HHS Notice on Federal Benefits

Toplines

On July 14, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a notice in the Federal Register that re-interprets the meaning of “Federal public benefit” in the 1996 welfare law. In doing so, the notice restricts eligibility to a narrow set of “qualified immigrants” and leaves out many lawfully residing immigrants. See Table B below for more details. 

The notice takes effect on July 14, 2025, but HHS also provides a 30 day comment period that ended on 8/13/2025. The PIF Coalition comment signed by nearly 400 organizations is available here.  Update 8/7/25: HHS posted an update that, on a nationwide basis, it will not enforce this notice until September 11, 2025. This is likely in response to a lawsuit filed by 21 states against the Trump administration to block the notice. As part of the lawsuit, the states and HHS recently agreed to a stipulation that HHS would not enforce the PRWORA notice until September 11th in the states that are plaintiffs in the lawsuit.  In other words, the notice does not apply until September 10th in the following states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont,  Wisconsin, and Washington. Learn more about the notice in our explainer below.


The notice says that HHS considers an additional 13 programs as “Federal public benefits” with eligibility restricted to qualified immigrants. These include Head Start, Community Health Centers, the Title X family planning program, and the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG). See Table A below for more details. HHS also recognizes that some services designated as “federal public benefits” may nevertheless fit within one of the statutory exemptions, such as testing and treatment of communicable disease symptoms. This notice does not change eligibility for Medicaid or CHIP and states that provide coverage to lawfully residing immigrant children and pregnant people can continue to do so. 

This HHS notice did not address PRWORA’s verification requirements. It confirms that non-profit charitable organizations are not required to verify immigration status. But it did not provide details on how verification of status might occur.  

More Details

Programs HHS Considers as Federal Public Benefits

The 1996 welfare law provided a general definition of the “Federal public benefits” that are subject to its “qualified immigrant” eligibility restrictions.  With some important exceptions, the welfare law allowed Federal agencies to determine which of their programs were restricted by the law and which were exempt from restriction.

On July 14, 2025, almost thirty years after passage of the 1996 welfare law, and more than 25 years after HHS published its initial notice, the agency published a notice reinterpreting this term. The notice takes effect immediately (based on the rationale  that any delay would be contrary to the public interest and fail to address the ongoing emergency at the Southern Border of the U.S.), but also grants a 30 day comment period.


Table A below lists the programs that HHS considered to be “Federal public benefits” in the initial August 4, 1998 notice , and in the notice published on July 14, 2025.  “Federal public benefits” are subject to “qualified immigrant” eligibility restrictions. The notice says that this list is not exhaustive. Any programs not listed in this notice or established after the date of this notice may still fall under the definition of Federal public benefit. Any additional programs determined to be Federal public benefits will be announced in program specific guidance. However, the notice does not change eligibility for Medicaid or CHIP and states that cover lawfully residing immigrant children and pregnant people can continue to do so.

In the July 10, 2025 notice, HHS’ recognized that some services designated as “federal public benefits” may nevertheless fit within one of the statutory exemptions, such as testing and treatment of communicable disease symptoms. 

Qualified Immigrants

“Qualified immigrants” under the welfare law –the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) – are eligible for Federal public benefits programs. They include lawful permanent residents (LPRs) or people with a green card, refugees, people granted asylum or withholding of deportation/removal, and conditional entrants; people granted parole by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for a period of at least one year; Cuban and Haitian entrants; certain abused immigrants, their children and/or their parents; certain survivors of trafficking; and individuals residing in the U.S. pursuant to a Compact of Free Association (COFA).

Many lawfully residing immigrants, who are not listed as “qualified immigrants,” are ineligible for “Federal public benefits” programs. These immigrants include people with Temporary Protected Status; applicants for adjustment to LPR status with approved visa petitions; applicants for asylum or withholding of deportation/removal; people paroled for less than one year, granted deferred enforced departure, or deferred action; special immigrant juveniles; U Visa Holders, people with valid nonimmigrant visas, and more.

Table B Below provides details.

Verification Requirements

This HHS notice did not address PRWORA’s verification requirements.  It confirms that non-profit charitable organizations are not required to verify immigration status. But it did not provide details on how verification of status might occur. 

Costs and Savings

In addition to any savings that may be achieved by excluding lawfully residing people from health and human services programs, HHS notes millions of dollars in new administrative costs for individuals to document their eligibility, and the government to review their eligibility, and for programs to revise their eligibility and operating procedures.

Table A: Programs HHS Considers to Be “Federal Public Benefits” Restricted to “Qualified” Immigrants
HHS Notice: 8/4/1998HHS Notice: 7/10/2025
Adoption Assistance✔️✔️
Administration on Developmental Disabilities – State Developmental Disabilities Councils (direct services only)✔️✔️
ADD– Special Projects (direct services only)✔️✔️
ADD- University Affiliated Programs (clinical disability assessment services only)✔️✔️
Adult Programs/ Payments to Territories✔️✔️
Agency for Health Care Policy and Research Dissertation Grants✔️✔️
Child Care and Development Fund✔️✔️
Clinical Training Grant for Faculty Development in Alcohol and Drug Use✔️✔️
Foster Care✔️✔️
Health Profession Education and Training Assistance✔️✔️
Independent Living Program✔️✔️
Job Opportunities for Low Income Individuals (JOLI)✔️✔️
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)✔️✔️
Medicare✔️✔️
Medicaid (except assistance for an emergency medical condition)✔️✔️
Mental Health Clinical Training Grants✔️✔️
Native Hawaiian Loan Program✔️✔️
Refugee Cash Assistance✔️✔️
Refugee Medical Assistance✔️✔️
Refugee Preventive Health Services Program✔️✔️
Refugee Social Services Formula Program✔️✔️
Refugee Social Services Discretionary Program✔️✔️
Refugee Targeted Assistance Formula Program✔️✔️
Refugee Targeted Assistance Discretionary Program✔️✔️
Refugee Unaccompanied Minors Program✔️✔️
Refugee Voluntary Agency Matching Grant Program✔️✔️
Repatriation Program✔️✔️
Residential Energy Assistance Challenge Option (REACH)✔️✔️
Social Services Block Grants (SSBG)✔️✔️
State Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP)✔️✔️
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)✔️✔️
Title X Family Planning Program✔️
Head Start✔️
Title IV-E  Educational and Training Voucher Program✔️
Community Services Block Grant (CSBG)✔️
Health Center Program✔️
Substance Use Prevention and Recovery Support Services Block Grant ✔️
Community Mental Health Services Block Grant✔️
Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness Grant Program✔️
Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics✔️
Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Treatment, Prevention and Recovery support Services Programs administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration not otherwise covered under 37-40.✔️
Title IV-E Prevention Services Program✔️
Title IV-E Kinship Guardianship Assistance Program✔️
Health Workforce Programs not otherwise covered under 10 above (including grants, loans scholarships, payments and loan repayments).✔️
Note 1: The notice says that this list is not exhaustive. Any programs not listed in this notice or established after the date of this notice may still fall under the definition of Federal public benefit. Any additional programs determined to be Federal public benefits will be announced in program specific guidance. 
Note 2: The notice does not change eligibility for Medicaid or CHIP and states that cover lawfully residing immigrant children and pregnant people can continue to do so.
Table B: Qualified Immigrants and Lawfully Residing Immigrants
 Qualified ImmigrantsLawfully Residing Immigrants
Lawful permanent residents (LPRs) or people with green cards✔️✔️
Refugees and people granted asylum ✔️✔️
People granted withholding of deportation/removal,conditional entrants✔️✔️
People granted parole by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for a period of at least one year; ✔️✔️
Cuban and Haitian entrants; ✔️✔️
Certain abused immigrants, their children and/or their parents; ✔️✔️
Certain survivors of trafficking;✔️✔️
Individuals residing in the U.S. pursuant to a compact of free association (COFA).✔️✔️
People with Temporary Protected Status✔️
Applicants for adjustment to LPR status with approved visa petitions✔️
Applicants for asylum or withholding of deportation/removal✔️
People paroled for less than one year, with deferred enforced departure, or deferred action✔️
Special immigrant juveniles✔️
U Visa Holders✔️
People with valid nonimmigrant status or nonimmigrant visas✔️
Longtime Residents✔️
People under an order of supervision who have employment authorization✔️
People granted Family Unity✔️
Applicants for the following statuses, who have been granted employment authorization:Cancellation of removal or suspension of deportationAdjustment under the LIFE ActLawful Temporary Residents and Applicants for Legalization under the IRCARegistry✔️

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z54dpIFb-ANzDPLx6GQ0d8BsUF3UEugopEnPjasqmNE/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.orwda1o1h08q

Immigrant & Refugee Support Group

The Immigrant and Refugee Support Group (IRSG ) has a fund available for immigrant community members who need help posting bond, paying legal fees and/or need commissary support in detention.

Mission: Envisions a community that cares for all of its members and in which all migrants who seek safety and freedom from oppression and harm are welcomed to the United States – and to New Hampshire, if they choose – with dignity and compassion. We respect the personal power and agency of the immigrants in our midst as the decision makers in their own lives, and we understand our role as offering support and accompaniment whenever we are privileged to do so. We are guided by our faith and by love as we dedicate ourselves to the quest for justice and welcome for all.

Find the full IRSG Mission Statement here.

Contact: Contact irsg.nhcucc@gmail.com and learn more here: https://www.nhcucc.org/mission-groups/immigrant-refugee-support

Biggest sources of immigrants to New Hampshire

Stacker
 Jul 29, 2025 Updated 23 hrs ago

Biggest sources of immigrants to New Hampshire

Over 14% of the United States population is composed of immigrants. But in reality, the vast majority of Americans today are here because of relatives who immigrated from other countries some time in the last several hundred years.

And while the distinctive American culture and spirit is the result of blending many diverse cultures and histories, the United States has for centuries had an up-and-down relationship with immigration.

Each era of immigration has been met with reductive ideas and resistance, whether the backlash was directed toward the Chinese, Irish, Italians, or Mexicans. Immigration laws have targeted specific groups at various times, stoking intolerance and preventing people from truly joining American society. Over time, however, as laws changed to be more equitable and immigrants found their footings, we have reaped the rewards of innovation in business, music, art, literature, dance, food, societal norms, entertainment, and sports—all while realizing a greater understanding of and respect for different cultures, religions, and ideas.

Stacker compiled a list of the biggest sources of immigrants to New Hampshire using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Countries are ranked by the highest number of residents according to 2023 5-year estimates, the most recent data available as of 2025. Keep reading to find out more about the immigrant community in your home state.

#50. Laos

– Number of residents: 344

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

#49. Thailand

– Number of residents: 354

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.41%

#47. Hungary (tie)

– Number of residents: 357

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.41%

#47. Liberia (tie)

– Number of residents: 357

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.41%

#46. Albania

– Number of residents: 358

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.42%

#45. Hong Kong

– Number of residents: 360

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.42%

#44. Morocco

– Number of residents: 381

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.44%

#43. Australia

– Number of residents: 387

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.45%

#42. South Africa

– Number of residents: 405

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.47%

#41. Egypt

– Number of residents: 422

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.49%

#40. Turkey

– Number of residents: 444

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.52%

#39. Netherlands

– Number of residents: 458

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.53%

#38. Kenya

– Number of residents: 515

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%

#37. Cambodia

– Number of residents: 556

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.65%

#36. Scotland

– Number of residents: 574

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.67%

#35. Italy

– Number of residents: 578

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.67%

#34. Bhutan

– Number of residents: 581

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.67%

#33. Nigeria

– Number of residents: 634

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.74%

#32. Indonesia

– Number of residents: 643

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.75%

#31. France

– Number of residents: 662

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.77%

#30. Japan

– Number of residents: 684

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.79%

#29. Peru

– Number of residents: 719

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.84%

#28. Greece

– Number of residents: 735

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.85%

#27. Ireland

– Number of residents: 752

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.87%

#26. Taiwan

– Number of residents: 758

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.88%

#25. Lebanon

– Number of residents: 759

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.88%

#24. Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire)

– Number of residents: 761

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.88%

#23. Poland

– Number of residents: 791

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.92%

#22. Bosnia and Herzegovina

– Number of residents: 807

– Percent of foreign born residents: 0.94%

#21. Romania

– Number of residents: 907

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.05%

#20. Jamaica

– Number of residents: 915

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.06%

#19. Guatemala

– Number of residents: 999

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.16%

#18. Haiti

– Number of residents: 1,058

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.23%

#17. Ukraine

– Number of residents: 1,141

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.33%

#16. El Salvador

– Number of residents: 1,278

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.48%

#15. Portugal

– Number of residents: 1,303

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.51%

#14. Russia

– Number of residents: 1,392

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.62%

#13. Honduras

– Number of residents: 1,437

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.67%

#12. Nepal

– Number of residents: 1,603

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.86%

#11. Vietnam

– Number of residents: 1,658

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.93%

#10. Colombia

– Number of residents: 1,689

– Percent of foreign born residents: 1.96%

#9. Mexico

– Number of residents: 1,943

– Percent of foreign born residents: 2.26%

#8. Germany

– Number of residents: 2,884

– Percent of foreign born residents: 3.35%

#7. Philippines

– Number of residents: 3,136

– Percent of foreign born residents: 3.64%

#6. Brazil

– Number of residents: 3,215

– Percent of foreign born residents: 3.73%

#5. United Kingdom (inc. Crown Dependencies)

– Number of residents: 3,992

– Percent of foreign born residents: 4.64%

#4. China

– Number of residents: 4,670

– Percent of foreign born residents: 5.42%

#3. Dominican Republic

– Number of residents: 6,484

– Percent of foreign born residents: 7.53%

#2. India

– Number of residents: 7,387

– Percent of foreign born residents: 8.58%

#1. Canada

– Number of residents: 7,612

– Percent of foreign born residents: 8.84%

Originally published on stacker.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.

https://www.laconiadailysun.com/news/state/biggest-sources-of-immigrants-to-new-hampshire/article_08485c9f-b6bd-58b2-aab8-6849110f910c.html

July Welcoming NH Table with ACLU NH Legal Director Gilles Bissonette

July Welcoming NH Table with ACLU NH Legal Director Gilles Bissonette

Since 2013, Gilles Bissonnette has been the Legal Director at the ACLU of New Hampshire, where he leads a team of four civil rights lawyers. He has litigated cases on racial justice, the criminalization of poverty, voting, police and government accountability, public records, freedom of speech, classroom censorship, immigrants’ rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and criminal justice issues.  Gilles has authored over 30 articles and testified before the New Hampshire legislature on hundreds of bills impacting civil liberties. 

In 2024, Gilles received the National Education Association-New Hampshire’s “Friend of Education” Award for the ACLU-NH’s successful work challenging New Hampshire’s 2021 classroom censorship law that discourages public school teachers from teaching and talking about race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and gender identity in the classroom.  He is the 2022 recipient of the Nackey S. Loeb School of Communications’ First Amendment Award for the ACLU-NH’s litigation supporting government transparency.  He is also the 2022 recipient of the New Hampshire Bar Association’s Distinguished Service to the Public Award.  In 2025, his legal team at the ACLU-NH and the legal team at the ACLU received the Visionary Impact Award from California ChangeLawyers for their work protecting birthright citizenship in the case N.H. Indonesian Community Support et al v. Trump.  In 2021, his legal team — along with co-counsel — received the Granite State Advocacy Award from the New Hampshire Association for Justice for their legal work on behalf of medically-vulnerable immigrants being civilly detained amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to joining the ACLU, Gilles was a civil litigator in Boston at the law firms of Choate Hall & Stewart LLP, Todd & Weld LLP, and Cooley LLP.  From 2008-2009, he clerked for the late Judge Thomas M. Golden of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.  He received his J.D. from UCLA School of Law in 2007 where he was the Chief Comments Editor of the UCLA Law Review.  In 2003, he received his B.A. and M.A. in history from Washington University in St. Louis. 

Gilles is admitted to practice law in the state and federal courts in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, the First Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.  He has taught multiple Continuing Legal Education courses on government transparency, as well as on the United States and New Hampshire Constitutions.  He is a member of the Hearings Committee of the Attorney Discipline System, as well as the Federal Court Advisory Committee.  He was a trustee of the New Hampshire Supreme Court Society (2018-2024), and has served as an adjunct professor at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law.

Representative cases litigated by his legal team include the following:

RACIAL JUSTICE & CLASSROOM CENSORSHIP

  • Nat’l Educ. Ass’n v. United States Dep’t of Educ., No. 25-cv-091-LM, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 77874, __ F. Supp. 3d __ (D.N.H. Apr. 24, 2025) (issuing preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the U.S. Department of Education’s February 14, 2025, “Dear Colleague” letter against the plaintiffs, their members, and any entity that employs, contracts with, or works with one or more of plaintiffs or plaintiffs’ member, where the letter restricted discussions and programs on diversity, equity, and inclusion in educational institutions, and threatened to withhold federal funding for engaging in such efforts).
  • Local 8027, Mejia, Philibotte, et al. v. Edelblut, No. 21-cv-1077-PB, 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 94052 (D.N.H. May 28, 2024) (holding that the prohibitions in New Hampshire’s classroom censorship law “against teaching banned concepts are unconstitutionally vague,” and that the law’s provisions that discourage public school teachers from teaching and talking about race, gender, and sexual orientation contains “viewpoint-based restrictions on speech that do not provide either fair warning to educators of what they prohibit or sufficient standards for law enforcement to prevent arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement”; lead counsel).
  • State v. Jones, 172 N.H. 774 (2020) (holding that “race is an appropriate circumstance to consider in conducting the totality of the circumstances seizure analysis” in determining whether a person feels free to leave and therefore is seized under the New Hampshire Constitution; as amicus).

LGBTQ+ RIGHTS

  • Tirrell v. Edelblut, et al., 748 F. Supp. 3d 19 (D.N.H. 2024) (in a challenge to New Hampshire’s transgender sports ban, granting plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction allowing them to play sports; as counsel in coalition led by GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders).
  • Jane Doe v. Manchester School District, et al., 176 N.H. 780 (2024) (affirming lower court ruling that upheld a Manchester school district policy in support of transgender students; as amicus in coalition led by GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders).

VOTING RIGHTS

  • Saucedo v. State of New Hampshire, 335 F. Supp. 3d 202 (D.N.H. 2018) (striking down, on procedural due process grounds, a New Hampshire law that invalidated the absentee ballots of hundreds of voters, many of whom are disabled, based on signature comparisons without notice or an opportunity to cure).
  • Guare  v. State of New Hampshire, 167 N.H. 658 (2015) (striking down voter registration form language that would impose a chilling effect on the right to vote of those domiciled in New Hampshire).
  • Norelli v. N.H. Sec. of State, 175 N.H. 186 (2022) (holding that current 2010 congressional maps cannot be used after the 2020 census for upcoming congressional elections, and concluding that the “least change” approach should apply in the event of an impasse; as amicus).

FIRST AMENDMENT/FREE SPEECH

  • Richards v. Union Leader Corp., 176 N.H. 789 (2024) (concluding that statements referencing white supremacy were protected political opinion, and therefore not defamatory; as amicus).
  • Rideout v. State of New Hampshire, 123 F. Supp. 3d 218 (D.N.H. 2015), aff’d, 838 F.3d 65 (1st Cir. 2016), cert denied, 137 S. Ct. 1435 (2017) (striking down New Hampshire law banning online “ballot selfies” on grounds that it violates the First Amendment).
  • Valentin v. City of Manchester,  No. 15-cv-00235-PB (D.N.H.) (secured $275,000 settlement in lawsuit addressing the First Amendment right to record the police where ACLU-NH client was arrested for audio recording a conversation with two Manchester police department officers while in a public place and while the officers were performing their official duties).
  • Pineda-Landaverde v. City of Manchester, No. 1:20-cv-00319-LM (D.N.H.) (secured $20,000 settlement in lawsuit alleging that the Manchester Police Department, in violation of the Constitution, forcibly seized the smartphone of an ACLU-NH client without a warrant after he was recording the Department’s officers).
  • State of New Hampshire v. Andersen, No. 218-2018-cr-00241 (N.H. Super. Ct., Rockingham Cty. Aug. 31, 2018) (vacating “gag order” that barred disclosure of police reports because the order was “sweeping” and “violate[d] the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and Part I, Article 22 of the New Hampshire Constitution”).
  • State of New Hampshire v. Bonacorsi, Nos. 218-2014-CR-01357, 218-2015-CR-868, 2016 N.H. Super. LEXIS 22 (N.H. Super. Ct., Rockingham Cty. May 18, 2016) (narrowing and striking down portions of online identifier statute on First Amendment grounds).
  • State of New Hampshire v. Clay, No. 450-2015-cr-00414 (N.H. 4th Cir., Dist. Div., Laconia June 9, 2015) (securing dismissal of disorderly conduct charge on First Amendment grounds where client was arrested during a public meeting simply for engaging in political, non-disruptive speech on matters of public concern).
  • Clay v. Town of Alton, No. 15-cv-00279-JL (D.N.H.) (secured $42,500 settlement in lawsuit where, in violation of the First Amendment, client was arrested during a public meeting simply for engaging in political, non-disruptive speech on matters of public concern).
  • Frese v. Town of Exeter (secured $17,500 settlement from Town of Exeter after the Exeter Police Department arrested our client in May 2018, after he posted comments to an article on Facebook alleging that the local police chief “covered up for [a] dirty cop”).
  • Albert v. City of Manchester (secured $17,500 settlement in a case where client was wrongly arrested for recording in public).
  • Kearns v. Town of Littleton (secured $17,500 settlement and further police training in case where client was arrested simply for allegedly swearing at a parking enforcement official in violation of the First Amendment).

CRIMINALIZATION OF POVERTY

  • Petrello v. City of Manchester, No. 16-cv-008-LM, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 144793 (D.N.H. Sep. 7, 2017) (striking down, on First Amendment grounds, Manchester’s anti-panhandling ordinance, as well as permanently enjoining Manchester’s anti-panhandling police practices; case settled for $89,000 in attorneys’ fees and damages).
  • Pendleton v. City of Nashua (secured $15,000 settlement in a case where homeless client was arrested and spent 33 days in jail simply for walking along a public foot path in the park adjacent to the Nashua Public Library in violation of his First Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment rights).
  • Pendleton v. Town of Hudson, No. 14-cv-00365-PB (D.N.H.) (secured $37,500 settlement and permanent consent order in lawsuit where Town detained, harassed, threatened, dispersed, and cited peaceful panhandlers in violation of the First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendments).

CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM/DUE PROCESS

  • Paine v. Ride-Away, Inc., 174 N.H. 757 (2022) (holding that the use of therapeutic cannabis prescribed in accordance with New Hampshire’s therapeutic cannabis statute can be a reasonable accommodation for an employee’s disability under New Hampshire’s Law Against Discrimination; as amicus).
  • Doe v. Commissioner, No. 18-cv-1039-JD, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 75759 (D.N.H. Apr. 30, 2020) (ruling that State is obligated to provide due process to those suspected of experiencing a mental health crisis within three days of their detention in a hospital emergency room); Doe v. Commissioner, No. 18-cv-1039-JD, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78387 (D.N.H. May 4, 2020) (certifying case as class action, and certifying ACLU-NH as class counsel); Doe v. Commissioner, No. 18-cv-1039-JD, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 238431 (D.N.H. Dec. 18, 2020) (denying 11th Amendment immunity), aff’d16 F.4th 894 (1st. Cir. 2021).
  • Doe v. Commissioner, 174 N.H. 239 (2021) (holding that the State “has a duty mandated by statute to provide for probable cause hearings within three days of when an involuntary emergency certificate is completed”; as amicus on behalf of federal class).
  • State of New Hampshire v. Brawley, 171 N.H. 333 (2018) (holding that legislature’s 2017 law aimed at curbing debtors’ prisons practices applies to the State’s efforts to recoup public defender fees from indigent defendants; as amicus).
  • Doe v. State of New Hampshire, 167 N.H. 382 (2015) (New Hampshire’s retroactive, lifetime registration requirements for certain offenders are “punitive in effect” and therefore unconstitutional as applied to client under New Hampshire Constitution’s bar on retrospective laws).
  • State of New Hampshire v. Mazzaglia, No. 2014-0592 (N.H. Sup. Ct. Sept. 29, 2016) (New Hampshire Supreme Court order agreeing with the position of the victim, victims’ rights advocates, and the ACLU-NH that documents concerning a victim’s prior consensual sexual activity should be sealed pending appeal; as amicus).
  • Petition of State of New Hampshire166 N.H. 659 (2014) (applying retroactively U.S. Supreme Court decision holding that mandatory life without parole sentences for juveniles violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment; as amicus).

PUBLIC ACCESS/GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY

  • Provenza v. Town of Canaan, 175 N.H. 121 (2022) (holding that an internal report commissioned by a police department investigating an allegation of excessive force should be released to the public, in part, because “[t]he public has a substantial interest in information about what its government is up to, as well as in knowing whether a government investigation is comprehensive and accurate”).
  • ACLU-NH v. N.H. Div. of State Police, 176 N.H. 302 (2023) (holding that, in response to a Right-to-Know request, police misconduct personnel files cannot be categorically withheld from the public under a different and separate criminal discovery statute — RSA 105:13-b).
  • Union Leader Corp. and ACLU-NH v. Town of Salem, 173 N.H. 345 (2020) (overruling 1993 Fenniman decision in holding that the public’s interest in disclosure must be balanced in determining whether the “internal personnel practices” exemption applies to requested records); Union Leader Corp. and ACLU-NH v. Town of Salem, No. 218-2018-cv-01406 (Rockingham Cty. Super. Ct. Jan. 21, 2021) (on remand, holding that almost all of an internal audit concerning the culture and internal affairs practices of the Salem Police Department should be public).
  • Seacoast Newspapers, Inc. v. City of Portsmouth, 173 N.H. 325 (2020) (overruling 1993 Fenniman decision in holding that the “internal personnel practices” exemption only narrowly covers “records pertaining to the internal rules and practices governing an agency’s operationsand employee relations, not information concerning theperformance of a particular employee”).
  • New Hampshire Center for Public Interest Journalism, et al./ACLU-NH v. N.H. Department of Justice, 173 N.H. 648 (2020) (holding that a list of over 275 New Hampshire police officers who have engaged in misconduct that reflects negatively on their credibility or trustworthiness is not exempt from disclosure under RSA 105:13-b or the “internal personnel practices” and “personnel file” exemptions; remanding for application of public interest balancing test).
  • John Does v. City of Manchester, No. 216-2022-CV-00508 (Hillsborough Cty. Super. Ct., N. Dist., Jan. 26, 2023) (ordering disclosure of supervisors’ names who saw racist text from a fellow officer and did nothing on the ground that “[w]hether the supervisors’ inaction in response to [the] text constitutes acceptance or tacit support of racist or ‘grossly inappropriate and racially insensitive’ behavior, or is emblematic of systemic racism within the Manchester Police Department, is a matter fit for public discourse”).
  • Stone v. City of Claremont, 319 A.3d 1274 (N.H. 2024) (ordering disclosure of disciplinary records concerning former Claremont police officer where the operative agreement did not prohibit disclosure of the requested records).
  • ACLU-NH and Union Leader Corp. v. Salem Police Dep’t, No. 218-2021-cv-00026 (Rockingham Cty. Super. Ct. July 20, 2021) (holding that police investigatory records should be publicly disclosed concerning an off-duty officer who evaded police during a high-speed chase but was not criminally charged until years later); State of New Hampshire v. Verrocchi, No. 218-2020-cr-00077 (Rockingham Cty. Super. Ct. June 17, 2021) (ordering unsealing of arrest warrant affidavit concerning investigation of this incident).
  • State v. Letendre, No. 219-2020-cr-0792 (Strafford Cty. Super. Ct. Feb. 4, 2021) (holding that disclosure of 49-page investigatory report documenting police misconduct would not infringe on right of defendant officer to receive a fair trial).
  • Officer A.B. v. Grafton County Attorney’s Office, No. 18-cv-1437 (Grafton Cty. Super. Ct. Apr. 11, 2019) (holding that officer who engaged in misconduct could not be removed by court from the EES List).

IMMIGRANTS’ RIGHTS

  • N.H. Indonesian Cmty. Support v. Trump, No. 25-cv-38-JL-TSM, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 24055, __ F. Supp. 3d __ (D.N.H. Feb. 11, 2025) (preliminarily enjoining President’s birthright citizenship executive order “with respect to the plaintiffs, and with respect to any individual or entity in any matter or instance within the jurisdiction of this court, during the pendency of this litigation”). 
  • Liu v. Noem, No. 25-cv-133-SE, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 80713 (D.N.H. Apr. 29, 2025) (granting preliminary injunction order where government unilaterally and without notice terminated the ability of an international student at Dartmouth College to engage in studies).
  • Robson Xavier Gomes, et al. v. Acting Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 460 F. Supp. 3d 132 (D.N.H. 2020) (holding that medically vulnerable civil immigration detainees at the Strafford County Department of Corrections are constitutionally entitled to bail hearings amid the COVID-19 pandemic); Robson Xavier Gomes, et al. v. Acting Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 561 F. Supp. 3d 93 (D.N.H. 2021 (certifying class of civil immigration detainees at the Strafford County Department of Corrections seeking individual bail hearings to determine whether they should be released amid the COVID-19 pandemic because of the inability to be 6-feet apart from other detainees).
  • State of New Hampshire v. McCarthy, et al., No. 469-2017-cr-01888, et al., (N.H. 2nd Cir. Ct., Dist. Div., Plymouth May 1, 2018), reconsideration denied on Aug. 21, 2018 (holding that border patrol checkpoints conducted by Customs and Border Patrol, in conjunction with the local police, in Woodstock, NH 90 driving miles from the border violated Part I, Article 19 of the New Hampshire Constitution and the Fourth Amendment).
  • Drewniak/Fuentes v. U.S. Customs and Border Protection, No. 1:20-cv-852-LM (D.N.H.) (in lawsuit challenging CBP’s use of interior immigration checkpoints in New Hampshire, CBP agreed to refrain from operating the Woodstock checkpoint until January 1, 2025 in exchange for the voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit).
  • Guerra-Castaneda v. United States of America, 656 F. Supp. 3d 356 (D. Mass. 2023) (allowing wrongful deportation claim to proceed where ICE improperly deported a man in September 2019 despite two federal court orders stating that he should remain in the U.S. while his asylum case is pending).
  • Awawdeh v. Town of Exeter, et al., No. 18-cv-852-LM (D.N.H.) (settled lawsuit for $39,175 and policy change where the Exeter Police Department unlawfully arrested for ICE a man on the suspicion that he was in the United States unlawfully after the man assisted the Department with a criminal investigation by providing translation services).
  • Velasco Perea v. Town of Northwood, et al., No. 18-cv-1066-LM (D.N.H.) (settled lawsuit for $12,500 and policy change where the Northwood Police Department unlawfully arrested for ICE a documented man on the suspicion that he was in the United States unlawfully).
  • Godoy-Ramirez v. Town of Merrimack, No. 1:19-cv-01236-JD (D.N.H.) (settled lawsuit for $60,000 and policy change where the Merrimack Police Department unlawfully held for ICE for more than an hour a passenger in a car that had broken down on the side of the road).  
  • Hernandez-Lara v. Lyons, 10 F.4th 19 (1st Cir. 2021) (holding that ICE violated client’s due process rights when it conducted a bond hearing where she had the burden of showing that she was not a danger and not a flight risk; further ruling that due process requires that the burden of justifying detention has to be on the government by a preponderance of the evidence).
  • Hernandez-Lara v. Barr, 962 F.3d 45 (1st Cir. 2020) (concluding that immigration judge violated immigrant’s statutory right to counsel by not providing immigrant sufficient time to obtain counsel).
  • Rivera-Medrano v. Garland, 47 F.4th 29 (1st Cir. 2022) (holding that the BIA abused its discretion in failing to remand an immigration proceeding to an immigration judge where the BIA did not meaningfully consider the potentially material impact of new evidence — namely, a psychological assessment report — presented by the traumatized asylum seeker or provide a reasoned explanation as to why such new evidence would not have changed the outcome). 
  • Chavez v. Garland, 51 F.4th 424 (1st Cir. 2022) (in granting part of petition for review, holding in an asylum case that “we are compelled to reject as impermissible [the BIA’s 2008 Matter of E-A-G-, 24 I&N Dec. 591 (BIA 2008)] holding that a group made up of those who are incorrectly perceived to be members of a gang is categorically barred from recognition as a particular social group under the INA,” and noting that “the reasons for finding that actual members of a gang are barred from recognition [in seeking asylum] simply ‘do not apply’ to those incorrectly perceived to be gang members”).
  • H.H. v. Garland, 51 F.4th 8 (1st Cir. 2022) (granting petition for review in a case brought under the Convention Against Torture where the Immigration Judge “applied the incorrect legal standard in assessing whether [the petitioner] would more likely than not be tortured with the ‘consent or acquiescence’ of the Honduran government, and that the BIA erred in its review of the [Immigration Judge’s] decision”; holding that “the ‘willful acceptance’ standard set forth in [the BIA’s 2000 precedent] is inconsistent with the text of the [Convention Against Torture], as well as the clear intent of Congress, and is not required to establish acquiescence to torture,” and concluding that “a showing of willful acceptance is not necessary to establish ‘acquiescence’ to torture under the” Convention Against Torture).
  • Hussein v. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, No. 18-cv-921-JL (D.N.H. Nov. 6, 2018) (ruling that ICE’s decision to detain client in immigration custody for 9 months without a bond hearing was unconstitutional and violated procedural due process, and ordering that a bond hearing be conducted).
  • Compere v. Nielsen, 358 F. Supp. 3d 170 (D.N.H. 2019) (ruling that the government’s plan to deport Mr. Compere to Haiti while his motion to reopen was pending violated his rights under federal law; further ruling that, because habeas corpus is the only means available to Mr. Compere to protect his right to continue litigating his motion to reopen, the Suspension Clause of the U.S. Constitution prevents the jurisdiction-stripping provisions in federal law from being used to deny the Court’s jurisdiction).
  • Korat v. U.S. Dep’t of Homeland Security, 19-cv-111 (D.N.H.) (secured citizenship for an Army Specialist from India who enlisted through a specialized military program that aims to recruit skilled immigrants in exchange for expediting the citizenship process, but had his naturalization delayed for approximately two years).
  • Ahmed-Cali v. U.S. Attorney General, No. 19-cv-426-JL (D.N.H.) (secured release of Somalian immigrant who had been in continuous detention since 2016 – totaling two years and seven months — after he fled Somalia and sought asylum in the U.S. due to threats against his family).
  • Perez-Trujillo v. Garland, 3 F.4th 10 (1st Cir. 2021) (in part, in granting 2017 petition for review, holding that “the BIA was required to consider in an individualized manner the hardship that [the immigrant] might suffer if he were required to return to El Salvador but … failed to undertake such consideration in reversing the immigration judge’s grant of his application for adjustment of status”).
  • Adeyanju v. Garland, 27 F.4th 25 (1st Cir. 2022) (granting petition for review, in part, where the BIA “failed to adequately employ clear-error review and thus committed legal error” with respect to two conclusions made by BIA).   
  • G.P. v. Garland, No. 21-2002, 2023 U.S. App. LEXIS 17828 (1st Cir. July 13, 2023) (in granting petition for review, holding that “the BIA’s decision affirming the IJ’s analysis, which gave limited weight to [the expert’s] testimony and rejected his opinion regarding G.P.’s risk of torture, is not supported by substantial evidence in the record”) (unpublished).
  • Ferreira v. Garland, 97 F.4th 36 (1st Cir. 2024) (granting petition for review in part and vacating the BIA’s decision as to Ferreira’s gender-based particular social group persecution claim).
  • ACLU-NH v. Customs and Border Protection, No. 1:23-cv-00282-JL (settled FOIA lawsuit where Border Patrol released data showing that there have been only 21 encounters and apprehensions during the 15 months from October 2022 to December 2023).
  • Paye v. Garland, 109 F.4th 1 (1st Cir. 2024) (vacating agency’s order of removal because the agency, in failing to address the applicant’s claim that fleeing as a child to escape ethnic cleansing and genocide was evidence of past persecution, deprived the applicant of a presumption under 8 C.F.R. § 1208.13(b)(1) of likely future persecution).
  • Morgan v. Garland, 120 F.4th 913 (1st Cir. Nov. 5, 2024) (granting noncitizen’s petition for review  seeking Convention Against Torture relief because the IJ and BIA applied an impermissibly narrow definition of acquiescence, requiring active cooperation rather than mere inaction or breach of duty to intervene).
  • Escobar Larin v. Garland, 122 F.4th 465 (1st Cir. 2024) (granting petition for review challenging agency’s rejection of asylum, withholding of removal, and Convention Against Torture claims where the agency erred in disposing of the asylum seeker’s mental health-based claims in light of newly-developed serious mental illness after arrival in the United States).

PRISONERS’ RIGHTS

  • Avery v. Commissioner of N.H. Dep’t of Corrections, 173 N.H. 726 (2020) (holding that sovereign immunity does not apply to a claim to enforce a consent agreement entered into by the State to require certain services to state correctional detainees; as amicus).
  • Y.F. v. State of New Hampshire, No. 15-cv-00510-PB (D.N.H.) (challenge to state prison mail policy banning inmates from receiving all original handwritten drawings and pictures in the mail; under settlement, State agreed to allow certain original handwritten drawings and pictures that are done in pen or pencil).

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

  • Appeal of Farmington School District, 168 N.H. 726 (2016) (holding that the Farmington School Board improperly declined to renew a guidance counselor’s employment contract after the counselor sought independent legal counsel and successfully obtained a temporary restraining order before the Strafford County Superior Court to protect her student’s right to privacy that was going to be imminently violated by the Farmington High School Principal; as amicus).

https://www.aclu-nh.org/en/biographies/gilles-bissonnette

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