The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today, in an 8-1 vote, that Texas and Louisiana lack standing to challenge the Biden administration’s decision-making about immigration prosecutions. The administration’s immigration enforcement priorities have been on hold for more than a year while the two states convinced federal courts to micromanage federal immigration policy.

National Immigrant Justice Center Executive Director Mary Meg McCarthy responded with the following statement:

“NIJC welcomes the Supreme Court’s ruling affirming that the Executive Branch has authority to exercise prosecutorial discretion to guide immigration enforcement decisions under laws passed by Congress — not anti-immigrant politicians or judges.

“At the center of U.S. v. Texas was Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas’s September 2021 memo to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers setting priorities for immigration enforcement. We’re glad to have actual high-level guidance for immigration priorities, but the Mayorkas memo is not perfect by any means. U.S. immigration policies have long put too much power in the hands of an abusive agency and violated U.S. obligations to protect asylum seekers. Today’s Supreme Court decision puts authority back into the hands of Secretary Mayorkas. We hope that he will now revisit these guidelines and implement agency policies that uphold justice and dignity for people who come to the United States to reunite with loved ones and seek safety.”