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Latest DACA and Dream Act News: January 15, 2018
Posted on Jan 15 2018
UPDATED 1 pm, 1/15/18: On Saturday, January 13, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service announced that it would start accepting DACA renewal applications. This is a limited opening, in compliance with the federal court order issued on January 9.
The new order allows anyone whose DACA expires on or after September 5, 2016 to file for a renewal. It also allows people whose DACA expired before September 5, 2016 to file a new initial DACA request. It does not allow people who have never had DACA to file an initial request.
The Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM) will immediately begin helping Minnesota DACA recipients positively affected under the court order.
The USCIS action in compliance with the federal court order is a limited and temporary move that does not mitigate the urgency of passing a clean Dream Act now, this week.
“Only Congressional action can establish permanent, secure protection for Dreamers,” said ILCM Executive Director John Keller. “Congress needs to act now to provide a path to permanent residence. The future of Dreamers should not depend on an anti-immigrant, anti-DACA administration that right now is trying to overturn the judicial decision ordering it to allow renewals.”
The decision to accept DACA renewals could be reversed at any time. Because this decision does not allow new applications, it offers no relief for young teenagers who, by turning 15 years old, would have qualified to apply for DACA. They continue to live in danger of deportation due to the Trump administration’s September 5 decision to kill DACA.
Congressional action to pass a clean Dream Act now remains crucial. The Immigration Law Prof blog has published a chart comparing the various proposals now before Congress. That chart shows that the bipartisan Dream Act and the “Gang of 8” Graham/Durbin Senate proposal both offer permanent residence and a path to citizenship for Dreamers. the Goodlatte “Securing America’s Future Act” and the Cotton RAISE Act and the Hurd/Aguilar Plan do NOT offer these protections.
The Dream Act is the only “clean” bill. The Graham/Durbin Senate proposal includes border wall funding and various restrictions on immigration, including denial of permanent residence to DACA parents.
Senators brought the Graham/Durbin bill to the president on Thursday, January 11, two days after the president hosted a live television meeting with Congress members in which he promised to sign any DACA bill that was passed. On January 11, Trump denounced the bi-partisan Senate proposal, saying in vulgar and racist language that the United States should not accept immigrants from Africa, Haiti, and El Salvador, but rather should seek immigrants from countries like Norway.
The clock is ticking. Congress must pass some kind of funding bill by Friday, January 19, or the government will run out of money to operate. Democrats can refuse to vote for any funding bill unless it includes a clean Dream Act. That is the leverage that Democrats have to force approval of a clean Dream Act now.
The Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, together with Navigate MN, will host a Facebook Live conversation on DACA on Thursday, January 18 at 10:30 a.m. on our Facebook page.
UPDATED 1 pm, 1/15/18 with new time for Facebook Live.