Who Would Have Gained Protection, but Did Not

Just under half of the nation’s unauthorized immigrant population – estimated currently at about 11 million – could have potentially benefited from programs President Obama announced in November 2014.

Mr. Obama’s programs for parents and children – Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, known as DAPA, and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, known as DACA – would have protected three categories of unauthorized immigrants:

DAPA (parents)

Unauthorized parents of children who are United States citizens or legal permanent residents born on or before Nov. 20, 2014. To qualify, parents must have been in the United States since Jan.1, 2010.

DACA (children)

Unauthorized immigrants born after June 15, 1981 who were brought to the United States before their 16th birthday and have been in the country since June 15, 2007.

Expanded DACA (children)

Unauthorized immigrants brought to the United States as children before January 2010.

Unauthorized immigrants eligible for ...

DAPA:

3.6 million

Expanded DACA:

275,000

Existing DACA:

1.2 million

Ineligible for all programs:

6 million

Unauthorized immigrants eligible for ...

Expanded

DACA:

275,000

Existing

DACA:

1.2 million

Ineligible for

all programs:

6 million

DAPA:

3.6 million

Unauthorized immigrants eligible for ...

Expanded

DACA:

275,000

Existing

DACA:

1.2 million

Ineligible for

all programs:

6 million

DAPA:

3.6 million

Unauthorized immigrants eligible for ...

Ineligible for

all programs:

6 million

DAPA:

3.6 million

Existing

DACA:

1.2 million

Expanded

DACA:

275,000

Unauthorized immigrants eligible for ...

DAPA:

3.6 million

Expanded DACA:

275,000

Existing DACA:

1.2 million

Ineligible for all programs:

6 million

Source: Migration Policy Institute

Mr. Obama’s plan granted DAPA-eligible immigrants authorization to work in the United States for three years at a time.

It also expanded the DACA program, which allows eligible young people to apply for deportation deferrals and work permits, to include unauthorized immigrants who entered the United States before January 2010, from the current cutoff of June 15, 2007. The expansion also eliminated the requirement that applicants be younger than 31 years old.

The status of young people who had qualified for the initial DACA program, which was created in 2012, were not at issue in the Supreme Court case. However, they could have also benefited from the decision, because the 2014 initiative increased the deferral period to three years from two years.

According to the Migration Policy Institute, more than 10 million people live in households with at least one potentially DAPA-eligible adult. Two-thirds of these adults have lived in the United States for at least 10 years, The majority of those eligible for all of Mr. Obama’s initiatives, shown below, live in three immigrant-heavy states: California, Texas and New York.

Eligible unauthorized immigrants

1 million

100,000

WASH.

10,000

N.Y.

N.J.

ILL.

CALIF.

N.C.

ARIZ.

GA.

TEX.

FLA.

Eligible unauthorized immigrants

1 million

100,000

WASH.

10,000

N.Y.

N.J.

ILL.

CALIF.

N.C.

ARIZ.

GA.

TEX.

FLA.

Eligible unauthorized immigrants

1 million

100,000

WASH.

10,000

N.Y.

N.J.

ILL.

CALIF.

N.C.

ARIZ.

GA.

TEX.

FLA.

Eligible unauthorized immigrants

1 million

100,000

10,000

N.Y.

CALIF.

TEX.

Source: Migration Policy Institute

Nationally, unauthorized immigrants represent about a quarter of the total foreign-born population. Growth in the unauthorized immigrant population has slowed significantly since 2007, driven in part by a decline in immigrants from Mexico, where more than half of those immigrants were born. An increase in deportations and fewer economic incentives to come to the United States after the recession have contributed to the decline.

Deportations per year

Unauthorized immigrant population

400,000

12 million

All

300,000

9

200,000

6

Mexican-born

100,000

3

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

Unauthorized immigrant population

12 million

All

9

6

Mexican-born

3

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

Deportations per year

400,000

300,000

200,000

100,000

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

Deportations per year

Unauthorized immigrant population

400,000

12 million

All

300,000

9

200,000

6

Mexican-born

100,000

3

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

Deportations per year

Unauthorized immigrant population

400,000

12 million

All

300,000

9

200,000

6

Mexican-born

100,000

3

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

’90

’95

’00

’05

’07

’09

’14

Sources: Pew Research Center; Department of Homeland Security

How the Case Originated

Texas and 25 other states filed a lawsuit in December 2014 to stop Mr. Obama’s immigration initiatives from being implemented. Fewer than half of immigrants who were eligible for the programs live in those states.

States that sued

States that did not sue

ME

AK

VT

NH

MA

ND

SD

RI

MT

WI

MI

WA

MN

NY

CT

IA

PA

NE

IN

OR

NJ

ID

OH

WY

IL

KS

WV

NV

UT

CA

CO

MO

KY

DC

MD

DE

AZ

OK

AR

TN

NM

VA

NC

GA

HI

TX

LA

MS

AL

SC

FL

440,000

93,000

1.4 million

2.2 million

717,000

182,000

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing DACA

Eligible for

expanded DACA

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing DACA

Eligible for

expanded DACA

States that sued

States that did not sue

ME

AK

VT

NH

MA

MT

ND

SD

WI

MI

WA

MN

NY

CT

RI

ID

NE

IN

OH

OR

WY

IA

IL

PA

NJ

NV

UT

KS

WV

CA

CO

MO

KY

DC

MD

DE

AZ

OK

AR

TN

NC

NM

VA

TX

LA

MS

AL

GA

SC

HI

FL

440,000

93,000

717,000

182,000

1.4 million

2.2 million

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing DACA

Eligible for

expanded DACA

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing DACA

Eligible for

expanded DACA

States that sued

States that did not sue

ME

AK

VT

NH

MA

MT

ND

SD

WI

MI

WA

MN

NY

CT

RI

ID

NE

IN

OH

OR

WY

IA

IL

PA

NJ

NV

UT

KS

WV

CA

CO

MO

KY

DC

MD

DE

AZ

OK

AR

TN

NC

NM

VA

TX

LA

MS

AL

GA

SC

HI

FL

1.4 million

440,000

93,000

2.2 million

717,000

182,000

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing

DACA

Eligible for

expanded

DACA

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing

DACA

Eligible for

expanded

DACA

States that sued

ME

MT

ND

SD

WI

MI

ID

NE

IN

OH

NV

UT

KS

WV

AZ

OK

AR

TN

NC

TX

LA

MS

AL

GA

SC

FL

1.4 million

440,000

93,000

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing

DACA

Eligible for

expanded

DACA

States that did not sue

AK

VT

NH

MA

WA

MN

NY

CT

RI

OR

WY

IA

IL

PA

NJ

CA

CO

MO

KY

DC

MD

DE

NM

VA

HI

2.2 million

717,000

182,000

Eligible for

DAPA

Eligible for

existing

DACA

Eligible for

expanded

DACA

Source: Migration Policy Center

In the lawsuit, the states accused Mr. Obama of ignoring federal procedures for changing rules and of abusing the power of his office by sidestepping Congress. A federal district court in early 2015 issued an order to block the initiatives from going forward while the legal case proceeded. An appeals court affirmed the ruling and added a broader one, saying that the program also exceeded Mr. Obama’s statutory authority.