Appeals Court Rules DACA Unlawful: Why It Matters

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit found the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, affirmed an earlier ruling by a U.S. District Judge declaring DACA to be unconstitutional. The program protects over 600,000 young immigrant from being deported.

A recent federal court ruling affirmed that DACA violated federal law because of its' overreach of presidential authority and lack of "Congressional authorization." Established by President Obama in 2012, the DACA program protects eligible, undocumented immigrants who entered the U.S. as children from deportation and allows them to apply for work permits. The program has been shown to boost access to higher education and higher wages for its recipients while also increasing graduation rates as it provides them an opportunity to integrate into American society. There are currently over 600,000 immigrants protected under DACA.

While the recent rulings have allowed current DACA recipients to renew their status temporarily, it restricts the U.S. government from accepting new applicants to the program. Furthermore, the existing protections for current recipients are not guaranteed so, they may be at risk of deportation in the coming future, though many of them have resided in the U.S. for decades. It is vital that DACA, along with the program's DREAMERS, remained protected. The program has provided DREAMERS with access to a quality education while reducing their poverty rate. Economists even maintain that DACA has had a positive impact on the general U.S. economy. In addition, although DACA is considered a "controversial" political topic, it is largely supported by Americans. According to Pew Research Center, roughly 74% of Americans favored "Congress passing a law that granting permanent legal status to immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally when they were children." This shows broad American support for expanding the protections under DACA.

The U.S. Appeals Court sent the case back to a lower court for further review after President Biden updated regulations in August. These updates strengthened the legality of the program by codifying it into federal regulatory law. The appeals court did not consider this change in its' ruling, meaning that despite major challenges, there is still hope for the DACA program to remain intact.