The Political Insider - The White House will establish licensing regimes for family residential centers in order to address the illegal immigration crisis.
- A 2015 court ruling regarding the Flores settlement effectively mandates that family residential centers be regulated by state licensing regimes, but no such licensing exists, which has fueled the crisis.
- Because no state licensing regimes exist, a massive number of family units have been able to exploit U.S. immigration laws by claiming asylum and be quickly released from these family residential centers.
The Trump administration’s changes to the regulation of family detention will dramatically reduce the flow of illegal immigration into the U.S., homeland security officials and immigration hawks argue.
“Today, the government has issued a critical rule that will permit the Department of Homeland Security to appropriately hold families together and improve the integrity of the immigration system,” acting Secretary Kevin McAleenan said during a Wednesday press conference. “This rule allows the federal government to enforce immigration laws as passed by Congress and ensures that all children in U.S. government custody are treated with dignity, respect, and special concern for their particular vulnerability.”