U.S. District Judge Jia M. Cobb granted a temporary restraining order blocking the Department of Homeland Security’s seven-day notice rule from a Jan. 8 memo by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, citing Section 527 violations.
The seven-day notice rule required lawmakers to give DHS at least a week’s notice before touring or visiting immigrants held in facilities funded by the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act, not by DHS’s annual appropriations package.
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Thirteen Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives sued to block that rule, saying it violated a clause in the appropriations package guaranteeing lawmakers’ access to detention facilities. The lawmakers argued that it was nearly impossible to determine which facilities were funded, in whole or in part, by the package.
The latest ruling allows congressional Democrats to access ICE detention centers without prior notice, restoring unannounced oversight, which Rep. Joe Neguse, D-Colo., called a “victory for the American people.”
Federal judges have flagged DHS and ICE misrepresentations, fueling ongoing judicial oversight amid hundreds of immigration lawsuits, as courts act as a check on enforcement practices.
