California budget earmarks $4 million for UC Immigrant Legal Services Center

The California 2018-2019 state budget - passed by the Legislature and awaiting Gov. Jerry Brown’s approval - earmarks $4 million for UC Immigrant Legal Services Center, which is housed at UC Davis School of Law.

“California has done a model job of attracting and retaining immigrant students to its three higher education segments,” said María Blanco, Executive Director of UC Immigrant Legal Services Center. “The recession of DACA and the aggressive anti-immigrant policies of the federal government have put the dreams of those students at risk. With this funding, we will be able to find legal protections for them and ensure that they are able to live up to the California promise and contribute to our state.”

As The Sacramento Bee reported, the funding for the UC center is part of a total $21 million the budget allocates for California’s higher education systems (University of California, California State University and community colleges) to provide legal services for undocumented and immigrant students.

María Blanco is Executive Director of the UC Immigrant Legal Services Center, which operates out of UC Davis School of Law to provide immigration-related legal services for undocumented students at every UC campus but Berkeley, which has its own program. Launched in November 2014, the Center is a pilot project of the University of California Office of the President and works in collaboration with the UC Davis School of Law Immigration Law Clinic.