The U.S. Supreme court on Monday delayed lifting a Trump-era border policy set to expire Wednesday, which allows officials to expel migrants over the U.S. Border,
The immigration policy was set to expire on Dec. 21, but after a request filed by 19 Republican-led states, Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily delayed the Biden Administration’s order to lift the policy. The restrictions, which were first put in place by the Trump administration in March of 2020, had been set to lift Wednesday at midnight.
Since the start of the pandemic, Title 42 has been invoked more than 2 million times to turn away migrants, including asylum seekers, from ports of entry, according to DHS data. They were denied asylum on the grounds of preventing the spread of COVID–19.
In a statement Monday, the Department of Homeland Security wrote:
"As required by the Supreme Court's administrative stay order, the Title 42 public health order will remain in effect at this time, and individuals who attempt to enter the United States unlawfully will continue to be expelled to Mexico." The statement then encouraged Congress to "provide the funds" DHS has requested for border security and to "advance the comprehensive immigration measures President Biden proposed on his first day in office."
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas said once the Title 42 order is no longer in place, DHS will process individuals encountered at the border without proper travel documents using its longstanding Title 8 authorities, which provide for meaningful consequences, including barring individuals who are removed from re-entry for five years.
“These consequences include placing individuals in expedited removal, which allows DHS to quickly repatriate individuals who do not have a legal basis to stay in the United States,” Mayorkas said.
Under Title 8, Individuals who cross the border without legal authorization will be processed and removed from the United States unless they can establish a legal basis to stay in the country.
