A federal appeals court issued a ruling on Friday that takes aim at an Obama-era initiative designed to protect immigrants who came to the United States as children without legal papers, occurring just days before Donald Trump assumes the presidency, where he has expressed intentions regarding mass deportations.
The decision, unanimous among the three judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals based in New Orleans, involved two judges nominated by Republican presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, alongside a judge appointed by Democrat Barack Obama. This ruling marks another setback for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which has left its participants in a state of uncertainty for over ten years.
The court’s ruling will not instigate an immediate shift for the more than 500,000 individuals currently benefiting from DACA, as they are still able to renew their temporary permits to live and work legally in the U.S. However, the ruling prevents the federal government from processing new applications, potentially shrinking the number of eligible recipients over time.
This recent legal decision could set the stage for DACA to be reviewed by the Supreme Court yet again. During his first term, Trump attempted to dissolve DACA, though he occasionally voiced support for allowing those covered by the program to remain in the country.
The DACA program was established in 2012 by Obama, who cited Congress’ failure to create a path to legal status for individuals who entered the U.S. as children. Since then, DACA has faced numerous legal hurdles, which included two previous cases presented to the Supreme Court.
The current case pertains to a revised rule implemented by President Joe Biden in 2022, which didn’t significantly differ from the original 2012 memorandum establishing DACA. The new rule underwent a formal public comment process, aiming to bolster its constitutionality within the judicial system.
U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen of Houston ruled that the executive branch exceeded its legal authority, thus blocking the government from granting new DACA applications while allowing current beneficiaries to retain their status as the legal proceedings continue.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who spearheaded the lawsuit representing multiple Republican-led states, described the ruling on Friday as a “significant victory.” He expressed eagerness to collaborate with President-elect Donald Trump to restore what he termed as the rule of law and address the ongoing illegal immigration issues.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not provide an immediate comment regarding the ruling.
In 2016, the Supreme Court experienced a deadlock concerning an expanded version of DACA and a related initiative for parents of DACA recipients when there was a vacancy on the court. The result was that a lower court ruling preventing the benefits remained intact. In a subsequent 2020 case, the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration had improperly terminated DACA, failing to adhere to established federal protocols, which allowed the program to continue operating.
