HHS contract termination may put legal services for 20,000 unaccompanied immigrant children at risk

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) - A newly terminated federal contract may impact the future of more than 20,000 unaccompanied immigrant children nationwide.

The Department of Health and Human Services terminated a three year contract with Acacia Center for Justice on Friday.

The $65 million contract provided free legal counsel to unaccompanied immigrant children though a network of providers around the country.

One of those providers is the Americans for Immigrant Justice, a Miami based legal organization who says they’ve faced a multitude of problems in their time as a subcontractor.

“We have had to make cuts because of the end of the contract, but there’s two parts. We also haven’t been paid for the last few months of work, about five or six months of work, so we’ve been using our reserves to continue these services,” Alexandra Manrique Alfonso with American for Immigrant Justice said. “This month, we’ve made the decision to furlough half the team after July 31.”

They say that these issues began in December 2025 when funding came to a halt under the contract.

Alfonso explained that the lack of funding has greatly hindered the legal services they can provide for their clients, some as young as infants.

“These are children who have fled their country. Many have been abused, abandoned and neglected,” Alfonso said. “Right now, the contract allows for representation. It allows for ‘know your rights’ presentations. It allows for legal screenings, assistance with courts. Following this contract, if there are no funds, it affects legal service provides significantly, which then affects children.”

The HHS’s Office of Refugee Resettlement says they are compliant with their legal and regulatory obligations and work to provide appropriate care for children in their custody.

They also maintain that the contract with Acacia expired Friday, but say they offered Acacia a second bridge contract that was declined.

With close to a 300 person case load, the Americans for Immigrant Justice aren’t sure about the future of their funding under contract, but stay hopeful.

“As of right now, we’re just focused on what we could to past July 31. Seeing if we could maintain a relationship with the facility, which we do have a great relationship with the facility we serve, that houses unaccompanied children, but we’re evaluating and seeing how we could provide services with limited capacity.”