Details to the New DHS Deportation Policy

Today, the administration is discussing the new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) policy, releasing some details to the policy which has been called an “Executive DREAM Act” by many within the immigration community.  While the new policy is agreed upon by all to be a temporary measure, this temporary measure was the only option to help undocumented youth left available to the administration by a Republican party which filibustered the DREAM Act.  Although Marco Rubio’s bill was slated to come out, it’s Republican representatives Lamar Smith and Steve King who are pushing hardest against the change of policy, assaulting DHS Secretary Napolotano from the House Judiciary Committee.  Representative King has already threatened a lawsuit, which he claimed that he will file in the upcoming weeks last week.  Anything Marco would have passed, would have had to get by those two first.
Here are a few of the elaborations which the administration is making on the DHS deportation policy and work authorization: the application will include confidentiality language so that info is only shared with ICE if the application is denied because of criminal history, fraud on the application or threat to national security, actual deferred action request forms won’t be released until 8/15 to prevent fraud, travel allowed for humanitarian, employment and education reasons.  For “significant misdemeanor,” they define this as a sentence of 91 days or more, or a conviction for domestic violence, burglary, sexual abuse, firearms violation, drug distribution and DUI.  This doesn’t include, however, traffic offenses, driving without a license or anything related to anti-immigrant state laws such as SB 1070.  All this information will be much more detailed in an FAQ flyer and brochure to be released tomorrow by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).