US authorities completely reverse Trump's 'public burden' rule

On Tuesday, March 9, the Supreme Court dismissed a case related to the controversial rule of the Donald Trump era that made it difficult for an immigrant to obtain permanent resident status or citizenship if he used certain government benefits. CNN.

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The new filing is the latest example of a shift in position by the Biden administration. Under 45th President Donald Trump, immigration enforcement was a cornerstone of the agenda.

In a short letter to the court on Tuesday, March 9, Acting Solicitor General Elisabeth Prelogar informed the judges that both sides agreed that the case should be dismissed.

Susan Welber, a staff attorney for the Legal Aid Society, said in an interview that the Trump rule "will now be blocked while the Biden administration continues the process of reviewing and deciding on the new rules."

President Joe Biden ordered an immediate revision of the rule. The Legal Aid Society and other groups praised Biden's actions and said that "the Trump rule erected an invisible wall of a wealth test that discriminated against people."

“Because of the public charge rule, immigrant families live in fear of having to access essential benefits such as health care, even though they work on the front lines or are among those hit hardest by COVID-19,” the statement said. .

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Official statement from the head of DHS

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Commissioner Alejandro Mayorkas announced that the government will no longer defend the "public charge" rule in the 2019 version because "it is not in the public interest and is an ineffective use of limited government resources," according to the official website. DHS.

“The rule was inconsistent with our country’s values ​​and penalized people for accessing health care benefits and other available government services,” Mayorkas said. “Consistent with the President’s vision, we will continue to pursue reforms that improve our legal immigration system.”

President Biden's executive order, Restoring Faith in U.S. Legal Immigration Systems and Strengthening Efforts to Integrate and Involve New Americans, calls for an immediate review of agency practices regarding the application of the public charge rule.

As indicated in the DHS court statement, governments no longer protect this rule, the Department of Justice is no longer conducting an appellate review of judgments overturning or enforcing the 2019 rule.

The essence of the rule about “public burden”

The Trump Rule was issued in 2019 and was in effect in most states across the country. He used a "public burden" clause that goes back at least to the Immigration Act of 1882. Federal lawmakers at the time wanted to make sure the immigrants could take care of themselves and not end up being a burden to society. But it was canceled long before Trump was wounded, and the 45th president brought the idea back again.

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This rule, in Trump's version, could serve as a basis for denying both immigrant and nonimmigrant visas due to the immigrant's perceived inability to support himself in the United States and the potential threat that he could take advantage of public assistance and benefits in America. Trump in 2019 expanded the concept of a “public charge” to include those immigrants who “could potentially use any benefits.”

Now the expanded requirements imposed by Trump have been canceled. And the rule of “social burden” itself was again narrowed down to the version adopted in 1996. It now covers individuals who are “primarily dependent” on government assistance, which means that such assistance provides a person with more than half of the income. In addition, only cash benefits, such as temporary assistance for needy families or supplemental social security income, are now counted, not the Food Stamp Benefits and Medical Benefits that the Trump administration took into account.

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