The Golden Door: August 2020
Legal and Policy Issues
We are closely monitoring state and federal immigration law and policy. Please check our social media accounts for more frequent updates.
Calls to Action:
1) Submit a Comment on Proposed Rule That Would Remove Immigration Court Due Process Protections
On August 26, the Department of Justice (DOJ) published a proposed rule that would change Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) processes and remove due process safeguards, aiming to fast-track deportations. The public has until September 25 to comment on the rule. Click here to submit your comment!
If enacted, this regulation would increase pressure on judges to decide cases quickly, would take away judges’ authority on their cases, and would give the Director of the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) consolidated power over appeals.
We renew our call for an independent immigration court system. Immigration courts are unique because rather than being an independent branch, they are a part of the Department of Justice, and new judges are appointed by the Attorney General. This leaves immigration courts susceptible to political whims of each administration. Congress must pass legislation making immigration courts independent.
2) Call Collins and King: Senate Still Has Not Acted On COVID-19 Relief
Immigrants are on the front lines of the pandemic by working in the health care sector, harvesting food, delivering groceries and packages, and caring for our loved ones. Immigrants and their families will continue to play a key role in the nation’s recovery from this pandemic. Immigrants and people of color are also disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and Maine has one of the largest racial disparities in the country. Our policy responses at the federal, state, and local level must include immigrants and their families.
The House of Representatives passed the HEROES Act over 100 days ago, on May 15. The Senate has STILL not acted. This month, President Trump signed several executive orders allegedly providing coronavirus relief. However, these orders did nothing to help immigrant families in this health and economic crisis. Congress MUST pass a stimulus package that ensures that the economic and health response to the pandemic includes everyone.
Contact Maine’s senators and urge them to act quickly and make sure that the final package:
Makes everyone eligible for stimulus payments, including individuals who file for taxes with an ITIN and their family members;
Halts the public charge regulations;
Removes barriers to nutrition assistance and other supports;
Protects immigrants from enforcement at health care facilities and other sensitive locations; and
Ensures that language access is not a barrier to care and supports
Senator Collins:
📞 (202) 224-2523
https://www.collins.senate.gov/contact
Senator King:
📞 (202) 224-5344
https://www.king.senate.gov/contact
New DACA Policy Challenged in Court
On August 21, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued guidance on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. This guidance implements the July memo issued by Acting Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Chad Wolf. The new guidance states that USCIS will reject all first-time applications for DACA and limit the renewals for existing DACA recipients to one year instead of two.
On August 28, a group of young undocumented immigrant New Yorkers sued the government, asking a court to block the Trump administration’s efforts to limit DACA. The lawsuit amends an existing lawsuit that was the subject of the Supreme Court win this summer. The challenge argues that the new DACA memo unlawfully altered the DACA program, and that it was issued without proper authority because Wolf is not lawfully occupying his office.
Work Permit Rules Targeting Asylum Seekers Go Into Effect
The recent regulation aimed at restricting asylum seekers' ability to secure work permits, described in-depth in June’s Golden Door, went into effect on August 25th. ILAP recently held a virtual community workshop to discuss the impacts of this rule and answer questions. Click here to watch a recording of the workshop or visit our website for additional details about the rule.
The rule will require those seeking asylum to wait a full calendar year from the day they file their asylum petition before applying for work authorization. This replaces the previous 150-day timeline. Even worse, it disqualifies those who have crossed the border outside of a port of entry or who file their asylum application after having been in the United States for one year from being able to obtain a work permit at all. Furthermore, a separate rule recently took effect that eliminates the 30-day window in which adjudicators had to approve work permit applications. We fear that even those who are still eligible for work permits will have incredibly long waits to receive those approvals and work permits.
This new regulation is an unconscionable attack on families seeking refuge from violence and persecution. Being forced to wait an entire year after filing for asylum to apply for a work permit will make families even more vulnerable to hunger and homelessness. This cruel policy is meant to harm asylum seekers and violates our responsibility to those seeking safety in the United States.
We are hopeful that litigation will succeed in stopping this rule. We will continue to post updates on our website, Facebook, and Twitter.
USCIS Plans Furloughs, Then Cancels Them
USCIS planned to furlough 70% of its workforce on August 30. USCIS then announced at the eleventh hour, on August 25, that it would not be furloughing its employees. However, USCIS admits that applicants will still be impacted, because its statement says “averting this furlough comes at a severe operational cost that will increase backlogs and wait times across the board,” and goes on to say that there still may be a furlough in the future.
A furlough of the magnitude threatened by USCIS officials would effectively halt immigration. USCIS is the agency charged with adjudicating immigration applications, like green cards, work permits, asylum, citizenship, and other benefits. We have seen the backlogs at USCIS grow longer and longer over the last few years, building an “invisible wall” to exclude immigrants.
USCIS has stated that it does not have the funding necessary to continue normal operations. USCIS is a self-funded agency, meaning that it is funded primarily with filing fees. The agency has publicly blamed the COVID-19 pandemic for its shortfall. However, this crisis has been developing since President Trump took office and began enacting anti-immigrant policies. Revenue from petition fees has declined in the past three consecutive fiscal years, which coincides with fewer applications for programs limited or ended by the Trump administration. The Trump administration cannot blame anyone but itself for USCIS’s funding predicament.
Public Charge Win Narrowed
This month, a federal appellate judge narrowed the nationwide block of public charge, ruling that the DHS public charge regulations cannot be applied in New York, Connecticut, and Vermont, but can be applied elsewhere. However, as of August 30, the USCIS website still stated that the nationwide injunction is in effect, making filing for a family-based green card extremely confusing for applicants. Regardless of the status of the injunctions, the cases challenging the merits of the public charge rule are still in court.
Remember that the public charge rule does not apply to all immigrants. Most immigrants who are subject to public charge are not eligible for the benefits that count under the rule, and many benefits are not considered in the public charge assessment. Advocates will continue to fight against the many attacks on immigrants and their families.
Find out more about public charge on our website and at www.protectingimmigrantfamilies.org.
In an Asylum Seeker's Shoes
The San Diego Union Tribune recently published 'Returned' a "multi-part series that takes a deep dive into the US asylum system to help readers understand what the system was meant to do, how it previously functioned and what it has become."
The Tribune's 'Where will you end up?' offers you a chance to "walk through the asylum process and see how you might fare." This is just a glimpse into the every day lives of asylum seekers who are navigating an unjust and anti-Black system bent on their deportation.