A Los Angeles nonprofit supported by taxpayer money is under scrutiny over allegations that it helped organize resistance to federal immigration enforcement operations. The questions emerged as federal agents conducted a new round of immigration enforcement activity across Southern California.

Attorney Laura Powell with Californians for Good Governance pointed to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, known as CHIRLA, as a central player in efforts to monitor and respond to ICE operations. CHIRLA is a Los Angeles group advocating for immigrants.

Powell detailed the organization’s involvement with the Los Angeles Rapid Response Network. The network is a coalition of nonprofit organizations that coordinates responses to ICE activity in the region.

According to Powell’s description, CHIRLA plays a significant role in that coordinated effort. The group’s participation has drawn attention because it receives substantial funding through government contracts.

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CHIRLA Executive Director Angelica Salas previously announced that the network’s hotline had received more than 50 calls about ICE activity. Those calls also included reported sightings of “men in military garb.”

Salas has referred to SEIU California President David Huerta as her “brother.” Huerta was arrested during a protest after blocking the path of an ICE vehicle.

Governor Gavin Newsom also backed Huerta following the arrest. Newsom claimed that the SEIU California president had merely been “witnessing” the action when the incident occurred.

The public funding received by CHIRLA is substantial, according to figures cited by Powell. Financial statements for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, showed that the nonprofit reported nearly $34 million in government contract revenue.

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California accounted for about 96% of that government contract revenue. The nearly $34 million total represented a sharp increase from the roughly $12 million in government contract revenue that CHIRLA reported during the previous year.

Several government agencies provided funding to the organization. They included the California Department of Social Services, the California Arts Council, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, and the Department of Homeland Security.

Federal funding awarded to CHIRLA included grants connected to citizenship instruction and naturalization services. That funding has since become a point of conflict between the organization and the Trump administration.

Powell argued that the arrangement forces taxpayers to support an organization involved in resistance to lawful federal immigration enforcement. She also connected CHIRLA’s activities with its lobbying arm and support for Democrats seeking public office.

“Your tax dollars fund an organization that organizes efforts to directly interfere with the federal government’s lawful exercise of authority. Then, through its lobbying arm, that organization helps get Democrats elected to office, who then repay the favor by ensuring increased funding,” Powell summarized.

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Over the past two days, ICE agents have conducted targeted operations across the Los Angeles region, detaining more than 40 suspected illegal aliens. These enforcement actions triggered large-scale demonstrations, some of which turned confrontational, with reports of vandalism, blocked traffic, and physical clashes with federal agents. The unrest has prompted questions about who is organizing and funding these protests. One of the organizations at the center of the resistance to ICE is the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), a Los Angeles nonprofit that has long provided legal and advocacy services to illegal aliens. CHIRLA is known for radical positions on immigration—for example, it led a campaign to abolish ICE in 2018. Yesterday afternoon, as clashes with federal law enforcement were heating up, CHIRLA Executive Director Angelica Salas held a press conference during which she announced that the Los Angeles Rapid Response Network’s hotline had received more than 50 calls reporting ICE activity and sightings of “men in military garb.” LARRN is organized by a coalition of nonprofits, and CHIRLA plays a central role, using its main phone line as the hotline number. LARRN’s hotline is one of the communication systems that allows legal observers, volunteers, and other activists to be quickly dispatched to the scene of immigration enforcement actions. During her remarks, Salas referred to SEIU California President David Huerta as her “brother,” highlighting CHIRLA’s close ties to organized labor in California. Huerta had been arrested during one of the protests for blocking the path of an ICE vehicle, as shown by video footage released by U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. Governor Gavin Newsom expressed his unequivocal support for Huerta, claiming he was only “witnessing” the action, while Essayli announced his intention to file criminal charges. For her part, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has defiantly opposed federal immigration enforcement in the city, stating on social media Friday, “We will not stand for this” and “No vamos a permitir estas acciones,” (“We are not going to permit these actions”). She added that her office would collaborate with community-based organizations that serve immigrants. She has a long relationship with CHIRLA and bragged last year about obtaining federal funding for CHIRLA’s programs. That grant is part of a broader stream of public dollars that the organization receives from government sources. In fact, according to a financial audit submitted to the state, the CHIRLA organization received nearly $34 million in revenue from government contracts during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, with 96% of that funding from the State of California. That figure marks a sharp increase from the prior year, when it received around $12 million in government contract revenue. Agencies contributing to CHIRLA’s funding during this period included the California Department of Social Services, the California Arts Council, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, and the Department of Homeland Security. Notably, as mentioned above, a DHS contract funded CHIRLA to provide citizenship instruction and naturalization services. With $100,000 remaining on CHIRLA’s contract, DHS froze the remaining funds in February. CHIRLA responded by suing. The court denied their motion for a preliminary injunction on May 29. This is one of two lawsuits CHIRLA filed against DHS this year. The other was dismissed for lack of standing and is on appeal. To sum up how this works: Your tax dollars fund an organization that organizes efforts to directly interfere with the federal government’s lawful exercise of authority. Then, through its lobbying arm, that organization helps get Democrats elected to office, who then repay the favor by ensuring increased funding. This is the nonprofit industrial complex at work. — Laura Powell (@LauraPowellEsq) June 8, 2025

The Trump administration moved to terminate federal funding for CHIRLA’s citizenship programs. Remaining funds connected to those programs were frozen in February.

CHIRLA responded to that move by filing a lawsuit. A court denied the organization’s motion for a preliminary injunction in May, leaving the funding freeze in place.

The nonprofit also filed a separate lawsuit related to the dispute. That case was dismissed for lack of standing.

The controversy places CHIRLA’s taxpayer support, rapid response activities, and opposition to ICE enforcement under a brighter spotlight. The organization’s government contract revenue rose from roughly $12 million to nearly $34 million in a single year, with California providing about 96% of the latter amount.

This is a bogus report by the activist illegal immigrant rights group CHIRLA. How would they know who is registered to vote and who is a citizen? They don’t (and shouldn’t) have access to any official records.

It’s remarkable that the media accepts whatever these people say as gospel yet won’t report on the sworn declarations we filed in evidence confirming more than 20,000 noncitizens are suspected to be on California’s voter rolls based on official @USCIS records. This report also contradicts LA County’s report, which sampled 200 people on the list, all 200 of whom were re-confirmed as foreign-born aliens. — F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) October 31, 2026

At the same time, the Trump administration’s attempt to cut federal support has produced multiple legal challenges from CHIRLA. So far, the nonprofit has failed to secure a preliminary injunction, while its separate lawsuit was dismissed for lack of standing.

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