(The Texas Tribune) — Attorney General Ken Paxton is targeting another nonprofit that works with immigrant clients, this time for alleged violations of consumer protection laws — a fresh argument that the El Paso-based organization says is an overreach of the state agency’s authority.
It is at least the fifth time this year that Paxton’s office has launched an investigation of an immigration-focused nonprofit in Texas.
On Sept. 4, Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center said it received a civil investigative demand from Paxton’s office seeking information and communications related to a migrant sponsorship program that allows up to 30,000 people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela to legally migrate to the U.S. each month.
Instead of responding to those demands, Las Americas — represented by lawyers with the Texas Civil Rights Project — filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on Wednesday seeking a preliminary injunction to stop Paxton’s investigation. The suit claims that the state is leveling “baseless” claims that have already affected the work of Las Americas, a 37-year-old organization that provides legal services to low-income migrants and advocates for immigrants’ rights.