Nonprofits Helping Illegal Immigrants Took $291 Million From Taxpayers

Taxpayers funded eight nonprofits that serve, protect or advocate for illegal immigrants with more than $291 million between 2012 to 2016, according to an analysis of federal spending data and tax documents Daily Caller News Foundation Investigative Group.

The eight groups — including at least one that endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016 — provide a variety of support to illegal aliens, ranging from legal and social services to political advocacy.

Ninety-four percent of the public funds — or nearly $274 million — came from the federal government...

The $291 million total in public funding, however, is almost certainly an underestimate...   Additionally, those groups only represent a small sample of publicly-funded pro-illegal immigrant nonprofits.

The Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) received the most in government grants of the eight charities....$255 million — or 87 percent — of the total funding.... A large portion of that money was awarded to assist refugees.

And government grants accounted for 92 percent of the LIRS budget between 2013 and 2015.

LIRS wants to ensure “all migrants and refugees are protected, embraced and empowered,” and seeks to end detention centers, according to its website. Instead, the group advocates for “community-based alternatives to immigration detention” to house “individuals as they await a final decision on their immigration status.”

The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) was the second most publicly-funded charity among the eight analyzed nonprofits, receiving more than $17 million between 2013 and 2015, data shows. Government grants accounted for only a small portion of its revenue.

The group’s 2012 and 2016 990s were unavailable, but NCLR received an average of more than $5 million each year. La Raza’s political action committee endorsed Clinton for president during the 2016 campaign. It was the group’s first-ever presidential candidate endorsement.

La Raza’s president and CEO Janet Murguia is an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement strategies...

Americans For Immigrant Justice received nearly $8 million in government grants between 2012 and 2014 (its 2015 and 2016 990s were unavailable) — the third largest amount among the eight charities reviewed by TheDCNF. Public money accounted for nearly 91 percent of its total revenue, and it annually received $2.6 million on average.

The nonprofit legal defense fund has represented detained illegal immigrants, and cases often involve the conditions of the facilities....

Below are the five remaining publicly-funded nonprofits TheDCNF analyzed.

TheDCNF was highly selective when deciding which charities it would sample. Ultimately, only groups with a national scope and focus that overtly assisted illegal immigrants and dealt exclusively in immigration matters were included.

Nonprofits operating at local or state levels, those more covert about dealings with illegal immigrants, and groups that handle a variety of issues in addition to immigration were excluded.

One group awarded significant public funding that TheDCNF excluded was the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Migration and Refugee Services, since its funding is lumped together with other services it provides.

The Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC) was the only nonprofit analyzed that responded to requests for comment, besides Americans for Immigrant Justice.

CLINIC initiated its “text4refugees” project with a federal grant of $525,000. Anonymous subscribers receive up to two texts per month from CLINIC about the citizenship application process....

“Our affiliates, the local nonprofit immigration service agencies, are the ones who deal directly with immigrants,” Zapor told TheDCNF. “So, indirectly, some subset of undocumented women who are victims of violence may benefit from the funding. But they do not get any direct ‘benefit’ beyond a better-trained legal representative.”

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