(1) As
used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) Administrator means the state department of labor and employment,
created in section 24-1-121.
(b) Fund means the immigration legal defense fund established in
subsection (2) of this section.
(c) Indigent means a person whose household income does not exceed two
hundred percent of the family federal poverty guidelines, adjusted for family size,
determined annually by the United States department of health and human
services.
(d) Qualifying organization means an organization that:
(I) Is exempt from taxation pursuant to section 501 (c)(3) of the federal
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended;
(II) Has a physical place of business in Colorado;
(III) Obtains more than twenty-five percent of its funding from sources other
than grants from the fund;
(IV) Can provide services using grant dollars within six months of receiving
funding; and
(V) Includes on the staff of the organization an attorney with at least three
years' experience and expertise in providing legal representation to indigent clients
in civil immigration proceedings before the executive office for immigration review
within the United States department of justice; or
(VI) (A) Partners with a nonprofit legal service provider that has at least
three years' experience and expertise in providing legal representation to indigent
clients in civil immigration proceedings before the executive office for immigration
review within the United States department of justice; or
(B) Only if there are no nonprofit legal services providers available to provide
legal services, partners with a private immigration attorney who has a physical
place of business in or near the geographic area that the qualifying organization
serves, and the private immigration attorney has at least three years' experience
and expertise in providing legal representation to indigent clients in civil
immigration proceedings before the executive office for immigration review within
the United States department of justice.
(2) (a) There is established in the state treasury the immigration legal
defense fund. The money in the fund is continuously appropriated to the
administrator. Pursuant to subsection (5)(b) of this section, the administrator is
authorized to make grants from the fund to qualifying organizations to represent
indigent individuals appearing before an immigration court in Colorado who lack
private counsel.
(b) The state treasurer shall credit any civil penalty money transferred to the
state treasurer pursuant to section 24-74-107 or 24-74.1-103 and interest and
income derived from the deposit and investment of the civil penalty money in the
fund to the fund.
(3) A qualifying organization that receives a grant from the fund shall only
use the grant for services that include providing indigent clients with:
(a) Legal representation before an immigration court in Colorado;
(b) Representation before the board of immigration appeals within the
United States department of justice, but not before a United States district court, a
United States circuit court of appeals, or the United States supreme court on
appeal from an immigration order or on any other related matters;
(c) Any other representation before an immigration agency necessary to
protect the interests of the indigent client from removal or civil immigration
detention, including custody redetermination proceedings, reinstatement of
removal proceedings, withholding-only proceedings, request for release from civil
immigration detention, or application for ancillary relief from removal;
(d) Any other continued representation after the issuance of a final order by
the executive office for immigration review that is necessary to conclude the
indigent client's representation, secure the indigent client's immigration benefits,
or obtain the indigent client's release from immigration detention; and
(e) Litigation expenses, such as application fees, interpretation and
translation costs, medical or psychological evaluations, and expert fees, as well as
associated overhead expenses.
(4) (a) A qualifying organization shall provide representation on all legal
matters necessary for protection from removal and detention, through appeals to
the board of immigration appeals, and shall accept cases without regard to the
indigent client's likelihood of success or eligibility for immigration relief.
(b) (I) A qualifying organization shall move to withdraw from representation
if:
(A) The venue in the case is transferred to an immigration court outside of
Colorado;
(B) The indigent client no longer resides in Colorado; or
(C) Withdrawal is required by the rules of professional conduct.
(II) If the qualifying organization's withdrawal motion is denied, the
organization shall provide legal services as required by the executive office for
immigration review.
(5) (a) A qualifying organization seeking to receive a grant from the fund
shall submit an application each year to the administrator on a form provided by the
administrator. The application form must request any information that the
administrator needs to determine whether the applying organization meets the
qualifications for receipt of a grant, the dollar amount requested, and the intended
use of any funding.
(b) (I) The administrator shall evaluate applications of qualifying
organizations to determine if the applications satisfy the criteria defined in
subsection (1)(d) of this section and shall select grant recipients based on their
expertise and qualifications to provide qualified services through a grant from the
fund.
(II) On or immediately after July 1, 2023, and on July 1 of each year thereafter,
the administrator shall award grants from the fund, subject to available
appropriations, to qualifying organizations.
(III) The administrator shall award larger grants to fewer qualifying
organizations to achieve a greater, measurable impact. The administrator may
determine the amount of each grant award, which may differ from the qualifying
organization's requested dollar amount.
(6) The administrator shall award grants so that seventy percent of the
money is allocated to qualifying organizations serving indigent clients who are
detained in the custody of the United States department of homeland security for
deportation proceedings and thirty percent of the money is allocated to qualifying
organizations serving indigent clients who are not detained for deportation
proceedings; except that this split does not apply if the need for detained indigent
client representation can be met with less than seventy percent of the money. Two-thirds of the money for those qualifying organizations serving indigent clients who
are not detained must be used for in-person legal services serving indigent clients
outside of the Denver metro area, unless there are no qualifying applicants serving
nondetained indigent clients outside the Denver metro area.
(7) Each qualifying organization that receives a grant pursuant to this
section shall submit an annual report to the administrator that includes the
following information, to the extent possible and to the extent that it does not
violate the privilege and confidentiality of an attorney-client relationship:
(a) Number of clients served;
(b) Case outcomes;
(c) Type of defense, including detained and nondetained;
(d) Type of case, including removal, asylum, adjustment of status, and work
authorization;
(e) Location of court and judge for each case;
(f) Client family data, including number of children and whether the
household has mixed immigration status;
(g) Client country of origin;
(h) Client ethnicity;
(i) Client zip code;
(j) Client's duration in Colorado and the United States;
(k) Whether bond or release was granted to the client;
(l) Cost of bond for the client;
(m) Income range of the client;
(n) Whether or not the client had previous immigration status in the United
States; and
(o) Number of days the client spent in detention.
(8) (a) In addition to any appropriation from the general fund, the
administrator may seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, or donations from private
or public sources for the purposes of this section. The administrator may receive
and expend the money received through gifts, grants, and donations.
(b) The administrator may expend no more than the lesser of fifteen
thousand dollars or up to five percent per year from the fund for the direct and
indirect costs associated with the administration of this section. The state treasurer
shall credit all interest and income derived from the deposit and investment of
money in the fund to the fund.
(9) Notwithstanding section 24-1-136 (11)(a)(I), the administrator shall submit
a consolidated report of the reported information described in subsection (7) of this
section to the joint budget committee annually by September 1.
(10) A county may appropriate local or state funds to implement its own
immigration legal defense fund, partner with a local immigration legal defense
fund, or partner with the administrator to enhance the effectiveness of the
immigration legal defense fund.