Sacramento, CA- Today the Governor signed the 2024-25 state budget that includes funding for immigration legal services including One California, California State University (CSU) Legal Services, and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Legal Services. Funding for Children Holistic Immigration Program (CHIRP) was not renewed.  

Alongside community members, immigration advocates like Central American Resource Center (CARECEN-LA), Immigrant Legal Defense (ILD), California Immigrant Policy Center (CIPIC), The Coalition of Humane Immigrant Rights LA (CHIRLA), Acacia Center for Justice, and Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) have tirelessly engaged in efforts in Sacramento and with local legislators to underscore the critical importance of these services. 

In Response, Martha Arevalo, Executive Director of the Central American Resource Center, Issues the Following Statement:  

"CARECEN applauds a state budget that preserves access to critical immigration legal services for vulnerable immigrant communities. We thank the Legislature for safeguarding this investment and thank the Governor for reconsidering proposed cuts to immigration legal services. Programs like One California, CSU and TPS immigration legal services have built on a statewide and critical infrastructure in order to serve students, their families and other populations under attack. Immigration legal services are a lifeline to immigrants and are also key to keeping families together and protected. 

As we look to the next fiscal budget, we call on the state of California to build on the progress the immigration legal services infrastructure has provided and to preserve programs serving the immigrant community. We ask that the state revisit and reinstate the Children's Holistic Immigration Representation Project (CHIRP), which provides integrated social and legal services to unaccompanied minors. We look to our state leaders to uphold our state’s values by strengthening these investments as part of California's safety net for vulnerable members in our communities — when immigrants thrive, California thrives.” 

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