The White House had sought the expedited review of lower court orders blocking the Obama plan, which kept the administration from issuing work permits to the immigrants and allowing them to receive some benefits from the federal government.
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The program, the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, or DAPA, could potentially protect as many as 5 million undocumented immigrants from being deported.
The administration contends that the states have no legal standing to sue because it is up to the federal government to set immigration policy and that the Department of Homeland Security did not violate federal statutes in devising the program.
Republicans criticize the executive actions – including on healthcare, gun control and immigration – for overreaching presidential powers reserved for Congress. Texas has led the charge in taking the Obama administration to court on multiple occaisons.
When he announced the measures 14 months ago, Obama said he was acting under his own authority because Congress had failed to overhaul the immigration system.
The states said that the program “would be one of the largest changes in immigration policy in our nation’s history” and that it raises major issues involving the separation of powers and federalism.
Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, expressed support for Obama’s program.
The policy change would have also allowed children of undocumented immigrants to stay in the USA if they illegally entered the country under the age of 16.
A decision from the highest U.S. court is expected in the early summer, just as the USA election gets into full swing.
In 2015, a series of court decisions blocked DAPA from going into effect until Texas v. United States was settled.
More than 200 civil rights, immigration, and social rights organizations filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to grant a hearing to the case, including the National Council of Asian and Pacific Americans (NCAPA), which would affect almost half a million Asian Americans.
Obama has said that his executive actions were prompted by Congress’ prolonged handwringing over immigration reform.
Among Texas’s complaints is the additional cost to the states of issuing driver’s licenses to all those given quasi-legal status if the administration’s policy is upheld. The Republican presidential field has nearly unanimously rejected the president’s actions, with candidates like Sen.
“We have seen firsthand through our work how administrative relief positively impacts our community”, Rubio said in a statement.
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Republican candidate Donald Trump has proposed deporting all people who are living in the U.S. illegally, an idea embraced by some Republican candidates and dismissed by others.
