NY State Bar advocates for RTC in immigration cases

As reported by Hoodline NYC, the New York State Bar backed a series of bills at the state level (including the BUILD Act) in 2026 that would increase access to counsel (or create a right to counsel) for people in immigration cases, as well as other immigration-related pieces of legislation.  The article notes, “Nearly 30 percent of people facing deportation in New York do not have attorneys, and roughly 40 percent of detained immigrants appear in court alone.”  There were a number of state-level immigration RTC bills this session (which can be viewed at https://civilrighttocounsel.org/current-legislative-developments/), including the New York Access to Representation Act.

Specifically, the New York legislature considered the following bills this session that we tracked:

SB 4538: Also known as the BUILD Act, which would have created a grant program to expand access to counsel for people facing deportation.

SB 9756: Known as the New York Access to Representation Act, which proposed providing “covered individuals” (income eligible persons, regardless of age, whose immigration proceedings “have a significant nexus to New York state”) with the right to legal services.

SB 1650 | AB 2582: These cross-filed bills would have provided a right to counsel for unaccompanied minors in immigration proceedings.

SB 1066 & SB 141 | AB 270: These three bills would’ve provided a right to counsel to income eligible individuals in removal proceedings.

SB 7960 | AB 8188: Cross-filed bills that would have prohibited local governmental entities from contracting with airlines that transport individuals detained by ICE unless the airline first demonstrates that due process rights were afforded.

To read more about other legislative efforts during the Trump era, check out The right to counsel in immigration cases.