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Original Date Announced
February 18, 2025The Department of the Interior informed legal service providers who receive federal funding under HHS's Legal Services for Unaccompanied Children program to immediately stop work on all activities of the longstanding program. The letter states that "[t]he stop work order is being implemented due to causes outside of your control and should not be misconstrued as an indication of poor performance by your firm." The order jeopardizes ongoing legal representation for nearly 26,000 children.
Trump 2.0 [ID: #1546]
2025.02.18 Stop-work order for HHS Legal Services for Unaccompanied Children program 2025.02.19 Legal organizations told to stop federally funded work for unaccompanied migrant children - NBCEffective Date
February 18, 2025Subsequent Trump and Court Action(s)
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February 21, 2025
2025.02.21 Acacia Center for Justice Resumes Representation Services for Unaccompanied Children
The Acacia Center for Justice reported that it had "received notice that it can immediately resume work providing representation and legal access services to unaccompanied children."
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February 21, 2025
2025.02.21 Priscilla Alvarez stop-work order for legal services for unaccompanied minors lifted.pdf
CNN reporter Priscilla Alvarez posted on X/Twitter that "[l]egal service providers assisting unaccompanied migrant children can resume their work, according to a memo obtained by CNN, cancelling a previous directive issued by the Trump administration."
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March 21, 2025
03.21.25 - Reported: Trump Administration Halts Funding for Legal Representation of Migrant Children -NYT
The Trump administration sent a notice to organizations that provide legal aid to unaccompanied children that it would cancel a contract that supplied around $200 million of funding in total, according to the New York Times. The contract was up for renewal on March 29. This funding had previously been used to represent more than 25,000 children who had entered the United States alone.
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Current Status
NoneOriginal Trump Policy Status
Status: Final/ActualTrump Administration Action: Agency DirectiveSubject Matter: MinorsAssociated or Derivative Policies
- April 13, 2018 DHS agrees that HHS will share information about unaccompanied children, sponsors, and household members
- January 20, 2025 EO 14159 ยง 19 directs DOJ and DHS to review, pause, terminate, and claw back contracts or grants with NGOs serving "removable or illegal aliens"
- January 27, 2025 OMB temporarily pauses agency grant, loan, and financial assistance programs
- January 31, 2025 EOIR's Office of Legal Access Programs Condemned as "Wasteful"
- February 14, 2025 Office of Refugee Resettlement requires fingerprints/background checks of sponsors, household members, and caregivers of unaccompanied children
Documents
Trump-Era Policy Documents
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Commentary
2025.02.19 Lawyers helping migrant children facing deportation ordered by Trump administration to "stop all work" - CBS News
CBS News reports that affected organizations across the U.S. say the stop work order "would prevent them from offering critical legal services, including 'know your rights' sessions, to migrant children."
Go to article2025.02.18 KIND Statement on HHS Stop Work Order
Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) issued a statement on HHS's stop work order: "We urge the administration to prioritize evaluating this unaccompanied-children's program and immediately reinstate this funding, which supports vital work to protect unaccompanied children, some as young as toddlers, against trafficking, exploitation, and other abuses that make them easy prey to those who would do them harm."
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