Biden administration appeals ruling that found DACA illegal

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The Department of Justice has filed a notice of appeal against the decision of U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen, launching the appeal process to the U.S. 5th Court of Appeals, an extremely conservative appeals court. The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, which represents a group of DACA grantees who advocate for the program, also filed a notice of appeal.

The DACA, established in 2012, was intended to provide temporary reprieve for undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children, a group often described as “dreamers.” The beneficiaries, many of whom are now adults, also receive certain work permits.

In July, Hanen of the Southern District of Texas ruled that the DACA had violated the Administrative Procedure Act, which dictates the procedures agencies must follow to implement certain policies. He blocked the government from approving new applications for the program, but his order allowed the program to continue for current registrants while the case is in dispute. Since the decision, a draft DACA regulation has been submitted to the Bureau of Management and Budget.

Speaking at a CNN town hall this summer, President Joe Biden, when asked about the DACA decision, said he “would not give up” and that the Justice Department would appeal the decision. . “They come here with no real choice and they’re good people,” Biden said, referring to the so-called Dreamers eligible for the program.

As of March 31, there were 616,030 DACA beneficiaries, the majority of whom were from Mexico. Hanen has suspended his order for the current DACA recipients. As long as this stay is in effect, these beneficiaries can renew, a process that occurs every two years.

But the Covid-19 pandemic and other factors have created a significant backlog of applications, and under Hanen’s ruling, applications from those not currently on DACA cannot be approved. The backlog of new requests as of March 31 was over 55,000.

The case has put additional pressure on Congress, where Democrats are trying to include a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants in a budget reconciliation bill. This population includes immigrants who were brought to the United States as children, those with temporary protected status, and essential workers.

By passing an immigration measure using budget reconciliation, Democrats can approve it by simple majority in the Senate, with all 50 Democratic Senators voting for it and Vice President Kamala Harris likely being the deciding vote. But first, Democrats must get the approval of Senatorial MP Elizabeth MacDonough, who is responsible for advising the chamber on how its rules, protocols and precedents work.

Without congressional legislation, the current DACA case sets up yet another high-stakes immigration legal dispute.

While it’s not clear whether this case will end in the Supreme Court, in a previous DACA-related case last year, three justices dissented on their belief that the program is illegal. The whole court has not yet weighed on the legality of the DACA.

This story was updated with additional developments on Friday.

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