A dozen House Democrats filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday seeking to open up Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities for oversight visits, arguing that federal law requires members of Congress to have unfettered access to immigration facilities.
The lawsuit, filed in Washington, D.C., argues that the Department of Homeland Security has been broadly blocking access to real-time inspection of the facilities, a policy now formalized in guidance that requires at least seven days’ advance notice of a visit.
The group argued that for years Congress has included provisions in spending law requiring that DHS allow congressional access to its facilities — which the department has since violated.
“Adherence to the rule of law requires that Plaintiffs be permitted to conduct their congressionally authorized oversight activities, notwithstanding DHS’s unlawful efforts to thwart scrutiny of its facilities,” the suit stated.
The members — including Reps. Joe Neguse of Colorado, Adriano Espaillat of New York, Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, Jamie Raskin of Maryland, Robert Garcia of California, Lou Correa of California, Jason Crow of Colorado, Veronica Escobar of Texas, Dan Goldman of New York, Jimmy Gomez of California, Raul Ruiz of California and Norma J. Torres of California — argued that the Trump administration policy violated the law.
The suit alleges that the first denials started to happen in June, when House Democrats sought access to facilities pursuant to a provision of the law prohibiting the government from spending funds to stop a member of Congress “from entering, for the purpose of conducting oversight, any facility operated by or for the Department of Homeland Security used to detain or otherwise house aliens.”
The policy behind those denials was later formalized in guidance published last month, which argued that “ICE retains the sole and unreviewable discretion to deny a request or otherwise cancel, reschedule or terminate a tour or visit” and laid out several conditions under which the government could deny access.
During President Donald Trump’s first term, congressional visits to ICE facilities publicized his family separation policy and helped spread images and stories of unaccompanied children kept in prison facilities.
Wednesday’s suit said each of the members, which include Judiciary Committee ranking member Raskin and Homeland Security ranking member Thompson, attempted to access an ICE facility but were turned away. The suit said that multiple times, DHS officials have claimed that ICE facilities are not “detention facilities” as laid out in the spending law, despite the fact that immigrants may be held there.
The oversight visits to ICE facilities have formed a flash point for tensions between Democrats and the Trump administration. Rep. LaMonica McIver, D-N.J., was charged with two felonies after a confrontation during an overnight visit to an ICE facility in Newark earlier this year. McIver has pleaded not guilty, and the case is still pending.
Some of the first publicized denials of access to ICE facilities came during sometimes violent protests in Los Angeles in June. Torres and other members attempted to inspect a facility and were rebuffed multiple times. Torres said federal agents used chemical agents on the crowd of protesters outside, which included her, other members of Congress and staff.
The lawsuit asked the court to declare the policy unlawful and order the Trump administration to allow congressional visits without advance notice.
The case is Joe Neguse, in his official capacity as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, et al., vs. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, et al.
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