On August 14th, 2017, the ACLU, alongside 111 other organizations, sent a letter to members of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, urging them to protect the existing funding of $948,000,000 for the authorized Unaccompanied Alien Child (UAC) Program in their FY 2018 appropriations bill. The UAC program provides shelter and support services to unaccompanied alien children apprehended in the United States by the Department of Homeland Security or other law enforcement agencies. The program also provides medical care, legal services, and other support services to these children. The ACLU strongly supports existing funding for this program and requests that this funding continue to be allocated through a competitive grant process.