The Chicago Committee of Immigrant and Refugee Rights held a hearing on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) on June 11, 2026. NIJC Associate Director of Government Relations Cecilia Mendoza testified about the history of the DACA program and the attacks on the program, NIJC’s work with DACA recipients, and the increasing need to fund immigration legal services. Chairperson Andre Vasquez and Alderwoman Jeylu B. Gutierrez introduced a resolution honoring the 14 years of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program and the Legacy of DACA recipients. NIJC applauds the Committee for passing this resolution reaffirming its commitment to support DACA recipients and the undocumented community.
Undocumented youth have led and fought for protections for decades
We would not have DACA to begin with, without the legislative fight for the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act. The DREAM Act would provide a pathway to legal status for undocumented people who came to the United States as children. The Dream Act was first introduced in 2001 and has been reintroduced in every Congress since.
As we know, the DREAM Act has not become law. The closest we got was in 2010, but were short just 5 votes in the House. The most recent version of the DREAM Act was introduced in December of last year.
With the continued inaction from Congress on the DREAM act, undocumented youth-led immigrant rights organizations and groups across the country amplified their voices through grassroots organizing and coming out of the shadow events sending a clear message that they are undocumented, unafraid, and unapologetic; demanding action. The combination of congressional inaction and grassroots organizing led to the creation of the DACA program.
The History of the DACA Program
On June 15, 2012, the Obama Administration announced the DACA program. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) began accepting applications on August 15, 2012. NIJC was proud to serve DACA applicants from day one as over 10,000 youth lined up at Navy Pier to seek this vital protection.
On September 5, 2017, five years into the program, The Trump administration rescinded DACA. USCIS stopped accepting initial applications and provided a short window for renewals. Several lawsuits followed this announcement. The majority of the lawsuits were filed by proponents of the DACA program, hoping to keep it in place.
There have been multiple turning points throughout the history of the DACA program that have made applying more complicated and risky.
Since 2017, the DACA program has been subject to litigation. Several lawsuits were consolidated and argued before the Supreme Court. On June 18, 2020, the Supreme Court found that the Trump administration did not follow the procedures required by law when it terminated the DACA program. Based on this decision, USCIS should have restored the DACA program. Instead, what followed that summer in 2020 was a series of USCIS policy memos and additional court decisions that restricted the program.
On December 4, 2020, the U.S. district court judge ruled that then acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf was not properly serving in his role, therefore did not have the authority to issue the summer 2020 memos that restricted the program. USCIS was ordered to restore the DACA program to its original parameters including accepting and processing initial applications!
Litigation around DACA continues, and the Texas v. United States case continues to hold DACA recipients’ futures in limbo. On July 16, 2021, U.S. District Court Judge Hanen out of Texas ruled that the DACA program was illegal. This decision again halted the accepting and processing of initial DACA applications; however, did allow current DACA recipients to continue renewing their benefits. An appeal on this decision was filed and went to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals – one of the most conversative circuits in the country.
On January 17, 2025, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals decision upheld the part of DACA that protects recipients from deportation as lawful but held that work authorization is not a lawful part of DACA. However, the 5th circuit also LIMITED any eventual changes to the DACA program to Texas, because in this lawsuit they were the only state that properly demonstrated injury from DACA. Click here for additional guidance for DACA recipients and legal practitioners from our partner, United We Dream.
For now, the current DACA program remains in place, allowing current DACA recipients in all states to continue to renew their benefits while the litigation continues its journey in the courts.
Today DACA recipients continue to face uncertainty with no easy answers
While DACA renewals are being accepted and processed, we are seeing processing delays. There are 5-6 month delays in DACA renewal decisions. Due to the ongoing delays in DACA renewal decisions, we recommend starting the renewal process 6-8 months prior to expiration of current benefits.
Many of our in-house and pro bono clients’ benefits are lapsing, and they are losing their jobs and access to employer-sponsored healthcare.
This further reminds us that DACA was not a permanent solution and why we have always needed a pathway to legal status. Now families and communities are at risk of losing their stability.
DACA is not only being attacked by policy memos and court rulings, but also the protections it offers are being further undermined via a recent Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) decision.
The BIA is the appellate body within the DOJ’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR).
The BIA held that DACA status alone can no longer be used as a basis to defer or stop deportation proceedings. This decision adds to a growing pattern by the federal administration to erode the DACA program by reducing the protections it offers and taking away people’s work permits thus serving to destabilize families, entire communities, and industries.
We highly encourage people to consult with an immigration attorney or DOJ Accredited Representative about their case! Especially as we continue to see an increase in risk of enforcement for DACA recipients. We remain vigilant and firmly committed to defending DACA and all undocumented community members.
NIJC’s Work with DACA
NIJC has represented DACA applicants since the start of the program. We have held over 210 clinics with pro bono partners since 2012, with a nearly 100% approval rate. We have clients returning to us for the 7th or 8th time to renew.
With DACA protection, an entire generation of immigrant youth have been able to pursue higher education, enter the workforce, start businesses, raise families, and deepen their roots in our communities.
Thanks to the New Americans Initiative (NAI) and the Chicago Legal Protection Fund (LPF), we can provide FREE legal representation with DACA applications to Illinois and Chicago residents.
Visit our website to learn more about NIJC’s services for DACA recipients, and to schedule an appointment or register for an upcoming clinic.
We Must Fund Immigration Legal Services
NIJC participated in a 2014 study from the Center for Migration Studies. The report found that 14.3% of individuals screened for DACA eligibility were found to be potentially eligible for a more permanent form of relief. We have screened DACA clients for family-based options, Asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), U-Visa, and Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) relief.
Funding for immigration legal services continues to be a critical resource, not only to identify if other permanent relief options exist, but to also advise people of how policy changes impact their case and evaluate risk at every step of the immigration process.
For this reason, NIJC asks that the Chicago City Council maintain level funding for Chicago Legal Protection Fund (LPF) at $3 million. LPF allows us to provide FREE immigration legal services to low-income Chicago residents.
Elected officials at all levels, must continue to provide support to DACA recipients and the broader undocumented community. They are pillars of our community, and they continue to face an uncertain future with no easy answers right now. We must stand in support of them, keep pressure on our Congressional Representatives to pass legislation that provides a pathway to legal status, and make sure that on a local level we are funding access to immigration legal services.
Cecilia Mendoza is associate director of government relations at NIJC.