The Biden administration recently published proposed regulations in an attempt to protect “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” (DACA) from future court challenges. DACA offers temporary protection from deportation and permission to work for about 650,000 people who were brought to the United States by their parents when they were young.
DACA has been in effect since 2012, but there have been many challenges to its legality since its inception. In fact, former President Donald Trump ordered immigration officials to stop accepting new applications at one point.
However, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that the Trump administration’s decision to stop the program was “arbitrary and capricious.” Thus, the program continued, but it should also be noted that the Supreme Court did not make a decision about whether former President Obama had the legal authority to start the program. Thus, it is still open to legal challenges.
The Department of Homeland Security has now published a proposed regulation in the Federal Register. The regulation is currently open for public comments until November 29.
Immigration advocates are obviously happy that the Biden administration is protecting Dreamers, but they are not satisfied with just work authorization and two-year protections from deportation. On the contrary, they want comprehensive immigration reform and an overhaul to our immigration system.
