NY advocacy group sues to block Trump’s immigrant registration plan

Make the Road New York and a coalition of advocacy groups have asked a federal judge to invalidate a new Trump administration requirement that most undocumented immigrants register with the federal government or face civil and criminal penalties.

The federal court complaint, filed Monday in the District of Columbia, contends the interim final rule establishing the new online registry “creates an incoherent, inconsistent, and confusing registration scheme,” that the government has not explained.

The plaintiffs ask the court to issue a temporary stay blocking or postponing the registration rule, pending further consideration of the legal challenge, or to declare the interim rule establishing the registration requirement unlawful and set it aside outright.

The complaint was brought by a coalition of immigrant advocacy groups including the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, United Farm Workers of America, Casa Inc. and the New York chapter of Make the Road New York. It targets one of the very first measures put forth by President Donald Trump as part of his promised “mass deportation” of immigrants in the United States without permanent legal status.

The registration requirement was announced in an executive order signed by Trump on Jan. 20, the first day of the president's new term. The registry is necessary, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, because “a significant number of aliens present in the United States have had no direct way to register.”

“President Trump and [Department of Homeland Security] Secretary [Kristi] Noem have a clear message for those in our country illegally: leave now. If you leave now, you may have the opportunity to return and enjoy our freedom and live the American dream," DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. “The Trump administration will enforce all our immigration laws — we will not pick and choose which laws we will enforce. We must know who is in our country for the safety and security of our homeland and all Americans.”

Slated to take effect April 11, the measure requires noncitizen immigrants age 14 and older who are in the country for 30 or more days—who have not been documented by other means – to register with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services via a new online portal.

The online registry, among other items, requires registrants to list former addresses and note any criminal records. Registrants must carry an issued copy of their registration form at all times, according to the Trump administration’s proposed rule.

Those who fail to comply may be fined up to $5,000 and imprisoned for up to 30 days.

The lawsuit contends the requirement violates the Administrative Procedure Act, which requires agencies to provide public notice and an opportunity to comment on new rules. It claims the requirement is "arbitrary and capricious" and a “dramatic change in policy” at odds with longstanding practice.

“For eighty years, the federal government has chosen not to impose a universal registration requirement,” the complaint argues. “Instead, it has relied on existing immigration processes – visa and benefits applications, admission procedures, and removal proceedings – to screen noncitizens.”

The groups also say the administration has offered inadequate notice – just 11 days – to those affected by the rule and “without considering comments, and without engaging in reasoned decision-making.”

“The Trump registry is a blatant attempt by this administration to expand the immigration enforcement apparatus and tear families apart,” Natalia Aristizabal, deputy director of Make the Road New York, said in a statement. “Normalizing the idea that immigrants should carry registration paperwork everywhere and anywhere will only lead to more discrimination against communities of color and raise the risks of deportation for anyone this administration deems undesirable.”

Make the Road New York is also suing the Trump administration over its expansion of "expedited removal," which allows immigration officers to summarily deport individuals without significant review.