How the Immigration Court Backlog Would Skyrocket Under Donald Trump’s Plan
Immigration Impact looks at the possible explosion of the immigration court backload of cases in a Trump administration, which has promised to increase immigration enforcement efforts — and presumably removal cases..
For more than a decade, the immigration court system has struggled with an enormous backlog. The latest figures from (TRAC) record the backlog at an all-time high of 521,676 as of the end of October, the first month in Fiscal Year (FY) 2017.
The data release coincides with reports of President-Elect Donald Trump’s plan for his first 100 days in office. Beginning on his first day, Trump promises to pursue “a hiring freeze on all federal employees to reduce federal workforce through attrition (exempting military, public safety, and public health).” In other words, all retiring immigration court personnel—including immigration judges—would not be replaced.
For years, the lengthy backlog in immigration court has been attributed to a combination of increased enforcement, lack of resources and—in particular—a shortage of immigration judges. In fact, a hiring freeze at the Department of Justice (DOJ) from 2011-2015 was followed by an increase of nearly 300,000 cases in the backlog during that time period.The backlog has increased each year since 2006, and if Trump sticks to the plans he has announced, the enormous line will grow exponentially.
Read the story at the link above.
KJ