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
AILA Recommends NO VOTE on the Daines Amendment 4236 to NDAA
AILA sent recommendations opposing the amendment offered by Senator Steve Daines (MT-R), which would limit the federal government’s ability to provide settlement payments to immigrant families who were victims of the Trump administration’s illegal and inhumane family separation policies.
AILA and Partners File Complaint with DHS on Violations and Inhumane Conditions at Torrance Detention Facility
AILA and partners sent a complaint to DHS CRCL requesting an investigation of the violations of due process and inhumane conditions and lack of access to counsel at the Torrance County Detention facility in Estancia, New Mexico.
AILA and Partners Urge Congress to Provide Funding for Appointed Counsel for Individuals Facing Removal
AILA and the American Immigration Council led a sign-on letter urging Congress to provide robust funding for appointed counsel for indigent individuals facing removal. 118 bar associations and organizations specializing in providing legal representation to immigrants signed onto the letter.
AILA and Partners Send Letter to DHS on Providing EADs to Asylum Seekers
AILA and partners sent a letter to DHS urging the Biden administration to rescind Trump administration employment authorization regulations and ensure making the work authorization process more humane.
AILA and Partners Requests Reestablishment of USCIS Humanitarian Unit Stakeholder Engagements
AILA, along with 22 signatories, sent a letter requesting that the Nebraska and Vermont Service Centers reestablish regular humanitarian unit stakeholder engagement sessions.
AILA and Partners Call on ICE to Ensure Due Process in Operation Horizon
AILA, the American Immigration Council, and partner organizations sent a letter to ICE regarding "Operation Horizon"— its plan to mail Notices to Appear (NTA) to individuals released from the border.
AILA Joins Partners in Urging Inclusion of Visa-Related Provisions in the Budget Reconciliation Package
On 11/2/21, AILA joined the American Immigration Council, Niskanen Center, and the National Immigration Forum in leading a letter signed by 95 organizations requesting that Democrats include green card recapture and advanced adjustment of status provisions in the budget reconciliation package.
AILA and Partners Send Letter to Biden Administration on Access to Counsel and Legal Representation
AILA and partners sent a letter to the Biden administration highlighting the host of obstacles to attorney access that exist in immigration detention facilities nationwide and make recommendations on ways to eliminate the barriers.
AILA Letter to the Administration on Due Process and Access to Counsel Failures of MPP
AILA sent a letter to the administration following reports that the Laredo and Brownsville tent courts are re-opening as a result of the re-implementation of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP). AILA’s letter summarized the past problems and urges the administration issue a new termination memo.
AILA and Partners Send letter to Biden Administration Requesting TPS or DED for Cameroonians
AILA and partners sent a letter to the Biden administration requesting immediate designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for the 40,000+ Cameroonians currently in the United States who are urgently in need of protection from deportation.
AILA Joins 220 Organizations in Opposing Expansion of Immigration Detention
AILA joined 220 organizations in expressing disappointment about the planned reopening of Moshannon Valley Correctional Center as an ICE detention center, and the conversion and expansion of the Berks County ICE detention center to an adult facility for women.
AILA and the Council Urge Creation of Universal System for Discretionary Release from ICE Detention
AILA and the American Immigration Council sent a follow-up letter to DHS calling for the creation of a meaningful and functioning system of discretionary release within ICE.
AILA and Partners Send Letter to Biden Administration with Recommendations on Terminating MPP
AILA and partners sent letter to the Biden administration and DHS opposing MPP and recommendations for the memorandum to clarify why COVID-19 continues to prevent the resumption of MPP hearings and the importance of adequate notice of the date and time of any future scheduled removal hearings.
AILA and Partners Send Letter to DHS on Rights Violations in Del Rio
AILA and partners sent a complaint to DHS CRCL requesting an immediate dialogue with CRCL staff about a variety of serious violations of migrants’ rights documented by advocates and attorneys on the ground in Del Rio, Texas.
AILA and Partners Urge White House to Change Course After Violations to Asylum Rights and Refugee Laws on Haitians
AILA and partners sent a letter to the White House requesting that deportation flights to Haiti stop, restoration for asylum access at ports of entry, rescind the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s expulsion order, and issue a new termination memo for the Migrant Protection Protocols.
AILA Joins Sign-On Letter Urging the Administration to End Title 42 Expulsions and MPP
After a federal district court held that the government likely does not have authority to implement the Title 42 policy and enjoined the use of the policy against families with young children, AILA urged the administration to stop blocking asylum seekers and restore access at our ports of entry.
AILA and Partners Send Letter Urging the Administration to Stop Blocking Asylum Seekers
AILA joined 71 organizations in sending a letter in response to the notice of appeal in the Huisha-Huisha litigation urging the administration to restore access to U.S. asylum at ports of entry and immediately stop blocking and expelling asylum seekers and migrants.
AILA Urges Congress to Reauthorize the EB-5 Regional Center Program
AILA sent a letter to Congress urging immediate reauthorization of the EB-5 Regional Center Program.
AILA and Partners Sent Letter to Biden Administration on Legal Limbo of Afghan Evacuees
AILA and partners sent a letter urging the Biden administration to ensure that U.S.-Afghan allies and other at-risk Afghans do not languish in legal limbo abroad. The letter includes several recommendations.
AILA and Partners Calls for Visa Reforms and Increased Immigration Numbers in Budget Reconciliation
On 8/23/21, AILA joined national, state, and local organizations in urging Congress to not miss out on the opportunity to make important visa reforms and increase immigration numbers via the budget reconciliation package as it considers a legalization program.
AILA Requests Clarity from USCIS on Afghanistan Evacuation Policies
On 8/20/21, in light of the escalating humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, AILA sent a letter to USCIS with recommendations regarding USCIS policy and procedures relating to the Afghanistan evacuation and seeking clarifying information regarding humanitarian parole adjudications.
AILA Joins the American Immigration Council in Calling on the Biden Administration to Block the Return of MPP
AILA, the American Immigration Council, and other organizations call on the Biden administration to appeal the erroneous and factually incorrect decision issued by a federal judge in Texas that ordered DHS to “enforce and implement MPP in good faith” for an indefinite period of time.
AILA’s Asylum & Refugee Committee Requests Meeting Opportunity with the USCIS Asylum Division
AILA’s Asylum & Refugee Committee sent a letter to Associate Director of the USCIS Refugee, Asylum, and International Operations Directorate (RAIO) Jennifer B. Higgins requesting the opportunity meet and discuss policy updates, trends, and issues in the field of asylee and refugee processing.
AILA Sends a Welcome Letter to USCIS Director Jaddou
On August 10, 2021, AILA sent a letter to new USCIS Director Ur Jaddou requesting an introductory meeting to hear about her vision for USCIS and to share recommendations for the future of immigration.
AILA Requests Clarifying Guidance from IPO Regarding I-765 and I-131 Adjudications for EB-5 Investors
On 8/10/21, AILA sent a letter to the Immigrant Investor Program Office (IPO) requesting clarifying guidance for I-765 and I-131 applications filed by EB-5 regional center investors with pending regional center-affiliated Forms I-485.