The Supreme Court permitted a “public charge” rule that allows the Trump administration to screen out green card applicants.
On Friday, the high court sided with the Trump administration on a rule which makes it more difficult for immigrants to receive legal status should they be expected to become dependent on government benefits.
A group of state and local governments, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, challenged the rule and asked the Supreme Court to revisit an earlier decision to allow the rule amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“By deterring immigrants from accessing publicly funded healthcare, including programs that would enable immigrants to obtain testing and treatment for COVID-19, the Rule makes it more likely that immigrants will suffer serious illness if infected and spread the virus inadvertently to others—risks that are heightened because immigrants make up a large proportion of the essential workers who continue to interact with the public,” they wrote in their brief.
The court affirmed its split 5-4 decision on the rule from earlier, though it did not publish its decision or make available the vote tally among the justices. The high court did, however, leave open a possibility for a similar request to be made by a federal district court.
The Justice Department encouraged the Supreme Court to reject the request made by the state and local leaders, arguing that it was calibrating its handling of immigration policy, given the circumstances.
“Rather than a wholesale suspension, the Executive Branch has instead opted to take more targeted steps to ensure that the Rule is being administered in an appropriate way in light of current conditions,” the DOJ wrote in its own Supreme Court filing.
