WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Thursday that a new fast-track immigration court system will cut the time it takes to decide asylum claims for some single adults from years to months.
Migrants settling in five cities – Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York – will be added to a “new arrival registry” that aims to have judges rule on their applications within 180 days, instead of the roughly four years it currently takes . It is believed that the shortages in the courts are a significant incentive for more people to come, especially those with delicate claims.
The Ministry of Justice has assigned 10 judges to this task. Authorities said they did not know how many cases they would handle, making it arduous to estimate the potential impact.
Administration officials said the failure of a comprehensive Senate bill this year explains the lack of bolder steps, a familiar line of attack against Republicans who exploited unprecedented border arrivals to criticize President Joe Biden’s handling of immigration in an election year.
“This administrative action is not a substitute for the sweeping and much-needed changes that the bipartisan Senate bill would bring, but in the absence of action by Congress, we will do everything we can to enforce the law as effectively as possible and prevent irregularities “To prevent migration,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Authorities said the five cities were chosen because judges there had some availability to hear cases and because they are major destinations for migrants.
Asylum seekers are eligible for a work permit within six months of arrival, which critics say provides an incentive to come even if their claims are delicate. The longer they stay in the United States and have established family or community ties, the more resistance there is to eventually sending them back to their home country.
The government has been trying for years to push more newcomers to the front line of asylum decisions, hoping to deport those whose claims are rejected within months rather than years. The Obama and Trump administrations also tried to expedite some cases through a separate pathway since 2014.
In 2021, the Biden administration introduced a “special docket” for asylum-seeking families in 10 cities, who will be put first in line in court and whose cases will be decided within 300 days. In 2022, the Biden administration unveiled a plan to have asylum officers, rather than immigration judges, decide a restricted number of family applications in nine cities.
Dana Leigh Marks, who retired in 2021 after 35 years as an immigration judge, said previous “missile files” have left asylum seekers, even those who can pay, unable to hire lawyers because there hasn’t been enough time. Marks also said these initiatives have failed to snail-paced migration.
“It’s a political response because the problem is so enormous and people are concerned, but it’s really just a superficial band-aid for a gaping wound,” Marks said. “It has never worked in the past and there is no reason to believe it would be any different this time.”
A labor representative for immigration judges said he is waiting to learn the scope of the recent efforts and how they will affect caseloads, but said they could potentially undermine the right to a fair hearing. “Hopefully the Biden administration has learned from the mistakes of the past,” said Matt Biggs, president of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers.
The backlog in immigration courts has risen to 3.6 million cases. There are around 600 judges in 68 courts. The plan announced Thursday does not include money for more judges.
The announcement came a week after another new policy aimed at encouraging a restricted number of asylum seekers to have their claims rejected earlier in the process if they are seen as a threat to public safety.
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Spagat reported from San Diego.
