The Supreme Court Decides DACA Rescission Case on Administrative Law Grounds, Avoids Deciding Lawfulness of DACA
Minyao Wang - Hecht Partners llp
Guest Post: Minyao Wang - Hecht Partners llp for ImmigrationProf Blog
June 19, 2020 - Yesterday, the U.S Supreme Court by a vote of 5 to 4 vacated the Trump administration’s termination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (“DACA”) program. While the Court conceded that the administration has the ultimate authority to end DACA, it ruled that the procedural requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”) were not satisfied. Under the Court’s decision, the administration will have an opportunity to terminate DACA again.
DACA was made necessary by the presence of a significant undocumented population in the United States. That population includes people who have been brought to the country by their parents at a young age. Under Plyler v. Doe, 457 U.S. 202 (1982), they enjoy a constitutional right to attend elementary and secondary school. According to one estimate, every year about 100,000 students lacking lawful immigration status graduate from U.S. high schools. At that point in their lives, they cannot work legally. Any plans for higher education are seriously complicated by their unlawful status and the resulting inability to obtain financial aid. Even if they manage to complete a college degree, their unlawful status will again disqualify them from finding work commensurate with their education. Prior to DACA, it was not uncommon to find people with college degrees working “under the table” in restaurants and construction sites across the country. read the full story