Fairness to Freedom Act of 2023
Latest action · Apr 18, 2023 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedApr 18, 2023
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Fairness to Freedom Act of 2023
This bill establishes a right to legal representation in certain immigration proceedings (e.g., removal and immigration bond hearings) at the government's expense for individuals who cannot afford representation. The bill also establishes various entities to facilitate such legal representation.
Currently, individuals in these immigration proceedings may be represented by counsel but not at government expense.
The bill addresses various issues related to such legal representation, including (1) the scope of the representation, (2) criteria for determining whether the individual is financially unable to afford representation, and (3) requirements relating to allowing the individual to meet with their lawyer and receiving relevant documents. Immigration proceedings may not commence until counsel has been appointed.
The bill also establishes the Office of Immigration Representation to ensure that qualified individuals who cannot afford legal representation receive the representation as required by this bill. The office's duties shall include establishing (1) administrative regions throughout the United States, and (2) a local immigration representation board for each region.
The local boards must, subject to the office's approval, develop and implement plans for providing legal representation under this bill. To provide such legal representation, the local boards may (1) establish one or more immigrant public defender organizations, (2) contract with existing community defender organizations, and (3) establish a panel attorney system.
The bill establishes minimum funding requirements for the office.
Cosponsors 38
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Apr 18, 2023 to Nov 13, 2024; 20 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-NY | Adriano Espaillat | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-OR | Andrea Salinas | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-CA | Barbara Lee | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-CA | Grace F. Napolitano | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-NY | Grace Meng | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-TX | Greg Casar | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-GA | Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-MA | James P. McGovern | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-IL | Janice D. Schakowsky | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-CA | Jared Huffman | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-IL | Jesús G. "Chuy" García | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-HI | Jill N. Tokuda | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-CA | Nanette Diaz Barragán | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-NY | Nydia M. Velázquez | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-WA | Pramila Jayapal | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-AZ | Raúl M. Grijalva | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-CA | Sara Jacobs | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-CA | Tony Cárdenas | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-NY | Yvette D. Clarke | Original | Apr 18, 2023 |
| D-MD | C. A. Dutch Ruppersberger | May 23, 2023 | |
| D-MN | Ilhan Omar | May 23, 2023 | |
| D-CA | Judy Chu | May 23, 2023 | |
| D-IL | Mike Quigley | Jun 15, 2023 | |
| D-NY | Daniel S. Goldman | Aug 25, 2023 | |
| D-WI | Mark Pocan | Aug 25, 2023 | |
| D-PA | Mary Gay Scanlon | Aug 25, 2023 | |
| D-CA | Robert Garcia | Aug 25, 2023 | |
| D-CA | Juan Vargas | Sep 12, 2023 | |
| D-MI | Rashida Tlaib | Sep 12, 2023 | |
| D-IL | Delia C. Ramirez | Nov 2, 2023 | |
| D-TX | Sylvia R. Garcia | Nov 2, 2023 | |
| D-CA | Linda T. Sánchez | Nov 13, 2023 | |
| D-PA | Summer L. Lee | May 24, 2024 | |
| D-TX | Sheila Jackson Lee | Jun 4, 2024 | |
| D-VT | Becca Balint | Jun 13, 2024 | |
| D-CO | Diana DeGette | Jun 25, 2024 | |
| D-IN | André Carson | Nov 13, 2024 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Apr 18, 2023 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Apr 18, 2023Introduced in House
- Apr 18, 2023Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 169, no. 64, April 18, 2023, page H1847.
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 1187 | Fairness to Freedom Act of 2023 | Related bill | Apr 18, 2023 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To establish the right to counsel, at Government expense for those who cannot afford counsel, for people facing removal.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Fairness to Freedom Act of 2023
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Apr 18, 2023Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
