Supreme Court Splits in United States v. Texas, Leaves Lower Court Injunction of DAPA and DACA-Plus Programs in Place

In a one sentence decision, the US Supreme Court announced today a 4-4 split in United States v. Texas, affirming the decision by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to stay implementation of the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) and expansion of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA-plus) programs.

DAPA and DACA-plus would have benefited roughly four million US residents, the overwhelming majority with US citizen family members and long tenure in the United States. The Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) has released several analyses of the DAPA and DACA-plus populations, including: the article, “Potential Beneficiaries of the Obama Administration’s Executive Action Programs Deeply Embedded in US Society” by Donald Kerwin and Robert Warren; and new estimates on the total US undocumented and DAPA- and DACA-eligible populations by metropolitan area.

These studies provide an in-depth, statistical portrait of the US residents who would have benefited from these programs, the equities they have built in the nation and where they live on state and sub-state levels. This information will remain critical in formulating immigration policies that benefit these populations, their families, and their communities. Action to reform US immigration policies and to provide legal status to the nation’s undocumented residents will now await the next administration and Congress.