AILA Correspondence with the Government
Read letters that AILA has sent to government officials about pressing immigration -related issues, as well as coalition letters to government officials that AILA has signed.
Browse the AILA Correspondence collection
Sign-On Letter Opposing Legislation That Would Expand Family Detention
On 9/14/18, AILA joined national and state/local organizations to urge the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to reject any legislation that would expand the scale and length of immigrant family detention.
Sign-On Letter on Reduction of Detention and Enforcement Funds in FY2019 Continuing Resolution
On 9/5/18, AILA joined national, state, and local immigrant rights organizations on calling on congressional leadership and appropriators to reduce ICE’s funds for immigration detention and enforcement due to DHS’s overspending and poor conditions inside ICE’s jails.
AILA Letter to USCIS Requesting Emergency Correction to Form G-28
On 9/5/18, AILA sent a letter to USCIS requesting an emergency correction to the 5/23/18 edition of Form G-28 prior to its mandatory implementation on 9/17/18, or in the alternative, a delay in the mandatory effective date for the new form, until the required correction can be completed.
AILA, CLINIC, and NILC Express Concerns Over Improper Public Charge Determinations and I-601A Revocations
On 8/28/18, AILA, the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., and the National Immigration Law Center sent a letter to the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs, expressing concerns over consulates’ improper public charge determinations and associated revocations of approved I-601As.
Sign-On Letter Urging Senate to Conduct Oversight and Advise USCIS to Withdraw Policy Memos
On 8/14/18, AILA and nine coalition partners sent a letter to Chairman Charles Grassley and Ranking Dianne Member Feinstein of the Senate Judiciary Committee, urging Senate to conduct oversight and advise USCIS to withdraw policy memos issued on 6/28/18, 7/13/18, and 8/9/18.
Sign-On Letter Asking Attorney General Sessions to Revoke Matter of A-B-
On June 27, 2018, AILA joined approximately 465 other organizations in a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions expressing concern for the lives of immigrant survivors of domestic violence following his wrongful decision in Matter of A-B- and asking him to immediately revoke the decision.
Sign-On Letter to Appropriators to Reject Reprogramming Requests Made By DHS
On 6/27/18, AILA and 11 coalition partners urged the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to reject the transfer and/or reprogramming of funds DHS is requesting to construct new detention camps to detain children and families.
Sign-On Letter Opposing Speaker Ryan’s “Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018” (H.R. 6136)
On June 20, 2018, AILA joined approximately 350 organizations in a letter to members of Congress expressing grave concerns with Speaker Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) “Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018” (H.R. 6136), and asking them to vote against the bill.
Sign-On Letter Opposing Representative Goodlatte’s “Securing America’s Future Act” (H.R.4760)
On June 19, 2018, AILA joined approximately 226 organizations in a letter to members of Congress opposing Representative Bob Goodlatte’s (R-VA) bill, the “Securing America’s Future Act” (H.R.4760).
Sign-On Letter Urging the Appropriations Committees to Include H-2B Cap Relief in FY2019 Appropriations Bill
On 6/12/18, AILA joined members of the H-2B Workforce Coalition urging the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to include H-2B cap relief for FY2019 or any other appropriate legislation.
Sign-On Letter to Congressional Leadership on Worksite Raids
On 6/6/18, AILA joined several other human rights and immigrant rights organizations from across the U.S. in calling on congressional leadership to address the return of mass worksite raids and the increase of rogue worksite enforcement actions taken by ICE and DHS.
Sign-On Letter to Special Rapporteur González Morales on Violations of International Law at Immigration Detention Facilities
On 5/15/18, AILA joined 70 other human rights and immigrant’s rights organizations across the U.S. to address violations of international law at the Stewart Detention Center and the Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia and to call for coordinated site visits and international condemnation.
AILA Statement on Strengthening and Reforming America’s Immigration Court System Hearing
On 4/18/18, AILA submitted a statement to the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Border Security and Immigration urging that Congress create an independent immigration court system in the form of an Article I court and monitor EOIR practices to ensure individuals the right to a full and fair hearing.
Sign-On Letter Urging DOL and DHS To Immediately Resume Processing H-2Bs
On 4/11/18, AILA joined members of the H-2B Workforce Coalition urging the DOL and DHS Secretaries to immediately resume processing H-2B visas up to the full number of visas authorized by the FY2018 Omnibus Appropriations Act.
Sign-On Letter Urging ICE to Discontinue Policy of Detaining Pregnant Individuals
On 4/11/18, AILA joined over 275 organizations in urging ICE Deputy Director Thomas Homan to discontinue its policy of detaining pregnant individuals, who should be able to access the critical healthcare services they need, and instead release them to continue their cases outside of detention.
Sign-On Letter Requesting Transparency and Accountability for Immigration Detention
On 4/5/18, AILA joined nine organizations in a letter to Kirstjen Nielsen, Secretary of Homeland Security, and Thomas Homan, Acting Director of ICE, requesting that they bear accountability for the ongoing mismanagement of the detention system and comply with the limitations on agency spending.
AILA Urges Congress to Reject Excessive, Unjustified Spending on Immigration Enforcement in Omnibus Appropriations Bill
On 3/8/18, AILA released a statement urging Congress to reject excessive, unjustified spending for immigration enforcement in the upcoming omnibus appropriations bill. President Trump has requested large increases in immigration enforcement funding, including $1.6 billion for the border wall.
Sign-On Letter to Congress Regarding Unaccompanied Children and Asylum Seekers
On 2/14/18, AILA joined 99 other organizations in a letter urging Congress to support the Dream Act and vote against proposals that would punish asylum seekers and vulnerable immigrant children. These harmful proposals would violate due process for asylum seekers and unaccompanied minors.
Sign-On Letter Urging Congress to Pass the Dream Act and Reject the White House Proposal
On 2/13/18, AILA joined 268 other organizations in a letter calling on Congress to enact permanent protections for Dreamers and reject the White House’s immigration proposal. The letter states that “protecting Dreamers cannot come at the cost of harming other immigrants or immigrant communities.”
Coalition for the American Dream Opposes H.R. 4760
On 2/8/18, the Coalition for the American Dream, of which AILA is a member, sent a letter to Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress declaring opposition to H.R. 4760: Securing America’s Future Act of 2018, which does not provide a permanent workable legislative solution for Dreamers.
Sign-On Letter Urging House and Senate Leadership to Include H-2B Cap Relief in Future Spending Measures
On 2/2/18, AILA joined members of the H-2B Workforce Coalition urging House and Senate Leadership to include H-2B cap relief in any spending measures for the remainder of FY2018 or any other appropriate legislation.
Sign-On Letter Urging the Appropriations Committees to Include H-2B Cap Relief
On 2/2/18, AILA joined members of the H-2B Workforce Coalition urging the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to include H-2B cap relief in any spending measure for the remainder of FY2018 or any other appropriate legislation.
Sign-On Letter to USCIS Requesting to Maintain the H-4 Rule
On 1/17/18, eleven organizations including CompeteAmerica, which AILA is a member of, requested that USCIS continue to authorize employment for certain H-4 dependent spouses. The letter cites the instrumental role of these workers in STEM fields and their positive impact on the U.S. economy.
Sign-On Letter to Secretary Nielsen Opposing Family Separation Proposal
On 1/16/18, AILA joined 129 other organizations in a letter to Kirstjen Nielsen, Secretary of Homeland Security, opposing a recent proposal from the Trump administration to separate immigrant children from their parents when they are apprehended at the border.
Sign-On Letter Requesting Investigation of Georgia Immigration Detention Centers
On 11/21/17, AILA joined immigrants’ rights, human rights, and civil rights organizations in a letter requesting that the Georgia congressional delegation investigate the conditions at the Stewart and Irwin County immigration detention centers in Georgia.