DHS' proposal would rescind a rule adopted in 2022 under the Biden administration that reinstated a long-standing but relatively narrow definition of "public charge." (Getty Images)
The 2022 rule defined a "public charge" as someone "primarily dependent" on government assistance, particularly people receiving cash assistance for income maintenance or nursing home care at government expense. Most non-cash benefits such as Medicaid and food stamps did not count toward a public charge determination under that rule.
DHS' new proposal argues that the Biden-ere policy is a "straitjacket" on immigration officers that prevents them from considering "all factors and information relevant to an alien’s likelihood at any time of becoming a public charge."
Opponents of the Trump administration's proposed rule change fear it would open the door to widespread rejection of green cards for people who would otherwise qualify and that it would lead immigrants to not seek assistance they could qualify for over concerns that it could impact their green card applications.
If the proposal is finalized, the Trump administration would not have a formal definition of what it means to be a public charge. This would give immigration officials broader discretion to consider a wider array of factors and potentially additional types of benefits in determining what constitutes a public charge, moving away from the narrow "primarily dependent" factor that was included in the 2022 rule.
In urging the federal government to abandon the proposal, 127 Democrats said the rule would create "immediate and widespread uncertainty," according to The Hill.
The Democrat lawmakers argue in formal comments that immigration officers would be forced to make a public charge determination with little guidance.
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The Democrats said the proposed rule opens the door to penalizing people who previously used assistance programs when there was no risk for accessing the benefits. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Another group of Democrats also submitted comments taking issue with the plan to change the longstanding definition of a public charge.
"Since the term was first codified as an immigration restriction in 1882, it has been consistently interpreted to mean an individual who is, or is likely to become, primarily dependent on the government for his or her care (i.e., someone who is effectively a ‘charge’ or ward of the state)," Rep. Jaime Raskin, D-Md., and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the top Democrat on their respective chambers' Judiciary committees, said in comments signed by additional lawmakers, according to The Hill.
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"Over the years, the method for determining such 'primary dependence' has changed, but the principle itself has remained steadfast," they added.
Under the 2019 public charge rule issued during Trump's first term, immigration officers were instructed to reject applicants who used public programs.
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