18 states file motion against plans to end protections for Haitians, Venezuelans

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — A coalition of 19 attorneys general, led by New York, has filed a court motion opposing the Trump administration’s plan for lifting temporary protected status for Haitian and Venezuelan immigrants, Border Report has learned.

New York Attorney General Letitia James filed the brief on Tuesday, along with attorneys general from:

• Massachusetts
• California
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Hawaii
• Illinois
• Maine
• Maryland
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Nevada
• New Jersey
• Oregon
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Washington
• Wisconsin
• The District of Columbia

“The public interest will be harmed if Haitian and Venezuelan TPS beneficiaries are stripped of legal status,” according to the motion filed in a Massachusetts federal court.

The Department of Homeland Security this week said it will revoke legal protections for hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans, setting them up for potential deportation in about a month. The order applies to about 532,000 people from the four countries who came to the United States since October 2022. 

Several Haitians and Venezuelans, supported by several nonprofits filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration after DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced that temporary protected status (TPS) would be lifted in April for 350,000 Venezuelans who had previously been granted an extension of these protections under the Biden administration, allowing them to live and work in the United States for 18 months.

Haitians will lose their TPS in August and could also face deportation, Noem said.

“New York is home to thousands of hardworking Haitian and Venezuelan immigrants who are members of our communities, our culture, and our economy,” James said. “Stripping these individuals of their legal status will not make our communities safer or stronger, it will only put immigrants and their families in harm’s way. I urge the court to block this unlawful action and uphold these potentially life-saving legal protections.”

James says neither Haiti nor Venezuela are safe countries for these residents to return. And if they remain in the United States they will not be allowed to legally work and could suffer, and cause communities to also suffer.

“The States can speak to the irreparable harm the termination and vacaturs of TPS designations in this case will inflict the States and their residents. Unless postponed, this agency action will fracture the States’ communities and schools, damage their economies, deplete their workforces, and compromise public health and public safety within the States,” the motion states.

Over 56,000 TPS holders live in New York, including 5,400 from Haiti who live in New York City, James says. In 2023, New York TPS households earned $2.3 billion in income and paid over $348 million in federal taxes.

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.