A federal appeals court determined that the Trump administration acted unlawfully in ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which allowed hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans to live and work in the United States.
The ruling was issued by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which affirmed a lower court’s decision concluding that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem exceeded her authority by prematurely terminating the TPS designation, according to CBS News.
The decision also supported the conclusion that Noem acted similarly in the case involving TPS for Haitians. However, the ruling will not have immediate effect, as the U.S. Supreme Court had previously allowed the cancellation to take effect while litigation continues.
The judges stated that the statute governing TPS does not grant the secretary authority to rescind an active designation and emphasized that the program is designed to provide stability and predictability for beneficiaries.
The opinion detailed the consequences of the cancellation for individuals who were working, paying taxes, and had no criminal records, some of whom have already been detained or deported.
The government has argued that TPS was applied excessively and that conditions in Venezuela and Haiti have improved, a position that has been rejected in court proceedings.