WASHINGTON\u00a0\u2014\u00a0For the first time in four years, the federal government plans to begin processing initial applications for DACA, the Obama-era program that grants deportation protection and work permits to immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. <\/p>\n
The move, outlined in a proposal Monday by the Justice Department, would reopen DACA to first-time applicants in every state except Texas. The proposal was filed in response to an ongoing lawsuit in U.S. district court in Brownsville, Tex.<\/p>\n
According to the filing, Texas residents who already have DACA could continue receiving protection from deportation but would no longer qualify for employment authorization. <\/p>\n
Lawsuits over DACA, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, have been ongoing since President Trump moved to end the program during his first term. <\/p>\n
Under the government\u2019s proposal, DACA recipients who move into Texas would risk losing their legal ability to work, while moving out of Texas could allow them to resume qualifying for a two-year work permit. <\/p>\n
The proposal is pending a final decision by U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hanen. <\/p>\n
\u201cThese proposals do not limit DHS from undertaking any future lawful changes to DACA,\u201d the filing states. <\/p>\n
The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to a request for comment. <\/p>\n
Juliana Macedo do Nascimento, deputy director of federal advocacy for United We Dream, said misinformation was circulating Tuesday on social media. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve seen a lot of folks saying initial applications will start right away. That\u2019s not true,\u201d she said. \u201cThe status quo stays. If you are a DACA recipient right now, even in Texas, if you can renew you should renew as soon as possible because then you have another two years.\u201d <\/p>\n
Other advocacy groups, such as the nonprofit Dreamers2gether, urged DACA recipients and hopeful applicants to leave Texas and file a change of address form with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. <\/p>\n
More than 525,000 immigrants<\/a> are currently enrolled in DACA. Texas follows California in the ranking of states with the highest number of program enrollees, according to USCIS. <\/p>\n To qualify, applicants must prove they came to the U.S. before they turned 16 and have graduated from high school or were honorably discharged from the military. Applicants also cannot have serious criminal records.<\/p>\n But for years the program has sat in a state of uncertainty, stoking anxiety for many recipients, amid court battles that stopped applications from being processed and left many younger people who would have aged into qualifying for DACA instead vulnerable to deportation.<\/p>\n