04 Nov 2019
TRO Blocks Trump's Immigration Proclamation
"On October 4, 2019, the President of the United States issued Proclamation No. 9945, titled “Presidential Proclamation on the Suspension of Entry of Immigrants Who Will Financially Burden the United States Healthcare System” (the “Proclamation”). President Donald J. Trump directed that the Proclamation become effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on November 3, 2019. On October 29, 2019, the U.S. Department of State issued a “Notice of Information Collection” for “Emergency Review” (the “Emergency Notice”), which was published in the Federal Register on October 30, 2019, and provided a comment period of less than 48 hours.
... On October 30, 2019, seven U.S. citizens and a nonprofit organization (collectively, “Plaintiffs”) filed a nationwide class action complaint against the President, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of State, and related Cabinet Secretaries (collectively, “Defendants”), challenging both the
Proclamation and the Emergency Notice.
... On Saturday, November 2, 2019, at 2:00 p.m. Pacific daylight time, the Court held a hearing pursuant to Rule 65(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to consider Plaintiffs’ TRO motion.
... At this early stage of the proceedings, the Court is satisfied that Plaintiffs have shown either a substantial likelihood of success on the merits or at least serious questions going to the merits regarding their arguments that the Proclamation and its plan of implementation and enforcement conflict with the “public charge” provisions in Congress’ Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”) and related federal health care statutes. Plaintiffs have also shown, at least at this stage of the litigation, serious questions going to the merits regarding whether the Emergency Notice was arbitrary and capricious and, thus, in violation of the APA. At this time, the Court declines to reach whether the Emergency Notice also violated the procedural “notice and comment” requirements of the APA. Further, Plaintiffs have shown, at least thus far, that they are likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of temporary relief, that the balance of hardships tips sharply toward Plaintiffs, and temporary relief is in the public interest. Accordingly, Plaintiffs’ motion for TRO is granted, for a period not to exceed 28 days, to allow the parties sufficient time to brief and argue whether the Court should issue a preliminary injunction suspending the implementation and enforcement of the Proclamation until the issues presented in this lawsuit have been resolved on the merits."