Mancilla De Rodriguez, at al., v. Ashcroft, et al.: Lawsuit Challenges INS Denial of Fee Waivers

IMMIGRATION LAW & POLICY

Removal Procedures and Defenses

MANCILLA DE RODRIGUEZ, ET AL., V. ASHCROFT, ET AL.: LAWSUIT CHALLENGES INS DENIAL OF FEE WAIVERS
Immigrants' Rights Update, Vol. 16, No. 1, February 28, 2002

Two low-income lawful permanent residents have filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Los Angeles to challenge denials of their requests for waivers of the naturalization application fee. The suit alleges that the California Service Center (CSC) of the Immigration and Naturalization Service routinely denies fee waiver requests for low-income residents and that the CSC's fee waiver approval rate is dramatically lower than in the rest of the country. The suit further alleges that the CSC's policies violate the United States Constitution and the INS's own regulations and policies.

The plaintiffs are represented by Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County and the Western Center on Law and Poverty. In a press statement, the organizations representing the plaintiffs point out that INS fees for filing an application to become a U.S. citizen have risen dramatically over the past four years, making fee waivers increasingly important. In January 1999, the fee for filing a naturalization application rose from $95 to $225, plus an additional $25 fee for fingerprinting. Moreover, on Feb. 19, 2002, the day the suit was filed, a further fee increase went into affect, raising the naturalization application fee to $260 and doubling the fingerprinting fee to $50 (see "INS Issues Final Rule Raising Fees for Many Applications and Petitions,"Immigrants' Rights Update, Feb. 28, 2002, p. 7).

Advocates with clients who have tried to apply for citizenship but were denied a fee waiver by the CSC can contact Bob Graziano of Neighborhood Legal Services via telephone at (818) 834-7584 or e-mail at RGraziano@nls-la.org.

Mancilla De Rodriguez, et al., v. Ashcroft, et al. (C.D. Cal. filed Feb. 19, 2002).