A Texas judge has struck down the revised DACA program, reigniting the debate over its legality and leaving hundreds of thousands of “Dreamers” in limbo.
A federal judge in Texas on Wednesday declared the revised version of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program illegal.
U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen’s ruling reiterated that the Obama-era federal policy is unlawful and should have come from Congress. DACA provides hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants brought to the United States as children with a two-year renewable shield from deportation.
“The remaining provisions of the original injunction are to remain in place and are to be applicable to Final Rule DACA,” Judge Hanen wrote.
The ruling blocks the federal government from accepting new DACA applications but maintains the program for existing recipients during the appeals process. The ruling does not mandate immediate action against current DACA beneficiaries.
Texas and eight other states have been actively opposing DACA. Their central argument is that the Obama administration exceeded its authority by creating DACA in 2012, bypassing Congress. They have contended that President Joe Biden also overstepped his authority when he renewed it in 2022, bypassing Congress.
The nine Republican-led states also asked the court to phase out the program over two years, calling the Biden administration’s revised version “substantively unlawful” for the same reasons as the original Obama-era DACA Memorandum.
“The Court should declare it unlawful and unconstitutional, vacate it in its entirety, and permanently enjoin its implementation (with a prudent transition for existing DACA recipients),” their lawsuit, filed earlier this year, stated.
Around 800,000 individuals are believed to be recipients of DACA, with two-thirds of those enrolled in the program thought to be aged between 21 to 30, having lived and worked in the United States for most of their lives after illegally entering as young children.
The plaintiff states in the case also contend that they bear substantial costs, including hundreds of millions of dollars for health care and education, when immigrants are allowed to remain in the country without legal status.
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