Want to keep up with immigration news in the U.S.? Every month, Global Cleveland publishes our immigration update so that you can stay informed about the latest immigration news.

This month’s Immigration Update at a glance:

• Spending Bill Contains 12,000 SIVs for Afghan Allies
• Biden Announces Immigration Proposals in State of the Union
• SCOTUS Lifts Hold on Texas Law

• Federal lawmakers passed a spending bill that contained among other things 12,000 special immigrant visas for Afghans who aided the US military, and also extended the program until 2025
• Finding security for Afghan allies who fled their country has been a concern since the Taliban overthrew the Afghan government in 2021 and the US withdrew
• Congressman Michael McCaul of Texas said that the 12,000 visas was a “great response” to the needs of the Afghan evacuees
• A more permanent solution is needed, advocates say, and the bipartisan Afghan Adjustment Act remains pending.
• https://www.voanews.com/a/us-adds-12-000-special-immigrant-visas-for-afghans-advocates-say-more-needed-/7542185.html

• A bill that would require the detention of any migrant that committed theft or bulgary passed the House earlier this month.
• The bill was named after Laken Riley, a young woman who was murdered in Georgia earlier this year. The suspect in the murder, a Venezuelan man, had previously been detained on theft charges but was released
• The bill was primarily supported by Republicans, but also received considerable support from the Democratic caucus, with 37 Democratic members of Congress voting yes.
• Proposals to attach the bill to the spending “minibus” were underway but ultimately did not lead to the inclusion of the bill
• https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/07/politics/house-passes-laken-riley-act/index.html

• Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador weighed in on the US immigration debate and proposed measures that the US could take to address the high levels of migration across the US Mexico border.
• López Obrador suggested the US commit $20 billion annually in aid for countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, lift sanctions against Cuba and Venezuela, and offer legalization for Mexican citizens in the United States.
• López Obrador, who has been President of Mexico since 2019 and is leaving office this year as the Mexican constitution limits president to a single six year term, told 60 minutes that “the flow of migrants will continue” if these measures are not taken.
• The President also opposed any efforts to close the border, saying it would harm the economy in the US and Mexico.
•  https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mexican-president-andres-manuel-lopez-obrador-talks-immigration-cartels-fentanyl-crisis-60-minutes-transcript/

• The Transportation Safety Administration has begun requiring migrants who lack passports to undergo facial recognition screening to board domestic flights
• The TSA said that those without passports or valid ID will have to be identified in DHS records in order to be admitted to secure areas of airports
• It’s unclear when the change was implemented, though the TSA said it wasn’t in response to a specific threat.
• https://apnews.com/article/immigration-airport-security-facial-recognition-37b8f40ad768706cd335d9254e6a07e4

• President Joe Biden announced a series of new immigration related measures in the annual State of the Union Speech
• Key to the President’s proposals are the hiring of additional personell to staff border security and immigration agencies, including 4,300 new asylum officers, 1,500 border security agents, and 100 more judges
• https://www.boundless.com/blog/boundless-weekly-immigration-news-archive-march-15-2024/

• The Supreme Court weighed in on Texas’ controversial immigration bill, lifting a hold on the law in a 7-2 decision (albiet one that was later complicated by other court rulings)
• The law allows state law enforcement to arrest migrants who cross the border outside of the authorized crossings. The federal government has argued that this violates federal authority on the immigration issue.
• The Supreme Court did not itself rule on SB4’s constitutionality in any final decision
• https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/south-texas-el-paso/news/2024/03/19/supreme-court-lifts-hold-on-texas-immigration-law#:~:text=TEXAS%20—%20The%20Supreme%20Court%20will,court%20decides%20on%20its%20constitutionality.

• A federal appeals court kept in place a block on Texas’ controversial SB4 law
• The bill, which would have local law enforcement arrest migrants who engage in unathorized crossings of the US-Mexican border, has been the subject of a legal battle between the state and the federal government, who say that the law interferes with federal jurisdiction
• The decision, a 2-1 ruling, held an earlier suspension of the law’s implementation, and the subject remains one that will continue to play out in the court system.
• https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2024/03/27/texas-immigration-law-federal-appeals-court/

• Tragedy struck Baltimore, Maryland, when a container ship, the Dali, truck the Francis Scott Key Bridge after she experienced engine issues, collapsing the bridge
• The Consul General of Guatemala confirmed two Guatemalan citizens were among the presumed dead, while a local immigrant group confirmed that Miguel Luna, originally from El Salvador but a near 20-year Baltimore resident, was also among the victims
• The construction crew closed the bridge to traffic when the captain of the Dali issued a mayday call, saving lives.
• https://abcnews.go.com/US/baltimore-bridge-collapse-missing-construction-workers/story?id=108535622