What Is Project 2025—and Why Immigrant Families in Pennsylvania Should Be Paying Attention

In recent months, a policy proposal called Project 2025 has been making waves—and raising alarms—among immigrants, advocates, and legal professionals across the United States. While it may sound like something from a futuristic novel, Project 2025 is very real. It’s a sweeping roadmap for how a future conservative administration could dramatically reshape the federal government—including our entire immigration system. If you’re living in Pennsylvania—especially if you or someone you love is part of an immigrant or mixed-status family—this matters. A lot.

Here’s what you need to know about Project 2025, how it could affect immigration law, and what it means for immigrant communities in places like Allentown, Philadelphia, and throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

What Is Project 2025?

Project 2025 is a policy playbook published by the Heritage Foundation, a powerful conservative think tank, along with contributions from over 100 affiliated organizations. It outlines an aggressive plan to restructure nearly every federal agency and dismantle much of what the authors consider “deep state” bureaucracy.

But what’s gotten the most attention—and the most concern—is the immigration section.

Some of the key proposals include:

• Nationwide expansion of expedited removal, which would allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to deport people anywhere in the U.S. without a hearing or access to an immigration judge.

• Crackdowns on sanctuary cities and local governments that limit cooperation with ICE, threatening to pull federal funding from cities like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh unless they fall in line.

• Limits on legal immigration, including family-based immigration and certain work visa programs, by suspending or narrowing country eligibility.

• Empowering state governments to enforce immigration laws directly—something that has historically been reserved for the federal government.

• Mass terminations of federal workers, including those in agencies like USCIS and EOIR, who may be replaced by political appointees more aligned with hardline enforcement policies.

If enacted, these proposals would represent one of the most significant shifts in U.S. immigration policy in generations.

What Could This Mean for Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania is home to more than one million immigrants—many of them long-time residents, essential workers, and U.S. citizens raising children in mixed-status families. The changes outlined in Project 2025 could ripple through nearly every corner of the state. Here’s how:

Fear and Instability in Mixed-Status Families

For families where one parent is undocumented and children are U.S. citizens—a reality for thousands of households in the Lehigh Valley—expanded expedited removal would be devastating. Parents could be detained and deported without the chance to present their case to a judge. Children could be left behind, or worse, coerced into leaving the U.S., despite their legal right to stay.

We’ve already seen this happen in recent months. Just this spring, ICE reportedly deported three U.S. citizen children to Honduras alongside their undocumented mothers during a routine check-in—an incident that sparked outrage among legal advocates. Project 2025 would give ICE even broader authority to carry out actions like this.

Targeting Sanctuary Cities Like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh

Cities like Philadelphia have taken steps to limit cooperation with ICE, recognizing that when immigrants fear local police, public safety suffers for everyone. Under Project 2025, the federal government would penalize these cities—pulling critical funding unless they comply with federal demands. That could mean a choice between protecting immigrant communities and losing the resources they depend on.

Chilling Effect on Essential Workers and Local Economies

Pennsylvania’s economy depends on immigrants—especially in agriculture, healthcare, food processing, and construction. If these proposed policies go into effect, employers could face serious labor shortages, and families may be forced into hiding or pushed out of the workforce altogether.

In rural areas where immigrant farmworkers are the backbone of the economy, and in urban areas where hospitals rely on foreign-born nurses and aides, the impact would be immediate and far-reaching.

Legal Uncertainty and Rapid Policy Changes

One of the most unsettling aspects of Project 2025 is its plan to purge federal immigration officials and replace them with political loyalists. That means decisions on asylum, green cards, DACA renewals, and more could be based on politics rather than law. For immigrants trying to plan their futures, this creates a climate of instability, fear, and unfairness.

What Can Pennsylvania Do?

While immigration law is federal, state and local leaders in Pennsylvania still play a critical role. Community groups, legal nonprofits, and faith-based organizations have already started preparing for possible policy changes.

Here are some of the ways we’re seeing people mobilize:

• Know Your Rights Campaigns are ramping up, helping immigrants understand what to do if they’re stopped by ICE or targeted for removal.

• Local resolutions in support of sanctuary policies and legal defense funds are gaining traction in cities and counties across the state.

• Legal clinics and rapid response networks are being activated to provide emergency help for families at risk of separation.

Our Firm’s Perspective

At Lehigh Valley Immigration Law LLC, we see the real impact of immigration policy every single day. We’ve helped parents facing removal, children seeking asylum, and families trying to stay together in the face of impossible choices.

Project 2025 isn't just a policy document—it’s a plan that could transform the immigration landscape in ways that put millions of people at risk, including our neighbors, clients, and friends.

But we also know that knowledge is power—and community is strength.