Key facts
- The Trump administration is transferring a majority of unaccompanied undocumented children with active immigration court cases to Texas.
- Nearly 80% of such children in July and over 90% in August were sent to Texas, totaling 925 children.
- Advocates fear these children will face mass deportation due to unlicensed facilities and limited legal representation in Texas.
- Texas's government has refused state licensing for ORR care providers, leading to less child welfare oversight.
- ORR is seeking contracts for emergency influx facilities capable of holding up to 3,000 children, despite current low capacity.
- Many children in Texas facilities have limited access to legal representation, with rates as low as 8.7% in San Antonio.
The Trump administration has begun transferring a significant majority of undocumented children who arrived in the U.S. alone and have new immigration court cases to Texas. This shift, which has seen nearly 80% of such children in July and over 90% in August sent to the state, has raised alarms among immigrant rights advocates.
Researchers at bklg.org analyzed data showing that 925 children are now in Texas under the care of the Health and Human Services (HHS) department’s office of refugee resettlement (ORR) and have open immigration court proceedings. Of these, 651 were sent in July and August alone, a substantial increase from previous months.
Immigrant advocates express concerns that this concentration of children in Texas, a state with fewer attorneys and a reputation for harsh immigration rulings, could facilitate mass apprehensions and deportations. Roxana Avila-Cimpeanu, deputy director at the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, described the facilities as potentially becoming a "deportation churn out factory."
The situation is exacerbated by Texas's Republican-dominated government refusing to provide state licensing for ORR care providers, leading to reduced child welfare oversight. Democratic congresswoman Veronica Escobar stated that the Trump administration is aware it will face no pushback from the state government and that officials like Governor Greg Abbott are "willing accomplices."
Many children in these Texas facilities lack legal representation, with filing rates for legal representation as low as 8.7% in San Antonio, compared to a national average of 31.7% for children in ORR custody with active proceedings. Meanwhile, ORR is seeking contracts for "emergency influx facilities" with up to 3,000 beds, despite operating at only about 27% capacity, fueling fears of large-scale detentions.