In a firm stance against the dismantling of vital oversight functions within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Attorney General Kwame Raoul, alongside a coalition of 20 attorneys general, has called upon the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to halt the closure of three key DHS offices. Those offices – the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman, and the Office of Immigration Detention Ombudsman – were set to be shut down despite strong objections from Congress, a move announced by DHS in March. According to the statement released by the Illinois Attorney General's Office, "These offices provide essential services employers and residents rely upon."
With their operations ceasing, the absence of these offices leaves many pending complaints and investigations in disarray, leaving individuals and employers without a remedial pathway. Describing the closures, Attorney General Raoul criticized the Trump administration, stating they exceed "its statutory and constitutional authority," as per the Illinois Attorney General's Office. The coalition's amicus brief highlights the negative impacts these shutdowns will have on both employers and residents who depend on the services provided by these offices. The CIS Ombudsman alone annually aids tens of thousands of immigration cases, ranging from employment authorizations to naturalization processes for noncitizens and employers.
The consequences of closing the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman, the coalition warns, could lead to significant delays or outright denials of crucial immigration documents such as work and student visas, work authorizations, and green cards. Attorney General Raoul suggested that this will not only disadvantage individuals but will also prove costly for states, remarking in their brief that "states that issue grants to fund legal assistance programs to help their residents apply for visas, asylum or temporary protected status," the Illinois Attorney General's Office stated.
The OIDO's responsibilities included managing hundreds of site visits and conducting unannounced inspections to ensure humane conditions. As part of their procedures, case managers also offer direct, on-the-ground help to detained individuals. "Without the ability to make complaints to OIDO," the attorneys general fear that those detained are likely to endure unsanitary and unsafe environments. Before its closure, the OIDO faced certain conditions such as critically low medical staffing levels, leaking roofs, and mold within living quarters, as noted by the Illinois Attorney General's Office.
