After being left out of the original state budget, the Children’s Holistic Immigration Representation Project (CHIRP) just secured $15 million for legal and social services for unaccompanied immigrant children through 2029.
“CHIRP is not simply a legal services program,” said Julissa Peña, executive director of the Santa Barbara Immigrant Legal Defense Center. “It is California’s commitment to ensuring that some of our most vulnerable children are not forced to face one of the most complex legal systems in the world.”
Peña and her team noticed the lack of funding in the most recent California budget for the program that supports 15 legal defense organizations across the state. Since it launched in 2022, CHIRP has assisted more than 1,100 children statewide. Currently, it is supporting nearly 100 minors in the tri-county area, including some as young as 3 years old.
Peña immediately notified state Assemblymember Gregg Hart of the omission, who then sent a letter to the budget committee. With support from Assemblymember Steve Bennett and Senate President pro Tempore Monique Limón, the amendment was made to the budget and funds were allocated to the program.
These children “have no constitutional right to a government-appointed attorney if they cannot afford one,” said Peña. “How do we expect a 3-year-old to understand immigration law?”
CHIRP fills this need, assigning both an attorney and a trauma-informed case manager who work to ensure that “children can meaningfully participate in their legal cases while receiving the emotional, medical, and social support necessary to recover from trauma and safely integrate into their communities,” according to the letter from Hart’s office.
There is one caveat: CHIRP funding can only help children who crossed the border without a parent or guardian and have been designated by the Department of Homeland Security as an Unaccompanied Immigrant Child (UIC). This means that children of mixed status families or those who were left behind after their caretakers were deported by ICE are not eligible for resources allocated by CHIRP.
Ethan Bertrand from Hart’s office explained it is up to the Department of Social Services to change eligibility requirements for the program.
“I wonder how they’re going to deal with children that are undocumented,” asked Peña. But overall, “I’m hopeful because I’m seeing people taking action,” she said.
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