§ 13300.5. — 13300.5. (Added by Stats. 2025, Ch. 665, Sec. 1.)

(a)
(1)
Subject to the availability of state funding, the state shall provide legal counsel to every immigrant youth in the State of California.
(2)
(A)
The department shall allocate funding according to this section. In determining the amount and allocation of contracts awarded pursuant to this section, the department shall consider whether federal funding has been made available and dispersed to organizations or relevant projects in the state.
(B)
The department shall prioritize awards of contracts or grants to qualified nonprofit organizations as described in Section 13301 that ineligible for federal funds or that have unmet needs
despite federal assistance.
(b)
Counsel shall be conferred pursuant to this section as follows:
(1)
Access to counsel shall begin at the time an immigrant youth is designated as unaccompanied by a federal or state agency or identified as such by an immigration attorney.
(2)
Access to counsel may apply in state court proceedings or submitting an affirmative filing for purposes of obtaining any order necessary for or relevant to immigration remedies, federal immigration proceedings, any related appearances or matters, and any appeals arising from those proceedings, before the United States Department of Homeland Security, federal court, or the Department of Justice.
(3)
Access to counsel does not need to be provided if the immigrant youth has independent
counsel.
(4)
Access to counsel applies to a child who has been designated an immigrant youth at any time throughout the pendency of any of the proceedings identified in paragraphs (1) and (2). If an immigrant youth has been assigned counsel before the immigrant youth reaches 18 years of age, the immigrant youth remains eligible for ongoing access to counsel during the pendency of the proceedings.
(c)
The department shall contract to provide legal counsel for immigrant youth with either of the following:
(1)
A qualified nonprofit legal services organization, as described in Section 13301.
(2)
An office of the public defender for the county, as established pursuant to Section 27700 of the Government Code, if the public defender meets all of the following
requirements:
(A)
The office has an immigration attorney with at least three years of experience handling asylum, T-Visa, U-Visa, or special immigrant juvenile status cases and has represented at least 20 minors in these matters.
(B)
The office has an immigration attorney with experience representing minors in removal proceedings and asylum applications.
(C)
The office has an immigration attorney who has conducted trainings on these issues for practitioners beyond their staff.
(3)
The department may impose additional requirements for an office of public defender for the county to be eligible for a contract.
(d)
For purposes of this section, an immigrant youth is a person residing in, or
formerly residing, California, and is either of the following:
(1)
The person is an undocumented minor as described in Section 279(g)(2) of Title 6 of the United States Code.
(2)
The person is under 18 years of age, has no lawful immigration status, arrived in the United States without a parent or legal guardian, or has no parent or legal guardian available and able to assist in the youth’s immigration proceedings.
(e)
The department shall require contractors pursuant to this section to maintain adequate legal malpractice insurance as necessary and to indemnify and hold the state harmless from any claims that arise from the legal services provided pursuant to this section.
(f)
The department may fund social work services contracted by qualified
nonprofit legal service organizations to assist immigrant youth.

Legislative History

Added by Stats. 2025, Ch. 665, Sec. 1. (AB 1261) Effective January 1, 2026.