Senate rejects Biden’s move to ease immigrant public charge rules.

The Senate Approves Legislation to Nullify Biden Administration Rule on Immigrants

The Senate has approved legislation that could nullify a loosened Biden administration rule for deciding whether immigrants to the United States are likely to become public charges. The measure is a joint resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to take down agency rules soon after they’re proposed. The White House’s Office of Management and Budget announced that President Joe Biden would veto the legislation, saying the Department of Homeland Security’s rule provides “a clear, comprehensive, and fair standard for assessing whether a noncitizen is likely to become a public charge.”

Details of the Latest Joint Resolution

The latest joint resolution targets a September 2022 rule from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), an agency currently headed by Alejandro Mayorkas. The Biden administration rule departs significantly from the Trump-era guidance issued in 2019 that had expanded the forms of welfare that would consider an immigrant as a “public charge.” Mayorkas has often said the United States’ greatest threat is “white supremacists,” drawing disapproval from Republicans such as Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.).

Border Patrol Encounters and Mayorkas’s Rule

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officers have encountered hundreds of individuals on the terrorism watch list on the United States’ borders in this fiscal year. The latest statistics show that the relative percentage of such encounters has significantly increased compared to past years. Border Patrol Southwest land border encounters have swelled, topping 250,000 in December 2022 alone. Mayorkas’s rule would go in the other direction, eliminating from consideration the receipt of food stamps, Medicaid, and housing benefits, among other forms of public assistance. DHS claims its new rule is partly intended to address “violent extremism threats” within his new agency, citing Jan. 6, 2021, as the impetus for his actions.

House Still Needs to Vote on Its Version of the Legislation

The House still needs to vote on its version of the legislation. Biden has so far vetoed three bills, all of them joint resolutions of disapproval aimed at rules from his agencies. The latest veto came on May 16, when the commander-in-chief struck down a measure that would have restored tariffs on some solar panels from China.

Conclusion

The Senate’s approval of the legislation to nullify the Biden administration rule on immigrants is a significant development in the ongoing debate over immigration policy in the United States. The House’s vote on its version of the legislation will be closely watched, as will President Biden’s response to the bill if it reaches his desk.