SEC. 2. IMPROVING IMMIGRATION COURT EFFICIENCY AND 
REDUCING COSTS BY INCREASING ACCESS 
TO LEGAL INFORMATION. 
(a) APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL IN CERTAIN CASES; 
RIGHT TO REVIEW CERTAIN DOCUMENTS IN REMOVAL 
PROCEEDINGS.—Section 240(b) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a(b)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (4)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘, at no expense to the 
Government,’’; and 
(ii) by striking the comma at the end 
and inserting a semicolon; 
(B) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) 
and (C) as subparagraphs (D) and (E), respec-
tively; 
(C) by inserting after subparagraph (A) 
the following: 
‘‘(B) the Attorney General may appoint or 
provide counsel, at Government expense, to 
aliens in immigration proceedings; 
‘‘(C) the alien shall, at the beginning of 
the proceedings or as expeditiously as possible, 
automatically receive a complete copy of all rel-
evant documents in the possession of the De-
partment of Homeland Security, including all 
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documents (other than documents protected 
from disclosure by privilege, including national 
security information referred to in subpara-
graph (D), law enforcement sensitive informa-
tion, and information prohibited from disclosure 
pursuant to any other provision of law) con-
tained in the file maintained by the Government 
that includes information with respect to all 
transactions involving the alien during the im-
migration process (commonly referred to as an 
‘A-file’), and all documents pertaining to the 
alien that the Department of Homeland Secu-
rity has obtained or received from other govern-
ment agencies, unless the alien waives the right 
to receive such documents by executing a know-
ing and voluntary written waiver in a language 
that he or she understands fluently;’’; and 
(D) in subparagraph (D), as redesignated, 
by striking ‘‘, and’’ and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(8) FAILURE TO PROVIDE ALIEN REQUIRED 
DOCUMENTS.—In the absence of a waiver under 
paragraph (4)(C), a removal proceeding may not 
proceed until the alien— 
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‘‘(A) has received the documents as re-
quired under such paragraph; and 
‘‘(B) has been provided meaningful time to 
review and assess such documents.’’. 
(b) CLARIFICATION REGARDING THE AUTHORITY OF 
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO APPOINT COUNSEL
TO 
ALIENS IN IMMIGRATION PROCEEDINGS.—Section 292 of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1362) is 
amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘In any’’ and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In any proceeding conducted 
under section 235, 236, 238, 240, 241, or any other sec-
tion of this Act, including’’; 
(2) in subsection (a), as redesignated— 
(A) by striking ‘‘(at no expense to the Gov-
ernment)’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘he shall’’ and inserting 
‘‘the person shall’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(b) ACCESS TO COUNSEL.—The Attorney General 
may appoint or provide counsel to aliens in any proceeding 
conducted under section 235, 236, 238, 240, or 241 or 
any other section of this Act. The Secretary of Homeland 
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Security shall ensure that aliens have access to counsel 
inside all immigration detention and border facilities.’’. 
(c) APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL FOR CHILDREN AND 
VULNERABLE ALIENS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 292 of the Immigra-
tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1362), as amend-
ed by subsection (b), is further amended by adding 
at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) CHILDREN AND VULNERABLE ALIENS.—Not-
withstanding subsection (b), the Attorney General shall 
appoint or provide counsel, at the expense of the Govern-
ment if necessary, at the beginning of the proceedings or 
as expeditiously as possible, to represent in such pro-
ceedings any alien who has been determined by the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security or the Attorney General to 
be— 
‘‘(1) a child (as defined in section 101(b)(1) of 
this Act); 
‘‘(2) a particularly vulnerable individual, such 
as— 
‘‘(A) a person with a disability; or 
‘‘(B) a victim of abuse, torture, or violence; 
‘‘(3) an individual whose income is at or below 
200 percent of the poverty line (as defined by the 
Office of Management and Budget and revised an-
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nually in accordance with section 673(2) of the 
Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 
9902(2))) applicable to a family of the size involved; 
or 
‘‘(4) an individual whose circumstances are 
such that the appointment of counsel is necessary to 
help ensure fair resolution and efficient adjudication 
of the proceedings. 
‘‘(d) EXTENSION TO CONSOLIDATED CASES.—If the 
Attorney General has consolidated the case of any alien 
for whom counsel was appointed under subsection (c) with 
that of any other alien, and that other alien does not have 
counsel, then the counsel appointed under subsection (c) 
shall be appointed to represent such other alien. 
‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to the Executive Office 
of Immigration Review of the Department of Justice, in 
addition to amounts available in the Immigration Counsel 
Account under section 295, such sums as may be nec-
essary to carry out this section.’’. 
(2) RULEMAKING.—The Attorney General shall 
promulgate regulations to implement section 292(c) 
of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as added by 
paragraph (1), in accordance with the requirements 
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