A recent decision by U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen has cast uncertainty over the future of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. On Wednesday, Hanen declared a revised version of the federal policy, which protects hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children from deportation, as illegal.
The ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed by Texas and eight other states, which argued that the Obama administration did not have the authority to create the DACA program in 2012 as it bypassed Congress. While Hanen’s decision prevents the approval of any new DACA applications, it does not affect existing recipients, nor does it mandate any actions against them by the federal government.
In 2021, Hanen had previously deemed the program illegal, citing a lack of public notice and comment periods required under the federal Administrative Procedures Act. The Biden administration attempted to address these concerns by introducing a new version of DACA in October 2022, which underwent a formal rule-making process and was open to public comments. However, Hanen, appointed by then-President George W. Bush in 2002, ruled that even this updated version of DACA remained illegal. He emphasized that the constitutionality of DACA is a matter for Congress to decide.
The states that filed the lawsuit, including Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina, West Virginia, Kansas, and Mississippi, have claimed that they bear significant costs in health care, education, and other areas due to immigrants remaining in the country illegally. In contrast, defenders of the program, such as the federal government, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and the state of New Jersey, argue that the states have failed to link these costs directly to DACA recipients. They also contend that the Department of Homeland Security has the legal authority to set immigration enforcement policies.
The DACA program has faced numerous legal challenges over the years. In 2016, the Supreme Court was split 4-4 over an expanded version of DACA and a similar program for parents of DACA recipients. In 2020, the high court ruled 5-4 that the Trump administration had improperly terminated DACA, allowing it to continue. In 2022, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans upheld Hanen’s earlier ruling against DACA but sent the case back to him for further review following changes made by the Biden administration.
With the fate of the DACA program once again in limbo, President Joe Biden and various advocacy groups have called on Congress to enact permanent protections for “dreamers.” However, Congress has repeatedly failed to pass the DREAM Act, which would offer such protections to DACA recipients.
The Associated Press. (2023). Fate of U.S. ‘Dreamers’ program likely headed to Supreme Court for 3rd time. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/9959325/us-daca-dreamers-immigration-blocked-2023/