The Biden administration announced Thursday its plans to expand Title 42 border restrictions to expel illegal migrants from Haiti, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba.
Under the new policy, 30,000 people from each country will also be allowed to enter the United States legally every month if they have a financial sponsor. Individuals who enter under the new policy will be provided two years of humanitarian protection during which they can work and apply for asylum.
Title 42 restrictions were first implemented under former president Donald Trump, as a pandemic-era response to curb asylum-seekers entering from the Mexican border based on public health concerns surrounding the spread of communicable diseases.
The temporary measure was set to expire in December 2022, but an emergency appeal filed in Arizona by the state’s attorney general Mark Brnovich to the Supreme Court led to a postponement of its expiration.
“Getting rid of Title 42 will recklessly and needlessly endanger more Americans and migrants by exacerbating the catastrophe that is occurring at our southern border,” Brnovich said.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of 19 other Republican states opposed to the lifting of Title 42.
“No one reasonably disputes that the failure to grant a stay will cause a crisis of unprecedented proportions at the border. DHS estimates that daily illegal crossings may more than double from around 7,000/day to 15,000/day once Title 42 is terminated,” the filing read.
The Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on Title 42 beginning in February.
News of the expansion of the policy comes a day after President Biden announced plans to travel to the crucial border town of El Paso, Texas, a major site of many illegal migrant crossings. The visit marks Biden’s first stop at the U.S.-Mexico border since he took office in January 2021.
After El Paso, the president will meet Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador in Mexico City for the North American Leaders’ Summit.
President Biden is expected to address the nation later Thursday about ongoing border security issues.