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Overview of "Travel Ban" Litigation and Recent Developments

Description: This report provides an overview of the series of executive actions (the first two taking the form of executive orders, and the third issued as a presidential proclamation) commonly referred to as the "Travel Ban," which restrict the entry of specified categories of non-U.S. nationals (aliens) into the United States, and the litigation related to those executive actions. It also addresses a fourth and more recent executive action--an executive order issued on October 24, 2017--which announced t… more
Date: January 18, 2018
Creator: Smith, Hillel R. & Harrington, Ben
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Temporary Protected Status: Overview and Current Issues

Description: This report discusses Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and the current countries with the status. The ongoing debate regarding whether TPS recipients should receive a pathway to legal permanent residency is also discussed. The report concludes with examples of activity in the 115th Congress related to TPS.
Date: January 17, 2018
Creator: Wilson, Jill H.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Application of the "One Central Reason: Standard in Asylum and Withholding of Removal Cases

Description: This report discusses asylum and withholding of removal immigration cases, and the application of the "one central reason" rule which dictates that asylum claimants demonstrate that an approved persecution grounds is one of the central reason they are claiming asylum. The same standard has been used in withholding of removal claim cases but a recent ruling by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court stated that the "one central reason" rule does not apply to withholding of removal cases creating a split in… more
Date: December 18, 2017
Creator: Smith, Hillel R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Federal Government's Plenary Immigration Power Collides with the Constitutional Right to an Abortion (Part 1)

Description: This report is the first in a two-part series discussing "Garza v. Hargan", a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit involving a detained unaccompanied alien minor and the right to terminate a pregnancy. The facts of the case and a discussion of the court's decision and whether the Health and Human Services Department policy regarding abortions unduly burdens a woman's right to an abortion is discussed.
Date: November 27, 2017
Creator: Smith, Hillel R. & Shimabukuro, Jon O.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Federal Government's Plenary Immigration Power Collides with the Constitutional Right to an Abortion (Part 2)

Description: This report is the secondt in a two-part series discussing "Garza v. Hargan", a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit involving a detained unaccompanied alien minor and the right to terminate a pregnancy. Debate among judges regarding the right of an unaccompanied alien minor to have an abortion when the minor was detained at the border and technically never formally entered the United States are discussed.
Date: November 27, 2017
Creator: Smith, Hillel R. & Shimabukuro, Jon O.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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A Primer on U.S. Immigration Policy

Description: This report provides a broad overview of U.S. immigration policy. The first section addresses policies governing how foreign nationals enter the United States either to reside permanently or to stay temporarily. Related topics within this section include visa issuance and security, forms of quasi-legal status, and naturalization. The second section discusses enforcement policies both for excluding foreign nationals from admission into the United States, as well as for detaining and removing tho… more
Date: November 14, 2017
Creator: Kandel, William A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Diversity Immigrant Visa Program

Description: This report discuses the Diversity Immigrant Visa program (DV) which is a lottery system that makes 50,000 visas available annually to immigrants from countries who had sent less than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. over the last five years. Eligibility, the application and admission process, statistics on places of origin, and legislative proposals are discussed.
Date: November 9, 2017
Creator: Wilson, Jill H.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Refugee Admissions and Resettlement Policy

Description: This report discusses the refugee admissions process and refugee number caps for the 2018 fiscal year. For FY2018, the worldwide refugee ceiling is 45,000. The FY2018 regional allocations are, as follows: Africa (19,000), East Asia (5,000), Europe and Central Asia (2,000), Latin America/Caribbean (1,500), and Near East/South Asia (17,500). Refugee admissions in FY2017 totaled 53,716.
Date: November 7, 2017
Creator: Bruno, Andorra
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Temporary Protected Status: Overview and Current Issues

Description: This report discusses Temporary Protected Status (TPS) which is offered to nationals of designated countries who due to civil unrest, natural disasters, and armed conflicts cannot safely return home. This report begins by situating TPS in the context of humanitarian responses to migration. Another form of blanket relief from removal--Deferred Enforced Departure (DED)--is also described, as is the historical use of these relief mechanisms. The report then provides data on the countries currently… more
Date: November 2, 2017
Creator: Wilson, Jill H.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Overview of "Travel Ban" Litigation and Recent Developments

Description: This report provides an overview of the series of three executive actions -- (the first two taking the form of executive orders, and the third issued as a presidential proclamation) commonly referred to as the "Travel Ban," which restrict the entry of specified categories of non-U.S. nationals (aliens) into the United States -- as well as the litigation related to those executive actions.
Date: October 23, 2017
Creator: Smith, Hillel R. & Harrington, Ben
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

President Trump's Proclamation on Enhanced Vetting of Foreign Nationals from Designated Countries

Description: This report discusses President Trump's Proclamation on on Enhanced Vetting for Foreign Nationals from Designated Countries which was issued on September 24, 2017 and is a newly revised version of the previously blocked executive orders which blocked entry to people from certain Muslim-majority countries and refugees temporarily. The new list of countries with travel bans or special scrutiny consists of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen, North Korea, Chad, and Venezuela (only certain governme… more
Date: September 29, 2017
Creator: Kandel, William A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Overview of the Federal Government's Power to Exclude Aliens

Description: This report provides an overview of the legislative and executive powers to exclude aliens. First, the report discusses a gatekeeping legal principle that frames those powers: nonresident aliens outside the United States cannot challenge their exclusion from the country. Second, the report analyzes the extent to which the constitutional and statutory rights of U.S. citizens limit the exclusion power under the "facially legitimate and bona fide" test of Kleindienst v. Mandel. The report conclude… more
Date: September 27, 2017
Creator: Harrington, Ben
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Unauthorized Childhood Arrivals: Legislative Options

Description: This report discusses bills proposed in Congress that either would provide temporary protection from removal or paths to citizenship for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients in the wake of the announcement of the phasing out of the DACA program.
Date: September 14, 2017
Creator: Bruno, Andorra
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The End of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program: Some Immediate Takeaways

Description: This report outlines some of the major implications of ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program, including common questions about what happens to current DACA recipients, and possibilities for Congress to consider.
Date: September 8, 2017
Creator: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Legal and Practical Effects of Private Immigration Legislation and Recent Policy Changes

Description: This report discusses the use of private immigration bills in Congress which allow Congress to grant permanent residency status to an immigrant who is not eligible under normal immigration procedures but that they deem to have extraordinary equities in the United States. It also addresses the announcement of new rules by the Immigration and Citizenship Enforcement Department (ICE) that limit stays of removal granted to immigrants who are proposed beneficiaries of a private immigration bill in C… more
Date: June 30, 2017
Creator: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Update: What Constitutes "Sexual Abuse of a Minor" For Immigration Purposes

Description: This report provides an update of an earlier report from April 6, 2017, providing the final decision by the Supreme Court in the case of "Esquivel-Quintana v. Sessions". The case concerned the question of whether an immigrant alien who was convicted of sexual abuse of a minor where the minor was under 18 but at least 16 (in this case statutory rape in California between a 21 year old male and a 17 year female) was removable for an aggravated felony under immigration law. The Supreme Court ruled… more
Date: June 7, 2017
Creator: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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H-2A and H-2B Temporary Worker Visas: Policy and Related Issues

Description: This report covers the H-2A agricultural guest worker program and the H-2B nonagricultural guest worker program. It explores the statutory and regulatory provisions that govern each program, focusing in particular on the much-debated labor certification process. It discusses past and present legislative efforts to reform the H-2A and H-2B programs and to create new guest worker visas, and identifies and analyzes key policy considerations to help inform future congressional action.
Date: May 10, 2017
Creator: Bruno, Andorra
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Sanctuary Jurisdictions: Congressional Action and President Trump's Interior Enforcement Executive Order

Description: This report discusses President Trump's executive order (EO) "Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States" issued on January 25, 2017, which seeks, among other things, to penalize "sanctuary jurisdictions." The term refers to states and localities that limit their cooperation with federal agencies on immigration law enforcement.
Date: February 15, 2017
Creator: Kandel, William A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Plan to Restrict Federal Grants to "Sanctuary Jurisdictions" Raises Legal Questions

Description: This report provides a description of Executive Order (EO) 13768 "Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States" issued on January 25, 2017 by President Trump. It highlights, in particular, potential questions about how the EO could be construed in regard to "sanctuary cities" and briefly discusses the claims made by those jurisdictions challenging the EO.
Date: February 14, 2017
Creator: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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