UMVA has learned that California’s political machine has funneled more than $1 billion of taxpayer money into a network of nonprofits that aid illegal immigrants, even those convicted of serious crimes.
Under Governor Gavin Newsom, the grants have financed everything from food and shelter for border crossers to an extensive legal‑defense apparatus designed to keep undocumented individuals out of deportation cages.
At least $100 million of those funds have been directed to legal‑aid groups that operate under a “merits‑blind” policy, refusing to screen clients by the severity of their offenses and taking on cases that state law earmarks for removal.
This covert litigation thrives behind a state shield that blocks courts from revealing a defendant’s immigration status without a judge’s nod, keeping the battles out of public sight.
Last year, lawmakers attempted to curb the flow of money, banning state dollars from financing legal defense for immigrant felons, but the ban lacks any teeth, rendering it largely symbolic.
UMVA can exclusively reveal that the ties between these nonprofits and political heavyweight Xavier Becerra run deep, forming a core part of his political identity.
His closest ally, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, received more than $100 million in state funds, using the cash not only for legal aid but also to stage street protests against immigration enforcement and to run a rapid‑response alert network for raids.
Becerra has publicly called the coalition “my family,” and its political arm threw its support behind his gubernatorial bid, even deploying undocumented canvassers to oppose his opponent.
Another long‑standing partner, Unidos US, operates a web of 50 affiliates that provide legal services to immigrants, including those with criminal records, and has been intertwined with Becerra’s career for decades.
His daughter interned with the group in 2012, and the organization helped smooth his confirmation as a federal health secretary, while also footing a modest bill for his attendance at a 2005 conference.
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center, a powerhouse that has amassed over $146 million in state contracts, has worked hand‑in‑hand with Becerra on detention policy and litigation.
Its website touts a $140 manual that teaches lawyers how to erase the immigration fallout of convictions, and it highlights a recent appellate ruling that removes assault with a deadly weapon from the list of crimes automatically triggering deportation.
Through grant money, the Center has poured at least $540,000 into training public defenders to use such strategies, though neither Becerra’s campaign nor the Center has clarified how the funds are applied.
During his tenure as attorney general, Becerra championed legislation freezing the expansion of private immigration detention facilities, securing a million‑dollar annual budget for the state to monitor those prisons.
He later backed a report exposing abuse in detention centers and joined an amicus brief defending California’s ban on private detention—a ban that a federal court later struck down.
Now, with the governor’s race heating up, Becerra signals a revival of the fight to eliminate private detention facilities, pledging to push every possible lever to keep any such prisons in California under strict state standards.
