DEVELOPMENTS IN IMMIGRATION POLICY THIS WEEK
BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED
LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR
UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS
GOVERNMENT REPORTS
SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES
DEVELOPMENTS IN IMMIGRATION POLICY THIS WEEK
Immigration policy is a dynamic field subject to constant change. Here, we summarize some of the most important recent developments in immigration policy on the federal, legal, state, and local levels.
Federal
Thune Plans Quick Movement on Reconciliation Effort Focused on the Border
John Thune (R-SD), the incoming Senate Majority Leader, is reportedly planning to move forward within the first 30 days of the Trump administration on a budget reconciliation package that would focus on the border, along with defense and energy spending.
The package would be first of two budget reconciliation efforts in 2025, with the second—focused on taxes—coming later in the year. Measures passed through budget reconciliation can bypass the Senate filibuster, but they must be related to the federal budget and have a greater impact on spending than policy.
This first package would likely include funds for physical barriers at the U.S.-Mexico border and more funding for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Funds for the two immigration agencies would presumably cover the hiring of additional personnel, more technology resources at CBP, and an expansion of immigration detention capacity and removal operations at ICE. A Republican Senator who participated in the meeting said the consensus within the Republican conference is to “get on the border right away.”
Thune presented the plan at a closed-door meeting with Senate Republicans. He also indicated that the Senate will be in session more often next year, including on Fridays and potentially weekends.
Encounters at the U.S.-Mexico Border in October Remain Low Compared to Last Year
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released data on November 19 showing that the Border Patrol documented around 56,500 encounters between ports of entry at the U.S.-Mexico border in October—the first month of fiscal year (FY) 2025. While this was a marginal increase from September (53,900) and a small decrease from August (58,000), it represents a 70 percent decrease compared to October 2023 (188,700). The decline comes amid the Biden administration’s June 4 Presidential Proclamation on Securing the Border and accompanying Interim Final Rule, which was finalized on September 30. Reports from unofficial data indicate that encounters in November decreased a further 17 percent compared to October, reaching as low as 46,700—the lowest monthly number since July 2020.
Separately, CBP processed around 44,900 people in October to enter at ports of entry through the agency’s CBP One phone application. Since CBP One was introduced in January 2023, more than 860,000 individuals have scheduled appointments to be processed at ports of entry. DHS also continues to process people through the humanitarian parole program for certain nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela (CHNV). Through the end of October 2024, DHS has processed 531,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelas to arrive in the U.S. and receive parole.
Finally, CBP states that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) removed or returned over 700,000 people in FY 2024, more than any prior fiscal year since 2010.
Trump Announces Nominations to Lead CBP and ICE
President-elect Trump announced on social media on December 5 that he will nominate two longtime immigration officials to lead U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Trump will nominate Rodney S. Scott, the Border Patrol chief at the end of his first term, as the CBP commissioner. Scott served in the Border Patrol since the 1990s, rising through the ranks until he was tapped to lead the agency by then President Trump in February 2020. Trump also announced he will nominate Caleb Vitello to serve as the ICE director. Vitello, a 23-year veteran of the agency, currently serves as the Assistant Director for ICE’s Office of Firearms and Tactical Programs (OFTP).
Trump Transition Developing List of Third Countries Willing to Accept Removals
The incoming Trump administration is reportedly gathering a list of countries willing to accept migrants whose home nations refuse to take them back after their deportation from the U.S. The list of countries willing to accept deportees reportedly includes Turks and Caicos, the Bahamas, Panama, and Grenada. However, by December 6, Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas both indicated separately that they would oppose efforts to receive deportees from other countries within their borders.
Overall, it is unclear whether deportees would be eligible to legally work and live in third countries. Because some countries, namely Venezuela, Cuba, and at times China, are reluctant to accept back citizens ordered removed from the U.S., the plan could result in hundreds of thousands of people being removed to a third country. In his first term, President-elect Trump established Asylum Cooperative Agreements (ACAs), known colloquially as the “safe third country” agreements, with Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador to take in asylum seekers. The programs faced legal challenges and were eventually ended by the Biden administration, but they could serve as a guide for working with third countries willing to accept deportees.
Biden Administration Publishes Notice Designating Lebanon for TPS
On November 26, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a Federal Register notice designating Lebanon for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The designation, announced by DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on October 17, 2024, will last for 18 months. This decision allows approximately 11,000 eligible Lebanese nationals and stateless individuals who last habitually resided in Lebanon to apply for TPS. Applicants must demonstrate continuous residence in the U.S. since October 16, 2024, and continuous physical presence in the country since November 27, 2024. TPS provides protection from deportation and eligibility to apply for work authorization and travel permits.
The designation was prompted by the armed conflict along the Israel-Lebanon border, which recently resulted in a ceasefire agreement. DHS also announced Special Student Relief measures for approximately 1,740 Lebanese F-1 visa holders facing severe financial hardship due to the crisis. These measures allow eligible international students from Lebanon to apply for work authorization, work additional hours during the school year, and reduce their course loads while maintaining visa status. The TPS designation follows President Biden’s July 2024 Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) memorandum for Lebanese nationals, which similarly provided temporary protections but without a formal application process.
November Refugee Resettlement Numbers Released
Refugee arrival numbers for November 2024 were 7,162, a slight six percent decrease from the 7,629 arrivals in October. The numbers represent a slow start to fiscal year (FY) 2025. If the U.S. were to resettle the same number of refugees, as in November, for the next 10 months a total of 86,411 refugees would be resettled for the year. The highest number of refugee arrivals for November came from the Near East/South Asia with 2,972 arrivals.
Refugee arrivals are likely to decrease in the coming months. In the first Trump administration, refugee arrival determinations fell to all-time lows since the inception of the program.
H-1B Cap Reached for FY 2025
On December 2, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that employers had filed enough petitions to reach the agency’s H-1B visa cap for fiscal year (FY) 2025, including a ceiling of 65,000 regular visas and an additional 20,000 visas for people who meet an advanced degree exemption.
USCIS received approximately 480,000 registrations for FY 2025, a 39% decrease from FY 2024. The high number of FY 2024 registrations led to concerns that some workers were submitting multiple registrations to increase their chances of selection. USCIS instituted a new policy for FY 2025 ensuring that each registrant will have the same chance of being selected, regardless of their number of registrations. USCIS will still accept cap-exempt petitions, including those for current H-1B professionals who have already been counted against the ceiling.
Legal
5th Circuit Bars Border Patrol from Cutting Razor Wire Placed by Texas Along U.S.-Mexico Border
On November 27, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit barred federal authorities from “damaging, destroying, or otherwise interfering with” razor wire placed by Texas along the U.S.-Mexico border. In a split 2-1 decision, the court rejected the Biden administration’s sovereign immunity argument and federal preemption arguments, determining that Texas was erecting the concertina wire fence to safeguard state property rather than to “regulate” the Border Patrol. In so holding, the majority required that federal authorities have “necessary access” to both sides of the border, including areas where Texas had been restricting federal access.
The dispute emerged after Texas began placing razor wire along the banks of the Rio Grande to deter migrants from entering the state. When federal agents policing the international boundary had difficulty accessing the river in some instances, including rescues of migrants in danger of drowning, Border Patrol agents cut through the wire. Texas, in turn, filed suit against the Biden administration for destroying state property. The case came back to the 5th Circuit after moving through the federal court system, including a narrow Supreme Court decision that declined to rule on the legality of Texas placing the wire along the border but permitted federal authorities to temporarily continue cutting the wire as the case proceeded.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R-Texas) praised the ruling, lauding the court for holding “that Texas has the right to build the razor wire border wall that we have constructed to deny illegal entry into our state” and promising to add more razor wire barriers to the border.
BILLS INTRODUCED AND CONSIDERED
It can be challenging to keep up with the constant barrage of proposed legislation in Congress. So, every week, we round up new bills. This list includes federal legislative proposals that have recently been introduced and that are relevant to immigration policy.
H.R. 10217
Visa Integrity Preservation Act
This bill would require all unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. to leave the country and complete a consular interview before receiving a nonimmigrant visa to reenter the country. The bill aims “close the loophole” that allows undocumented spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens to obtain legal status in the U.S. through President Biden’s Reuniting Families Together program, which is currently blocked by the courts.
Sponsored by Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-WY) (3 cosponsors — 3 Republicans, 0 Democrats)
11/21/2024 Introduced in the House by Rep. Harriet Hageman
11/21/2024 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary
H.R. 10237
CBP Guidance on Personal Belongings Act
This bill would require U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to establish policies for respectfully handling the personal belongings of individuals in its custody.
Sponsored by Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-IL) (21 cosponsors — 0 Republicans, 21 Democrats)
11/21/2024 Introduced in the House by Rep. Delia Ramirez
11/21/2024 Referred to the House Committees on Homeland Security and Ways and Means
H.R. 10265
To establish the Department of Homeland Security Northern Border Mission Center, and for other purposes.
Sponsored by Rep. Thomas Suozzi (D-NY) (2 cosponsors — 1 Republican, 1 Democrat)
11/29/2024 Introduced in the House by Rep. Thomas Suozzi
11/29/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Homeland Security
H.R. 10274
This bill would codify existing protections that allow Members of Congress to conduct oversight visits to immigration detention facilities.
Sponsored by Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) (1 cosponsor — 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)
12/03/2024 Introduced in the House by Rep. Jason Crow
12/03/2024 Referred to the House Committees on the Judiciary and Homeland Security
S. 5340
Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2024
This bill includes a provision to impose visa restrictions on nationals of foreign countries that wrongfully detain U.S. citizens.
Sponsored by Sen. Christopher Coons (D-DE) (1 cosponsor — 1 Republican, 0 Democrats)
11/18/2024 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Christopher Coons
11/18/2024 Referred to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
S. 5388
This bill would restore congressional funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
Sponsored by Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) (4 cosponsors — 0 Republicans, 3 Democrats, 1 Independent)
11/21/2024 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Peter Welch
11/21/2024 Referred to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
S. 5389
CBP Guidance on Personal Belongings Act
This bill would require U.S. Customs and Border Protection to establish policies for respectfully handling the personal belongings of individuals in its custody.
Sponsored by Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) (2 cosponsors — 0 Republicans, 2 Democrats)
11/21/2024 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Peter Welch
11/21/2024 Referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
S. 5407
This bill would aim to enhance border security by integrating emerging technologies into operations. It would require a comprehensive deployment plan and formalize the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Innovation Team to research and implement these innovations.
Sponsored by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) (0 cosponsors)
12/02/2024 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto
12/02/2024 Referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
S. 5423
Reuniting Families Act
This bill would aim to increase family unity in the immigration system by exempting close relatives from visa caps, reducing the backlog of family-based visas, “recapturing” unused visas from past years, protecting children from “aging out” of their parents’ visas after age 21, raising per-country family-based immigration caps, and more.
Sponsored by Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) (1 cosponsor — 0 Republicans, 1 Democrat)
12/04/2024 Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Mazie Hirono
12/04/2024 Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary
LEGISLATIVE FLOOR CALENDAR
The U.S. Senate will be in session the week of Monday, December 9. The U.S. House of Representatives will be in session from Monday, December 9 through Thursday, December 12, 2024.
UPCOMING HEARINGS AND MARKUPS
Here, we round up congressional hearings and markups happening in the field or in Washington.
Given the Green Light: Open Border Policies and Threats to Law Enforcement
Date: Tuesday, December 10, 2024, at 10:00 am E.T. (House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology)
Location: 310 Cannon House Office Building
Witnesses: TBA
How Mass Deportations Will Separate American Families, Harm Our Armed Forces, and Devastate Our Economy
Date: Tuesday, December 10, 2024 at 10:00 am E.T. (Senate Judiciary Committee)
Location: G50 Dirksen Senate Office Building
GOVERNMENT REPORTS
Reports by bodies such as the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the Congressional Research Service, and the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General provide invaluable information on immigration policy and practice. Here, we give brief summaries of new immigration-related reports, with links to the resources themselves in case you want to learn more.
Congressional Research Service (CRS); Immigration Courts: Decline in New Cases at the End of FY2024; Published November 26, 2024
This report examines the decline in new immigration court filings and the policy changes that may have contributed to this decline.
U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO); Law Enforcement: DHS Could Better Address Bias Risk and Enhance Privacy Protections for Technologies Used in Public; Publicly Released December 3, 2024
This report recommends five actions for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), to assess bias risk and ensure privacy in detection and monitoring technologies.
SPOTLIGHT ON NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM RESOURCES
The Forum is constantly publishing new policy-focused resources that engage with some of the most topical issues around immigration today. Here are a few that are particularly relevant this week:
Dreamers in the United States: An Overview of the Dreamer Community and Proposed Legislation
This resource provides an overview of Dreamer population estimates and data on how many Dreamers would be protected by legislation proposed in Congress over the years.
Texas H.B. 160: Repeal of In-State Tuition for Undocumented Students: Bill Summary
Texas House Bill (H.B. 160), a bill pre-filed for the 2025 legislative session, would eliminate in-state tuition for undocumented students, potentially request back payment, and require colleges and universities to disclose students’ immigration status to law enforcement.
Texas v U.S.: How One State Is Reshaping Federal Authority Over Immigration
This landing page hosts three white papers that together provide an overview of the ongoing conflict between Texas and the Biden administration, highlighting some of the most impactful battles along the many fronts where the state has challenged the federal government’s power over immigration.
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*This Bulletin is not intended to be comprehensive. Please contact Christian Penichet-Paul, Assistant Vice President of Policy and Advocacy at the National Immigration Forum, with comments and suggestions of additional items to be included. Christian can be reached at cpenichet@immigrationforum.org. Thank you.