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3w ago

House Democrats File Lawsuit to Restore Unannounced Oversight of ICE Facilities

They argue that a new Department of Homeland Security policy requiring advance notice for visits violates Congress’s statutory oversight rights under the 2024 Appropriations Act.

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U.S. Representative Joe Neguse, a Democrat from Colorado, is shown at a hearing in Washington. May 21, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard/File Photo
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters aboard Air Force One after leaving Aberdeen, Scotland, Tuesday, July 29, 2025, en route to Washington.
FILE - Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a roundtable at, the so -called Alligator Alcatraz," a new migrant detention facility at Dade-Collier Training and Transition facility, July 1, 2025, in Ochopee, Fla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Overview

  • Twelve House Democrats filed suit on July 30 in federal court in Washington, D.C., challenging DHS guidance that requires seven days’ notice and bars unannounced visits to ICE field offices and detention centers.
  • Plaintiffs contend the new rules conflict with the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, which grants members of Congress the authority to conduct surprise inspections of any Department of Homeland Security facility housing detainees.
  • The lawsuit names DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons, and the agencies as defendants and seeks an injunction to reinstate unannounced congressional access.
  • DHS and ICE defend the notice requirement as necessary to protect staff and detainee safety and to uphold the President’s Article II authority over executive functions.
  • Recent protests, including a sit-in by Maryland Democrats at the Baltimore ICE field office on July 28, have underscored the political stakes over transparency and detention conditions.