Attorney General Mark Brnovich Fights to Pause DHS Asylum Rule

PHOENIX --- Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich is asking the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana to postpone the effective date of the Asylum Interim Final Rule or grant a nationwide Preliminary Injunction. The new policy largely removes federal immigration judges from the asylum review process and instead gives asylum officers within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) unprecedented authority to grant asylum to migrants outright.

“With its shocking new rule, the Biden administration is attempting to commandeer the responsibilities and authority of federal immigration judges in the asylum process,” said Attorney General Mark Brnovich. “It is also pursuing this unprecedented power consolidation in a brazen manner that bypasses the requirements of the Administrative Procedures Act.”

DHS published an Interim Final Rule (Asylum Rule) in March that changes the process for migrants to enter the United States and obtain asylum through false claims. The Asylum Rule aims to disintegrate the asylum-claim process, which encourages illegal immigration.

In today’s filing, the coalition identifies that the Asylum Rule violates at least six statutory requirements, is arbitrary and capricious, and violates the APA notice and comment requirements. The coalition also argues that states will suffer irreparable harm if the effective date of the Asylum Rule is not delayed or if injunctive relief is denied, as the states must then bear the extensive financial cost of supporting migrants on state and local programs. Delaying the looming May 31, 2022 effective date will not only completely avoid harm to the states, but also prevent the federal government from inflicting harm upon itself.

The nation is facing historically unprecedented levels of illegal border crossings, and it is clear the Biden administration has lost all operational control of the border. The Asylum Rule exacerbates this disaster further, especially when considering the compounded effect of the Title 42 revocation (which Attorney General Brnovich is also leading a coalition against) alongside the Asylum Rule. Attorney General Brnovich will continue to lead the charge against Biden’s harmful border policies.

Arizona is leading the coalition and is joined by 19 Attorneys General from the States of Louisiana, Missouri, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Copy of coalition's preliminary injunction here.