. State governments funding deportation defense benefit from federal support for programs they already help finance. Community navigators and accredited representatives benefit from training, mentoring, and workforce development funds. Immigrant families benefit if better representation reduces wrongful deportation, family separation, and loss of livelihood.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The Office of Access to Justice must run competitive grants, set rules, target priorities, and administer accountability requirements. Grantees must certify uses, report detailed service and expenditure data, and comply with audit rules. DOJ Inspector General staff must audit grantees for waste, fraud, and abuse. Nonprofit grantees must avoid offshore tax-avoidance accounts and disclose compensation-setting processes when applicable. Federal appropriators face a 100 million dollar annual authorization for fiscal years 2026 and 2027.

Key Provisions

• Defines individuals facing deportation and covered service areas.
• Establishes Office of Access to Justice workforce development and capacity-building grants for immigration legal services.
• Authorizes grant uses for recruitment, training, technical assistance, retention, diversity, legal infrastructure, and technology.
• Requires grantee certifications, annual reports, DOJ Inspector General audits, nonprofit restrictions, and technical assistance.
• Authorizes 100 million dollars for each of fiscal years 2026 and 2027.