United States | Top business leaders sign DACA amicus brief

BAL joined a group of more than 50 top U.S. companies this week in signing a friend-of-the-court brief in support of protecting the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

The brief was filed in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in the ongoing litigation challenging DACA. The Fifth Circuit is hearing the case after a federal judge in Texas issued a ruling declaring a Biden administration regulation to protect DACA unlawful. The administration has appealed that ruling. Oral arguments are expected later this year.

Proponents assert that DACA has remained a transformative policy, contributing an estimated $13.3 billion to the U.S. economy each year. If the program ends, not only would hundreds of thousands lose their immigration status and employment authorization, but companies would also lose valued employees and the national gross domestic product could contract by up to $460 billion, according the Coalition for the American Dream.

“By making hundreds of thousands of DACA recipients eligible for work authorization, [DACA] expands work opportunities for everyone,” the brief said. “DACA recipients played a particularly important role as front-line workers responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, with unemployment at low levels and worker shortages plaguing many sectors of the economy, the contributions of Dreamers are more important than ever.”

The complete list of companies that signed the brief is available here.

As of Sept. 30, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services reported that there were more than 544,000 active DACA recipients in the United States. Under a court order in the current litigation, the U.S. government is permitted to accept and process DACA renewals and related work and travel authorization requests; officials are not permitted to process first-time DACA requests.

BAL Analysis: The business community continues to show strong support for DACA and the crucial role Dreamers play in the U.S. economy. Given the uncertain environment, DACA recipients who qualify for a renewal are urged to apply for one as soon as they can. BAL will continue to follow the litigation challenging DACA and will provide updates as information becomes available.

Read more of the latest immigration news.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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